Mazda Leases RX-8 Hydrogen To Japanese Ministry
Mazda has leased a dual-fueled RX-8 Hydrogen Rotary Engine vehicle to Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) for use in the Ministry’s daily operations. It is the eighth hydrogen rotary-powered vehicle to be leased out by the Japanese automaker since February 2006 and also marks the first hydrogen vehicle to be taken on by Japan’s central government.
The RX-8 Hydrogen features a dual-mode fuel system, enabling the driver to go to gasoline or hydrogen power at the flip of a switch. When engaged in hydrogen mode, the engine produces extremely low levels of carbon dioxide, a primary cause of global warming. Mazda has been developing hydrogen-powered engines since 1991 and received permission from the Japanese government to publicly test its hydrogen rotary in 2004. The rotary engine in the RX-8 Hydrogen is called the Renesis.
The Renesis is Mazda’s next-generation rotary engine that was launched in early 2003 in the all-new Mazda RX-8. The Renesis was named International Engine of the Year in June 2003. It delivers high power output for a naturally aspirated engine of its size and demonstrates significantly improved fuel economy and reduced emissions compared with previous generation rotary engines. The Renesis Hydrogen Rotary Engine is a Mazda-unique alternative-fuel vehicle. It is the ultimate demonstration of the flexibility of the unique rotary engine, maintaining a traditional driving feel, yet realizing extremely clean emissions through the use of hydrogen. The Renesis Hydrogen Rotary Engine capitalizes on the advantages of the rotary engine to assure the same ease-of-operation and reliability whether the engine is running on gasoline or hydrogen fuel. Moreover, since the engine requires modifications to run on hydrogen, it could enable production of a relatively low-cost hydrogen-powered alternative-fuel vehicle. The engine has been developed with a dual-fuel system, allowing it to run on either gasoline or hydrogen.
According to Mazda, the rotary engine is ideally suited for hydrogen power due to a cooler combustion area than in a conventional piston engine. Because of this advantage, the conversion process of a rotary engine from gasoline to hydrogen power is relatively simple.
All the hydrogen rotary vehicles leased out thus far have not only served as daily transportation, but have also been displayed at public events to increase awareness about environmental issues. There’s no word yet on whether we could be seeing a hydrogen rotary stateside.