A Rotary Engine in Action

Back when I was in Bemidiji last weekend, I promised you that I might have a big blog surprise. I was hoping to take home another thing I found along the side of the road. It was white '86 Mazda RX7, just like the one pictured on the left. I took it for an amazing test drive on Sunday, but I had to pass it up because it had trouble getting from second to third.
Despite the problematic transmission in the Mazda RX7, the test drive was thrilling because I got to see the famous Wankel Rotary Engine running, up close and personal. What is so exciting about this engine? To start with, it's a rotary engine, completely lacking the pistons and cylinders found in a normal engine. On top of that, the base Mazda RX7 had a two rotor 1.3L engine that output around 140 or 150 horsepower. For comparison my Festivas and my Aspire all had a 1.3L engine that output 70 horsepower. The rotary design offers a smaller engine with a lot more kick.
I was a little sad to leave the RX7 behind, as I've been watching for one that's a good deal for about 6 years now. But since Mazda introduced its descendant, the hot little RX8, I still have hope of someday obtaining my own rotary engine.