Unlike the conventional piston engines that power the majority of the cars on the road today, the Wankel engine — more commonly referred to as a rotary engine — designed by German engineer Felix Wankel and patented back in 1929, takes a more innovative approach to essentially accomplish the same thing: convert pressure into motion to help propel our vehicles forward.
The simplicity and compact design of the rotary engine is what sets it apart from other internal combustion engines, with Mazda and their RX-8 sports coupe perhaps making the Wankel power plant more of a household name in the past few decades.
Rotary Engine: The Pros and Cons
First, here’s a quick overview of some of the good and bad that come with this type of engine.
Pros:
- A smoother and more compact design
- More reliable: simplicity of design means less can go wrong
- Can last longer: fewer moving parts a big plus
Cons:
- Expensive to repair: an uncommon engine means more costly to repair; plus, you need to find a specialist
- More maintenance: the simplicity of design is a plus, but the tradeoff is more frequent, consistent maintenance
- Oil leaks: perhaps the most common issue with the rotary engine
- Not fuel efficient: requires more oil and fuel mix to keep things lubricated; down goes fuel economy
The rotary engine layout simplified
In simple terms, a rotary engine is a type of internal combustion engine that uses a triangular rotor instead of traditional pistons to produce power. The rotor moves in a circular motion within an oval-shaped chamber, creating the combustion and power generation cycles. This design offers advantages like smooth and high-revving performance, but it’s less common than piston engines.
How does the Wankel rotary engine work?
Well, we could explain this peculiar machine’s workings in a long text block. Or, we can share this terrific infographic from the team at Animagraffs to help break it all down visually.
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