The next-generation Mazda RX-7 has been confirmed by the company’s sports car chief, Nobuhiro Yamamoto. Accordingly, the all-new RX-7 is scheduled to debut in 2017, which marks 50 years since the introduction of Mazda's first rotary-engined car, the 1967 Cosmo Sport 110S.
Motivation is expected to be provided by a naturally-aspirated 16X rotary engine, possibly the 16X which was unveiled in 2007 but has yet to find its way into any production model yet. This is a 1.6-liter engine with 300 hp.
Nobuhiro Yamamoto says that the new Mazda RX-7 will "definitely be lighter" with the use of aluminum body panels and "probably around the weight of the Toyota 86" (1,250 kg). Meanwhile, design inspiration is likely to come from the Mazda Takeri Concept.
Expected to be built on the same platform as the next-generation MX-5, but the RX-7 will be heavier and larger, with an extended wheelbase to accomodate a pair of small rear seats for the Japanese market. However, as with the previous generation, the new RX-7 will be a two-seater in Western markets.
Source Themotorreport
