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Mazda's Tokyo concept foretells of rotary revival

Mazda has long been rumored to be planning a revival of its rotary-powered sports car. Some of those rumors may have come down to wishful thinking as much as concrete information. But now, on the eve of the Tokyo Motor Show, new details have come to light. The Japanese automaker is slated to unveil a two-door sports car concept, previewed in the teaser image above. Little in the way of firm information has been made available prior to the show car's debut, but sources are now citing senior company officials as confirming it has a rotary engine. "It is a two-door, two-seater, Mazda CEO Masamichi Kogai told Autocar. "It is a pure sports car design. We have MX-5 and another icon is a rotary sports car. We haven't talked about market reach but this would be in that segment." R&D chief Kiyoshi Fujiwara added: "People think rotary can not meet modern eco demands. The SkyActiv engineers worked on rotary and gave it cutting-edge tech. It is an essential part of our DNA and it [will] just be passed onto future engineers. It is synonymous with the brand. Some time in the future it will return and be called SkyActiv-R." The last time Mazda produced a rotary-powered model, of course, was with the RX-8, which ended production in 2012. That was preceded by three generations of RX-7, the first of which will be celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2018. If it manages to get the Wankel technology up to modern standards, that could provide just the right opportunity for Mazda to launch a new model. Reached for comment, Mazda spokesman Jacob Brown told Autoblog: "While we can confirm that Mazda continues to develop rotary engines, we cannot confirm production of a rotary at this point. Rotaries are one of the signature engineering technologies that define Mazda, and we will continue exploring them to see where they may fit for production applications." Related Video:

Mazda ad showing Facebook updates while driving criticized by Senate committee [w/video]

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-WV, held an all-day summit on Thursday to discuss the dangers of using modern technology while driving, during which an ad that Mazda aired during the Super Bowl was used as an example of the worrisome future towards which we're headed. While seemingly innocuous at first glance, the ad, which can be seen below, shows a brief glimpse of a driver using the Mazda Connect infotainment system in a Mazda3 to check/update his Facebook page while driving down the road.
Officials from major communications companies like Samsung, Google and Apple attended the summit, as well as representatives from automakers including General Motors and Toyota. A representative from Mazda was not present despite the company's own currently available technology being used as the poster child for the issues being discussed.
According to Automotive News, Senator Rockefeller warned the automaker and communication execs on hand that he will propose legislation to regulate the use of technology while driving if they don't work together to implement their own standards more quickly. Michael Robinson, GM's vice president of sustainability and global regulatory affairs, argued that his company has had distracted driving guidelines in place for 15 years since the advent of its OnStar system, noting that the technology in question has also helped the automaker save lives through automatic crash detection and calls to 911.

Next-gen Mazda MX-5 could use carbon fiber to cut weight

The current Mazda MX-5 Miata has only been out for a few years, but the automaker is allegedly looking for ways to lighten the next one. According to a report from Autocar, Mazda is looking to carbon fiber to help the next-generation MX-5 cut weight and use a smaller engine. Despite having more safety features, modern amenities, and a stiffer body, the current MX-5 is the same size as the original sports car from 1990 and weighs less than its immediate predecessor. In a recent interview with Autocar, Nobuhiro Yamamoto, head of the Miata program, revealed that the next generation of the Miata will probably stay the same size, but could be even lighter thanks to the utilization of carbon fiber. The current MX-5 uses high-strength steel and aluminum, and Mazda doesn't use carbon fiber in any of its cars. Carbon fiber is expensive to incorporate into road-going vehicles, and so Yamamoto notes that Mazda has been hard at work making it more affordable. A lighter car could result in a smaller engine, Yamamoto said. In the US, the MX-5 comes with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 155 horsepower, while the Japanese and European version comes with a 1.5-liter, 130-hp engine. A smaller engine would make the sports car even lighter. It's unknown at this time if the automaker is collaborating with another automaker or a supplier to make produce carbon fiber, or if it'll make it in-house. There's no word on how much carbon fiber the next MX-5 will wear or how it will affect the sports car's price. Autocar reports that the next MX-5 won't arrive anytime before 2021, which could make the ND MX-5's lifespan an unusually short five years long. With cars getting heavier, it's nice to hear that Mazda is working on finding a way to make its lightweight sports car even lighter. Related Video: News Source: AutocarImage Credit: Mazda Mazda Convertible Coupe Lightweight Vehicles