Mazda has given a radical vision of what the future could look like for the venerable MX-5, headlining this year’s Tokyo motor show with a sleek, rotary-electric sports car concept called the Iconic SP.
The concept – previewed digitally earlier this year and now presented as the centrepiece of a celebration of the MX-5 on Mazda’s stand – is said to use a powertrain based on that of the recently launched MX-30 R-EV crossover, which uses a rotary petrol engine as a generator to charge a 17.8kWh battery on the move, rather than as an alternative means of driving the wheels itself.
Mazda has not given full specifications for the concept, but claims it has 370bhp at its disposal – roughly double the most powerful version of today’s Mazda MX-5. However, it is unclear whether this quoted output is for the electric element of the drivetrain, or a combined figure that includes the rotary engine.
Either way, tipping the scales at a relatively lithe 1450kg – roughly on a par with the four-cylinder Lotus Emira, which produces 360bhp – the concept should be, theoretically, significantly faster than any road-going Mazda so far.
Mazda says a rotary range-extender powertrain makes sense for an electric sports car because it can be configured in a variety of layouts for optimum weight distribution and packaging. Here, for example, the tightly packaged petrol engine is housed in the middle of the car, which promotes a low centre of gravity while allowing for a long, probing front bonnet and cab-rear silhouette.
The concept measures 4180mm long by 1850mm wide and 1150mm tall, with a wheelbase of 2590mm, which makes it closer in size to the Alpine A110 than the MX-5. It remains unclear whether the visibly larger cockpit is designed to carry more than two occupants – Mazda could seek to package the batteries vertically behind the driver for a lower ride height and centre of gravity, in a bid to preserve the MX-5’s characteristic keen dynamics.
Images of the cockpit give clues as to just how important handling is for this electric reimagining of the MX-5. The digital driver display hosts a g-meter and, intriguingly, a map of the Monaco GP circuit – hinting that the Vision SP has been conceived with rapid lap times and driver engagement as a prevailing focus.