On Wednesday, June 15, 2005, at 12:52 PM, Albaugh, Neil wrote:
> I found this info on that website:
>
> " Wouk's car (a Buick Skylark), which he built with Dr. Charles Rosen,
> had a Mazda rotary engine half the size and power of the Skylark's
> standard V-8 and an electric motor used for starting and for extra
> power."
>
> A Mazda rotary engine in a low- emission car? I always thought that
> Wankels were pretty bad on emissions... what's the truth?
>
> Regards, Neil Tucson, AZ
I never put the car on an analyzer, but. . .
We had a 1974 RX-4 w/rotary engine. Strong! Smooth! Quiet! Great
top speed! More than a quart of oil/1,000 miles when we bought it,
used, with 20,000 miles on it. I whined until I got the company to put
in new rotor tip & edge seals, which reduced the oil consumption to a
little more than a quart per 1,000 miles.
It got pretty crappy gas mileage, too.
You make up your own mind about how low-emissions it was. . .
Jon Wennerberg
Seldom Seen Slim Land Speed Racing
Marquette, Michigan
(that's 'way up north)
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