Mazda teases new Vision concept, but will it herald a born-again RX rotary sports car?

Mazda has announced it will reveal a new ‘Vision‘ concept car at the 2025 Tokyo motor show – now known as the Japan Mobility Show – later this month, raising hopes it could preview a long-lamented successor for hallowed rotary-powered sports cars like the RX-7 and RX-8. 

A single, cropped teaser image (pictured above) was issued today, revealing the sweeping roofline of what appears to be a coupe-like sedan (as evidenced by the four-door design you can see more clearly in the image we’ve lightened below), along with a statement confirming Mazda will unveil the new concept in Tokyo on October 29.

In the statement, the Japanese automaker described the show car as “representing the vision for future Mazda vehicles” without declaring it a preview of a production model of any kind.

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Fans of rotary-powered Mazda coupes have been left in the cold since the RX-7 was discontinued in 2002, before the four-door RX-8 came and went by 2012.

But they were given hope most recently by a report claiming a new rotary engine currently in development could reach production by 2026, and before that in 2023 when Mazda revealed the sleek 2+2-seat Iconic SP coupe concept, complete with a pair of scissor doors.

At the time, it was described by Mazda’s chief technical officer as “a good successor to the RX-7” and since then several Mazda executives have expressed their desire for the Iconic SP to enter production.

However, rather than a rotary engine driving the rear wheels – as in the RX-7 and RX-8, and every rotary-powered, RX-badged Mazda before them – the Iconic SP was powered by a 270kW extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) drivetrain, including a rotary engine that operated only as a generator for the battery pack, which in turn powered an electric motor.

A version of the EREV powertrain was fitted to the Mazda MX-30 R-EV, which was not sold in Australia, where only mild-hybrid and all-electric versions of the small SUV were made available between 2021 and 2023. 

At the reveal of the Iconic SP, Mazda said it may also produce a version in which the rotary engine powers the wheels. 

As you can see from the images above, the 2025 Vision has an even narrower side window opening, a thicker C-pillar (behind the rear doors), and a more dramatically rising rear belt line than the Iconic SP coupe.

Although it’s difficult to make out much more than that from the teaser photo, there appear to be head restraints on a pair of front seats – suggesting a 2+2-seat layout like the Iconic SP.

The rear windscreen also looks like it covers a vast tailgate area that could form a liftback design, which is vaguely similar but far from identical to the 2023 concept.

If it is indeed a four-door with a coupe-like roofline, it would echo the RX-8 but won’t feature rear-hinged ‘freestyle’ rear doors, given what appear to be door handles at the rear of the rear doors.

In the same statement today, Mazda said it would show “proprietary CO2 capture technology” as well as “carbon-neutral” fuel at the Tokyo show, suggesting it’s working on applications for low-emission fuel in combustion engines. 

Mazda previously said the Iconic SP’s EREV powertrain could run on a variety of fuels, so this points towards a potential rotary comeback with the help of at least partly reneweable fuels.

Separately, recent reports out of Japan suggest Toyota will tap Mazda instead of its previous partner Subaru to help develop its next-generation GR86 sports coupe, potentially using the underpinnings of the smaller Japanese automaker’s MX-5 roadster. 

Mazda will also use the Tokyo show to reveal the European-spec version of its all-important next-generation CX-5 mid-size SUV in public for the first time, ahead of its arrival in Australian showrooms in 2026. 

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