1990 Mazda Rx-7 A Fun Car Tio Drive on 2040-cars

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A tuned 1973 Mazda RX-3 is all business on Petrolicious

People with good memories might remember Savant Young and his highly modified 1973 Mazda RX-3 from an appearance on Jay Leno's Garage last summer. Now Petrolicious spotlights him and learns more about his amazing rotary coupe. After extensive upgrades, his car packs an estimated 400 horsepower, which is especially potent with only around 2,000 pounds to move around. Young thinks his Mazda is a perfect expression of his personality as a martial artist because it offers no frills and is all about business. This coupe looks ready for a fight, too, and sounds like a swarm of angry bees going down the road. Young works hard during the week but makes time to drive the RX-3 every weekend. We can understand why. A few hours enjoying this rotary could definitely erase some stress. Get a taste of this amazing machine in Petrolicious' latest video. If you want to experience another cool rotary, the channel profiled an RX-2 racecar from Australia last month. Related Video:

Mazda's rotary engine may live on as a range extender (UPDATE)

Update: We received a response from Mazda that confirmed plans for a 2019 electric car available in battery-only and range-extended models, but there was no comment on any other details. The text has been updated to reflect this. It may be time for rotary fans to start getting their hopes up a little for a return of the spinning triangle engine. Automotive News spoke with Mitsuo Hitomi, the man in charge of Mazda powertrains, who said there's a very good chance the next implementation of the rotary engine will be as an electric car range extender. The news source also suggests that such a vehicle could be just around the corner, since Akira Kyomen, Mazda's vehicle development program manager, confirmed to Automotive News that the company will have an EV out in 2019 in both pure electric and range-extended versions. We reached out to Mazda for more information, and a representative confirmed both the pure electric and range-extended models for 2019, but couldn't comment on anything else regarding those vehicles. Looking back, we have reason to believe that this really might happen. As far back as 2013, Mazda was working on a rotary-engine range-extended electric car in the form of the Mazda2 RE Range Extender. It had a total range of 250 miles, half of which came from its battery, the other half from a 330 cc rotary engine generator fueled by a 2.6-gallon gas tank. More recently, Mazda has also teased rotary power with the RX-Vision concept at the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show and another rumored rotary concept at this year's show, which could be the design concept teased recently. But most convincing is the patent we found from Mazda that described a range-extended electric car that would specifically use a rotary engine. The powertrain layout looks just like the one used in that Mazda2 concept. There's also the fact that, as we've previously pointed out, and as Hitomi mentioned to Automotive News, the rotary could be a good range-extender due to its compact size and smoothness. Of course it also isn't known for being the most efficient engine, but if it isn't required to provide all the forward propulsion, it could be made small enough that it's frugal, and the added space and weight savings would be important for making the vehicle more practical, adding more batteries, or simply keeping the car lighter. This news might not excite rotary die-hards who have been waiting for an RX-7 and RX-8 successor, but they shouldn't quite abandon hope yet.

Best places to get your car maintained and repaired

In this era of rampant inflation and high interest rates, the challenges of acquiring a car or SUV have been well documented. And so it has never been more important to protect that expensive investment by maintaining it. In recent months, Autoblog has shared Consumer Reports' evaluation of the least and most expensive car brands to keep running, as well as tips to prolong a car’s useful life. Especially since the pandemic, a number of factors have impacted these costs: more complex vehicles, new materials and manufacturing methods, a shortage of qualified technicians and replacement parts. Since 2022, repairs costs have jumped each year by about 10 percent. This month, Consumer Reports is offering a useful primer on keeping your ride in great shape, suggesting what might be the best options for searching out a repair shop, depending, as CR says, “on your car and your situation.” Author Ben Preston identifies three basic types of repair facilities: dealership service departments, independently owned repair shops, and chain repair shops. Building up trust with a specific shop and feeling comfortable going there is important. Preston quotes John Ibbotson, chief mechanic at Consumer ReportsÂ’ Auto Test Center: "You might be able to save a few bucks by going to whichever shop offers the cheapest prices, but if you want consistent, reliable service, itÂ’s best to find a repair shop you trust and stick with it,” Ibbotson says. The story goes on to evaluate each type of service facility. HereÂ’s a breakdown of CRÂ’s findings: Dealerships These work well for owners of newer cars, especially for covered warranty work. But the disadvantage is the high labor rates common to dealer service. Satisfaction ratings for dealer service departments range from very good (Acura, Lexus, Mazda, and Volvo) to not-so-good (Jeep and Kia). Dealers are best for: Fixing infotainment system glitches: "If the screen in the center of your dash has a habit of freezing up, or the touchscreen-activated climate controls arenÂ’t working, the dealership is the most likely place to find someone with the know-how to fix problems that maybe only a factory-authorized technician can access," Ibbotson says. Safety system recalibration: "Anything from a crack in your windshield to a minor fender dent can upset the calibration of the sensors that make features like automatic emergency braking and adaptive cruise control work," says Ibbotson.