May 30, 2007
May 30, 2007 marks the 40th anniversary of the Rotary Engine, or the sometimes known Wankel Engine. As drivers may have noticed by now, Mazda is the only automaker in history which incorporated this engine into a land vehicle, as I’ve written in my The Only One blog post.
As Mazda MX-5 had its humble beginnings in just a draft on a paper, the idea of the rotary engine came into one of Felix Wankel’s(the German who invented the rotary engine) dream and he interpreted it as a premonition. He was just a 17-year old lad at that time and he had the slightest cardinal knowledge on how internal combustion engine works(which even makes him more of a genius when he was able to come up with his own engine, and even a rotating one at that). In his dream, he went to a concert riding his own hand-made car and he was telling his friends how proud he is of it’s engine, “My car has a new type of engine – a half-turbine half-reciprocated engine. I invented it.”
That “premonition” he got in his dream awoken his sleeping spirit for engineering and he was so sure that an engine could achieve the four strokes – intake, compression, combustion, and exhaust – while rotating. Five years after that dream in 1924, in his blossoming age of 22, Wankel founded his own small laboratory, wherein he could further research and develop his idea of a rotary engine. This continued on until the World War II and his research was supported by the German Aviation Ministry(we could probably conclude then why rotary engines were found mostly in helicopters). They believed that such engine will help lead the German nation towards greatness, if it’s taken into its full potential.
A look at the postwar would show us Wankel establishing his Technical Institute of Engineering so he could continue his research and development of rotary engine and rotary compressors(which will primarily be used for commercial purposes).
NSU, a German motorcycle manufacturer, showed great interest in Wankel’s research and so it partnered with Wankel for the continuous development of the rotary engine. NSU then completed its development of the rotary compressor. They combined it with Wankel’s supercharger, and when they installed it in one of the NSU-made motorcycles, it yet again set another world speed record(NSU motorcycles were already winning in the World Grand Prix championships at that time).
Then finally, in 1957, 38 years after Wankel’s dream(he had it in 1919), he, together with NSU, completed a prototype of the type DKM rotary engine, which was combined to a cocoon-shaped rotor housing with a triangular rotor.
And today, it celebrates its 40th year of birth. Cheers to Wankel and his rotary engine! A toast to its 40 years of success. If Wankel would have it, Dreams do become reality after all.
May 29, 2007
The Mazda Tribute made its triumphant entrance in the 2000 Los Angeles Auto Show and it was immediately considered to be the replacement for the much-loved Mazda Navajo. Ford Motor Company is its manufacturer but it remains that its root is still the Mazda company.
As all have seen, it’s a 5-door compact SUV, which is like the Ford Escape. The two SUVs actually came out in the same year, in 2001. Both offer front and all wheel drive and a choice of 2.0L Ford Zetec 4-cylinder or Ford Duratec 3.0L V6 engine. However similar they may be in those sense, Mazda Tribute still offers much more. The Tribute’s suspension is tuned for a firmer ride than the Escape.
The 2008 model for the Mazda Tribute will be renewed significantly like the Ford Escape, they said. It was initially thought of to be renamed Mazda CX-5 but authorities stuck to the original Mazda Tribute name. The changes visible on the 2008 Mazda Tribute model were the headlights, tailgates, grill, the sides of it were revised and made to be similar to the Ford Escape, lines and rounder wheel arches. Of course, Mazda didn’t forget to add some new features on its interior. But this time, Mazda Tribute reverted to using rear drum brakes.
2008 Mazda Tribute made its first appearance in the 2007 Montreal Auto Show and it went on sale immediately after that in March 2007.
May 26, 2007
It would be better to go back a decade or two to be able to decipher the reason behind the success of Mazda’s MX5. After all, it is through humble beginnings that success is accomplished. MX5 or Miata (as it is widely known) started its production in 1989 in its home country in Hiroshima Japan. Its debut was a significant event as it paved the way for roadsters to be revived in the automobile industry; being a roadster sports car itself.
