A sight for sore eyes would be the rebirth of a purist icon without the intervention of electrification and with rumours emanating of Mazda doing just this with the rotary-powered RX-8, digital artists have begun conceptualizing what it could look like.
The Kodo design philosophy has been serving all of Mazda’s latest creations and now Nikita Chuiko from Kolesa.ru has envisioned what it could potentially look like wearing the silhouette of the familiar RX-8 and its iconic suicide door setup. With constant murmurs of the Japanese firm reigniting their rotary heritage for the nameplate constantly lingering on the lips of eager fans and petrolheads, nothing has been confirmed yet.
The rotary motor, to the dismay of many, has remained as part of Mazda’s model lineup although it hasn’t been for the reasons petrolheads appreciate the configuration. Serving only as a generating unit to a battery in the new MX-30, it did instil a reinvigorated sense of hope that the Dorito-shaped combustion motor could return to its pure form before electrification consumes all automakers.
Related: Mazda brings its rotary engine back to life as a generator in the MX-30
The Japanese firm has teased a few design studies of slender coupes and virtual models destined for gameplay however nothing tangible has materialised. It has been over a decade since the last rotary-powered model rolled off of the production line after the RX-8 was produced at the Hiroshima plant for just shy of a decade.
Related: Mazda’s Vision Study Model continues lineage of beautiful coupes
These renders envision the model wearing the large angular grille with intersecting headlights at the front while the rear boasts a sleek horizontal taillight spanning most of the boot lid and a spoiler sitting above. Modest changes to the side have been implemented, with a front fender air vent now present. Based on Mazda’s current design philosophy, this concept may not be that far off what a real derivative may look like should it eventually materialise.
