Hello all,
I got overtaken by a Mazda rx8 the other day and I was amazed at the sound the engine makes. I've heard Scotty talk about the wankel engine and they are very interesting to me and I would like to learn more about them.
Does anyone have any personal experience with them? If so, would you recommend it to someone who is interested in either daily driving it, tinkering with it, or having it as a weekend toy? I'd really like to know.
Tinkering or toy, yes. Daily no. I haven't personally disassembled one of these engines but have seen them separated and checked.
The issue is oil use. However, not many engines can make so much power in relation to size as the wank. Plenty of info out there on them but parts will become an issue imo sometime down the road.
I agree with @hillbilly answer too.
But don't forget those apex seals lol! That's the biggest downside of a rotary engine. The apex seals are crucial to the rotary's intake, compression, and exhaust "cycle" (they're synonymous to piston rings AND valves on the 4-stroke engine). When they go bad you have to disassemble the engine to replace them. They go bad fairly quickly from all the rubbing they do against the chamber walls and combustion they endure, which is why rotary engines are disassembled pretty frequently. They need to be replaced every 100k-150k miles. Donut media on YouTube has a great video on how the rotary engine works.
It's personally my favorite engine because they do make a lot of power for their small size and only have three moving parts (two triangular rotors and eccentric shaft)! The power comes from the super high rev limit, not so much from the torque produced. But oil consumption, emissions, and maintenance are the downsides.
I've never worked on one. I've only ridden in them.
But, I do have a fascination with the Wankel engine. It's a clever little design. And what others have said, those apex seals will need to be changed more often than not.