It was Kenichi Yamamoto, head of the Research and Development in Mazda, when he was interviewed in 1976 who revealed Mazda’s intention to revive roadsters. He said that British convertibles have already been faced out. That is why Mazda thought of producing convertibles but at a much cheaper price. Bob Hall, the one who interviewed him, in 1981 was then with the Mazda US company and he met again met up with Yamamoto, who became chairman then of Mazda. Their meeting resulted into the approval of researching about the idea of producing a roadster.
1983 came and Offline 55 program of Mazda (the one responsible for seeking ways to change the look of new Mazda models) approved the idea of a Mazda roadster and so it was then made to be a concept car. The Mazda teams in Tokyo and California then made a competition out of the concept development to produce the best concept for the car.
The initial judgment was made in April 1984. The designs were still on paper then and the California team presented an FR layout(or Front-engine, Rear-wheel drive), while the Japanese team proposed the regular FF layout(Front-engine, Front-wheel drive) and an MR layout(Mid-engined, Rear-wheel drive). The judges first favored the MR layout of the Japanese. But when the second judgment was made in August of 1984, the FR layout of the California team won. At this time, clay models were already presented. The California team named it Duo 101 and it was selected to be the basis for the new-lightweight sport car that Mazda will soon produce.
It was International Automotive Design in England that received the commission to develop its running prototype, to be codenamed V705. It was completed in August 1985 and was driven on the roads of Santa Barbara in US. It got positive reactions from bystanders and so in January 18, 1986, the project got its final approval.
Then in 1989, the definitive model was chosen and then they named it MX-5 from Mazda eXperimental project number 5. It came out as expected, a light-weight sports car with only 940kg.
The First MX-5 Draft
May 23, 2007
Okay, now that you’ve equipped yourselves with the newly-released 2007 MX-5 Mazda Miata, it is about time to accessorize and customize. This is, after all, your car and should be first and foremost identifiable with your color and taste. Heck, if I own one, it would be in power purple by now!
Anyway, the whole idea is for your Miata to represent you, your personality and character. Equip it with an Air Dam, Fog Lights, Front Mask, License Plate Frame – absolutely anything.
To give you more idea on what you can put in your Miata, check out the Mazda Accessories Site.
May 18, 2007
Responsiveness seems to be the key concept on how Mazda creates their vehicles nowadays. 2007 came and Mazda opened up to new ideas on how to make cars more responsive and in control. Their CX7 SUV shows just how much powerful an SUV can be but still within the driver’s control.
Along their line of more responsive wheels, they also came up with their 2007 MX-5 MIATA. It now also features a hardtop like other convertibles available now. But what makes this Miata stand out among the lot of convertibles is that with just a push on a power button, its hardtop falls on a 12-second count. Now, is that amazing or what? That is just what I call power fun!
Its safety features include the basics like four-wheel anti-lock braking system and air bags. And added bonus is their run-flat tires, which enable the car to run even on when the tire’s pressure is lost. Of course, all these is coupled with a 166-horsepower 2.0 L engine and 6-speed manual transmission.
The love for Mazda Miata has extended beyond me as it was also a favorite, winning first place in the Editor’s Most Wanted Vehicles for 2007. And I say, this is a sports car gone wild, folks!
May 17, 2007
Sports Utility Vehicles were once before just “rides” to take you to trips and faraway places. It’s always our partner in crime when it comes to fun adventure, sight-seeing, beaching, and basically for everything that would require as to go out of town. It has become a necessity since then when it comes to that sense.
The huge built of SUVs have become handy in packing along with us our things, clothes, and other basic necessities. And also allowed us to go to a trip as a whole family with our speedboat just attached at the back of our SUV. We’re also attracted to its higher ride height, and its perceived safety.
Choosing for the best SUV to fit our taste and lifestyle could be a hassle in a sense that there are a lot of choices offered to us with the lot of automakers manufacturing SUVs. The SUVs vary in size – there’s a mini SUV like that of Honda CRV, Midsize SUV like Mazda’s CX7, and large SUVs like the Cadillac Escalade.
The Mazda CX7 is actually a newly-released vehicle from Mazda, that hopes to level to other luxury SUVs known to us. It has a sleek design, shredding of the boxy and traditional look, fit for a 20th century vehicle and is truly a sport crossover SUV. Like other SUVs, it is also an all-wheel-drive.
