What other cars have a Rotary
Joined: Feb 2001
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From: London, Ontario, Canada
As far as non-Mazda production cars, I believe there was only the NSU Ro80 and NSU Spyder.
Most manufacturers had prototype research vehicles with a rotary. Toyota, GM, etc. GM had intended for the Vega to be rotary but they couldn't make it work. They also built a 4 rotor Corvette called the Aerovette under direction from John DeLorean. Mercedes made a 4 rotor supercar but it was only a prototype.
Most manufacturers had prototype research vehicles with a rotary. Toyota, GM, etc. GM had intended for the Vega to be rotary but they couldn't make it work. They also built a 4 rotor Corvette called the Aerovette under direction from John DeLorean. Mercedes made a 4 rotor supercar but it was only a prototype.
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Joined: Jul 2009
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From: land of ahs
if you are really interested in this stuff, there are some good sources on the web and a few good books on wankel history.
nsu was not one of the foundation brands for audi, it's more like the 5th or 6th of the 4 rings....
but the merger of auto union, nsu and vw in the late 60s really leads to the modern audi line.
but the nsu rotary cars are VERY uncommon, the motorbikes might be easier to find.
the nsu wankel spider was a pretty cool looking example, sort of alfa-ghia ish, because they did the body work.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:NSU_Wankel_Spider.jpg
nsu worked with citroen to develop a french wankel, but the production facility was never built.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comotor
in the mid 70s, most of the major players were in rotary development,
then the first oil crisis hit.
the vega was to be offered with either/or, but the chevy MONZA (name stealing ne1?) was a totally dedicated rotary platform...
that died before production, with the change of leaders at gm.
i suspect all of the prototypes from gm/benz and others are on mothballs somewhere now....
in addition to the light aircraft that have rotors, there was a radio controlled toy plane in the 60s? with small rotary engine....
i think the displacement was 5cc?...
cheers
henry
nsu was not one of the foundation brands for audi, it's more like the 5th or 6th of the 4 rings....
but the merger of auto union, nsu and vw in the late 60s really leads to the modern audi line.
but the nsu rotary cars are VERY uncommon, the motorbikes might be easier to find.
the nsu wankel spider was a pretty cool looking example, sort of alfa-ghia ish, because they did the body work.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:NSU_Wankel_Spider.jpg
nsu worked with citroen to develop a french wankel, but the production facility was never built.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comotor
in the mid 70s, most of the major players were in rotary development,
then the first oil crisis hit.
the vega was to be offered with either/or, but the chevy MONZA (name stealing ne1?) was a totally dedicated rotary platform...
that died before production, with the change of leaders at gm.
i suspect all of the prototypes from gm/benz and others are on mothballs somewhere now....
in addition to the light aircraft that have rotors, there was a radio controlled toy plane in the 60s? with small rotary engine....
i think the displacement was 5cc?...
cheers
henry
Last edited by openrx; Aug 1, 2009 at 03:45 PM.
^Not a bike guy, but there were rotary powered motorcycles by Suzuki and Norton....and it's Wankel. Does that make Suzuki and Norton legit?
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/04/14/v...cle-in-action/
As a side note, it's ironic that GM didn't go with the rotary for the Vega. For it's time (before japanese manufacturers were widely imported) and price, it wasn't a bad (looking) car. What killed it IMO was the POS engine they stuck in it. An all-aluminum 4-cyl (non-sleeved IIRC) block that couldn't start if it were much below freezing. That car put me through college...as I worked for a family owned towing business that was contracted with area Chevrolet dealers. They produced limited numbers of a Cosworth Vega that would start. And they were relatively fast for the times. But when something did go wrong, no one (including GM Techs) knew how to work on them.
I'm probably the only person with fond memories of the car.
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/04/14/v...cle-in-action/
As a side note, it's ironic that GM didn't go with the rotary for the Vega. For it's time (before japanese manufacturers were widely imported) and price, it wasn't a bad (looking) car. What killed it IMO was the POS engine they stuck in it. An all-aluminum 4-cyl (non-sleeved IIRC) block that couldn't start if it were much below freezing. That car put me through college...as I worked for a family owned towing business that was contracted with area Chevrolet dealers. They produced limited numbers of a Cosworth Vega that would start. And they were relatively fast for the times. But when something did go wrong, no one (including GM Techs) knew how to work on them.
I'm probably the only person with fond memories of the car.
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