Mazda's Rotary Engine Might Appear in a New Toyota Project, But You're Going to Be Disappointed
With news of Mazda’s rotary engine development surfacing throughout the past year, we’ve been actively following its progress. Of course, die-hard rotary fans have been less enthused, as all information points to the powerplant continuing on as a gas-driven range extender for EVs — rather than the heart and soul of a high-performance coupe. It could still happen, but it’ll be a long wait.
The prognosis recently became more interesting, though enthusiasts aren’t likely to feel any better about it. Toyota is hinting that Mazda’s rotary could be the perfect solution to a concept vehicle it’s currently working on. Unfortunately, that unit is the e-Palette — an autonomous box riding atop the company’s new battery electric platform, with more applications as a mobile store than as a personal conveyance.
We shouldn’t pigeonhole the e-Palette, though. Its design and name simultaneously indicate a clean slate, allowing it to be purpose-built for loads of uses. It comes in three sizes, ranging from 13 feet long to approximately 23 feet, and is intentionally designed to be as flexible as possible.
Toyota has already partnered with Amazon and Pizza Hut to explore autonomous delivery applications, but there’s no reason to believe it couldn’t be outfitted for shuttling humans. (It will likely need to be redesigned to adhere to safety regulations before the Uber affiliation bares any real fruit.)
Toyota also tapped Mazda as its technology partner for the project, adhering to an earlier promise to collaborate on EVs. According to Green Car Reports, the e-Palette presented at 2018’s CES didn’t include an internal combustion engine. But Jacob Brown, spokesman for Mazda North America, said Mazda’s engineering team will ultimately share powertrain developments with Toyota, including a range-extending rotary engine.
“Mazda will provide technical information on a [rotary engine] range extender to be used in the vehicle being developed. We will reveal more details at an appropriate time,” Brown said.
Neither Toyota nor Mazda was willing to specify if the rotary range enhancer would be limited to the e-Palette concept, but we’d guess not. Considering the vehicle is really just a shell for Toyota’s new EV platform, there is no reason it couldn’t be equipped for other more contemporary models. Meanwhile, Mazda’s new EV architecture is set to arrive in 2019 (with help from Toyota) and could also make use of the rotary.
[Image: Toyota]
A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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Please be the pizza delivery pod Please be the pizza delivery pod Please be the pizza delivery pod
There's something dystopian about that "Ride Sharing 37" thing. It looks like something you'd see in a totalitarian dictatorship. (I say this as someone who has nothing against self-driving cars *per se*, but abhors the idea of losing individual car ownership.)