The return of Mazda’s rotary engine in slender, rear-drive coupe is probably the most perpetuated of all enthusiast-led rumours. As an automaker with such a rich history in motor racing to fuel a selection of fast everyday cars, not to mention a distinguished engine innovator, the Japanese automaker has throttled back this aspect of its character.
Back in late 2015, with the unveiling of the RX Vision Concept, a car that seemed to tick all the right boxes for what fans wanted for a successor to the capable but controversial RX-8, a car that made its debut in 2003 and is still the most recent production rotary to emerge from Hiroshima.
It added so much coal to the furnace of speculation that everyone thought there’s no way Mazda would tease such a thing without something being planned for the foreseeable future, and that’s despite the numerous official denials to the contrary. Mazda knows better, and it knows their fans better.
More recently, just after the 2018 Los Angeles Motor Show which opened last week where the automaker introduced the newest generation of their popular 3 sedan and hatch, it was reported by AutoGuide that a patent had been filed with the relevant bodies in Japan to stick a pin in the name ‘MX-6’ on behalf of Mazda.
Grains of salt notwithstanding, many were quick to link this to the possibility of a more high-end sports model above the MX-5, one that would be powered by an all-new version of Mazda’s high-revving RENESIS rotary petrol engine, possibly supplemented with a turbocharger or two.
A more likely unfolding of this development is Mazda to indeed be in the early to midway stages of developing a second sports model, one larger and more upmarket to their famous roadster. Like the short-lived Mazda MX-6 coupe from the late 1980s, it could roughly match the size of today’s Mazda6 sedan like former car did with its equivalent, the 626.
Another possibility is that a faster and sportier 4-door coupe is in the works, much in the same vein as Kia Stinger or even the Audi A7 and Mercedes-Benz CLS, but derived from the upcoming replacement to the current Mazda6.
However, unlike the RX series of cars, this will likely also serve as a showcase for the latent performance potential of Mazda’s new and more fuel efficient SkyActiv-X family of compression ignition engines, not to serve as a platform for the return of the rotary.
Hopefully, Mazda will insist that any possible future MX-6 will be rear-wheel drive unlike the last car to bear that name. Pair that with a capable chassis and comfortable ride, and Mazda could have a class-leading sports coupe on their hands, one that could compete with the new Toyota Supra. Rotary or not, that would be some comeback.
For more on Mazda cars. check out our Showroom.