And, as an added attraction and performance, Mazda has incorporated their Zoom-Zoom technology in to the CX7. The end result is just as what everyone expected – 244 horsepower, direct injection, turbocharged engine, a 6-speed automatic transmission, four-wheel independent suspension to let you have better response and control over tight cornerings, and it features both worlds of automatic or manual transmission that adjusts to the owner’s driving style.
I do hope that it lives up to our expectations when it’s already driven. These attraction teasers are mouth-watering and Mazda is offering to satisfy our crave.
May 16, 2007
Mazda RX7 boasts to be the only one using a rotary type engine. And for that matter, owners of this reputable race car from Mazda could boast of them as well. RX7 is equipped with a twin rotor Wankel rotary engine, which was invented by German Felix Wankel. This revolutionary engine is said to be only equipped in helicopters. But thanks to the geniuses of Mazda, RX7 now holds in its body the power that a rotary engine has.
A truly-remarkable Mazda racer could be measured on how well he handles this unique engine as it is somewhat difficult to control. An advantage is that it is a much lighter engine compared to the regular piston designed engine. It doesn’t have connecting rods, conventional crankshaft, crankshaft balance weights and other things found in a regular engine.
And this, could only be found in Mazda RX series. Now you know, The Only One.
May 11, 2007
Sedans may have been tagged as boring by some adrenaline-rushed drivers. This is the main reason Mazda is taking it upon themselves to cease this reputation of sedans and replace it with something truly worthy of it. The Mazda6 that they released this 2007 will totally wipe off that “boring” repute and drivers will be amazed that such a sedan is capable of a powerful engine.
As Mazda sad it, “One real sports sedan with bold styling that matches its performance.” A real teaser for the performance-hungry driver and after taking it for a drive, Mazda’s hopeful that such hunger will be satisfied. Well, we hope the same thing, right?
This new Mazda6 has two available engines – the 2.3L 156 hp, and has dual balance shaft for that V-6 level smoothness, and the second is a 3.0L 212 hp engine. Both these have a throttle-by-wire accelerator system to provide a smooth and linear engine response to pedal movement.
May 10, 2007
It’s becoming every car owner’s habit nowadays to customize every accessory they can to make it identified with them, their car, and their taste. With MTV’s Pimp My Ride, it has almost become a necessity to dress up and pamper ones car. MTV spent no time in following another program with Pimp My Ride as its base concept, Trick It Out, hosted by RJ de Vera. However this program is a contest between two things to turn an ordinary car into something extraordinary and may even be classified as out of this world, but should still remain a vehicle at heart. LOL! Of course, it also still needs to be within a limited time and budget.
Dressing up cars has become a passion for the car tuners and other drivers are being tempted to do the same. Street racers, though they can live without these customizations( (as it may only add weight to their car), it wouldn’t hurt to add a little touch to the car’s paint, its hood, doors, and other little stuff on the car that wouldn’t really add any weight.
For that matter, Mazda RX7&RX8 racers could then give a little twist on the cars exterior with a little paint, a quick replacement of paint on the hood, and some easy designs on the sides of the car, add a spoiler on the back for better aerodynamic flow while racing, change the mags on its wheels and add some hubcaps – and they’ll not just be racing to win, but racing to impress as well.
May 8, 2007
This is hell fun! I haven’t seen a ride as sweet and hot as this since Batman’s batmobile graced us with its presence in our theaters worldwide. Mazda Motor Company seems to want to relive the experience of feeling pure awe just by gazing at a car (that seems to be out of this world), when they decided to reveal three of their concept cars in the 2007 Auto Show that happened in LA.
True, the Hakaze, Ryuga, and Nagare concept cars of Mazda seem to be far-fetched but with the right tools, equipments, concepts, and basically right everything, it will materialize and dominate the streets and freeways to turn us bystanders green with envy to the ones owning them.
Their designs are ultimately futuristic – appearing like a little stretch limousine coupe but a little high enough to pose as an SUV – how’s that for a future car? I just hope that with Nagare’s literal meaning as “flow” and Ryuga as “gracious flow,” their produced vehicles will live up to their semantical meanings.
