The internal combustion engine, for all its mechanical sophistication, still runs on a 19th-century mechanical idea: pistons rising and falling, a crankshaft spinning, a steam-age architecture ...

For more than a decade the name Wankel has popped up whenever car enthusiasts start talking about advanced-design automotive powerplants. The theory of the Wankel engine goes back to 1954 when Dr.

There are a lot of strange automotive designs out there, but this defunct engine from the '70s may just be the weirdest one ...

When most people hear the term "rotary engine," they probably think of Mazda first, as rotary engines have been part and parcel of the Japanese automaker's mantra for decades. In fact, Mazda proclaims ...

What's the first thought that comes to your mind when someone says Corvette? For some, it's a white Corvette C4 driven by Burt Reynolds as he drives off into the sunset in a glorious V8 symphony.

In the early '90s, Mazda's rotary-powered RX-7 was the quintessential Japanese two-seat sports car. But then the Miata arrived and changed the game.

Wankel rotary engine powered thousands of aircraft. One of several problems: It spewed castor oil on its pilots.