Motoring.com of Australia is reporting that the next-gen Mazda RX-7 for 2017 will use a twin-scroll turbo to deliver more than 450 hp. Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing. -image courtesy Motoring.com
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+ The 14,000-member workforce at General Motors Korea has voted to approve a strike as negotiations regarding wages and working conditions stalled out. More at Reuters.
+ Livonia, Michigan-based TRW Automotive has received a buyout offer from ZF Friedrichshafen of Germany that would create the world’s second-largest automotive supplier. More at Bloomberg.com.
+ Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk will donate $1 million to a Long Island, New York museum honoring the pioneering electrical inventor Nikola Tesla. More at NBC News.
+ IndyCar competition boss Derrick Walker says a zero-tolerance policy on race car technical infractions is unrealistic, but that the process will be improved. More at Racer.
+ Reportedly, the next-gen Mazda RX-7 Turbo that appears in May 2017 will offer more than 335 kW or 450 hp. More at Motoring.
+ Retired Honda Performance Development director Robert Clarke has taken a new position as president of SCCA Pro Racing. More at NBC Sports.
+ Ford Motor Co. has created a $1 million engineering scholarship fund in the name of newly retired CEO Alan Mulally. More at The Detroit News.
+ General Motors has reassigned Cadillac boss Bob Ferguson as senior vice president of global public policy. More at the Detroit Free Press.
+ The Red Bull Global RallyCross series has dropped Detroit from its revised 2014 schedule, converting the Los Angeles date into a doubleheader. More at Autoweek.
For the previous Executive Briefing from July 7, click here.
I love the RX-7 and the Mazda rotary, but this sounds like a bad idea. Using a modified MX-5 platform would benefit both cars but dragging out an old one and updating it leads to a rush job and more overhead than necessary. And it sounds like the power upgrade will be rushed as well.
It drives beautifully but many have been turned off by the rotary engine because of oil and fuel consumption. Mazda really needs to concentrate on those issues before it worries about competing with the high end cars.
I’ve read that the rotary is the ideal engine for hydrogen power. So they should keep it around and continue to hone it regardless of how well it sells.
I liked the last generation RX-7. Should get one while they’re still reasonable.