The Mail-Journal, Volume 9, Number 39, Milford, Kosciusko County, 25 October 1972 — Page 22

Revolutionary Engine Welcomes Motorists To New ‘Rotary’ Club

Welcome to the rotary club — the rotary club of Dr. Felix Wankel, whose revolutionary new engine made its appearance ip Germany in 1956, and is possibly going to be the power plant for many automobiles in ten years. The rotary-powered Mazda, made by Toyo Kogyo Company in Hiroshima, Japan, has already made its appearance in this country with the RX2 sedan. Experts in the automobile industry say there is a real possibility that domestic made rotary-engined cars will be in the nation’s showrooms on a limited basis by 1974 or 1975. It’s a gasoline-burning, in-ternal-combustion engine which uses rotary motion to drive the wheels instead of the up-and-down motion of a piston engine. If you were to take the cover off the top of the rotary and look down into it, you would see what looks like a triangle turning inside a chamber which is shaped like a slightly flattened 'circle. Three Chambers Each side of the triangle blocks off an arc of the circular chamber to form three smaller, crescent-shaped chambers. As the triangle, or rotor, turns, the positions of the three crescent-shaped chambers move around inside the large, circular chamber. The intake-compression-ignition-expansion-exhaust sequence occurs in the three crescent-shaped chambers, causing the rotor to spin. The rotor, which turns not on its axis but in a slightly eccentric motion, is attached to a drive shaft to turn the car’s wheels. The rotary motion is almost vibrationless, and it constitutes one of the rotary engine’s most significant advantages over the piston engine.

1. Chamber at minimum 5. Start of compression 9. Power cycle continspace volume. Intake cycle. (Next chamber ues. (Th rd chamber cycle begins. begins intake cycle). begins Intake cycle.) 2. Rotor revolves, fuel/ 6. Fuel/air mixture is 10. Expanded gases air mixture is drawn- nearly compressed. have reached imxlthrough carburetor and (arrow). "®* ,n ®xnaust. 3. Chamber nearly filled 7. Charge Is fully com- 11. Burned gases diewith fuel/air mixture. pressed. The first charge through port. plug fires. Slightly later, second plug fires. 4. Chamber has reached S. Gas expansion and 12. Exhaust cycle nears maximum volume. power cycle. end. All cycles are Carburetor intake is on almost closed and this rotor face, compression starts.

Ignition in the rotary is caused by two spark plugs. Because of the rotary’s characteristics, the plugs have to function with a considerably reduced cooling cycle. To do the job properly an entirely new plug was developed by Champion Spark Plug Company. It has two ground electrodes instead of the usual one. In addition, a coppercored center electrode is used to permit the better heat conductivity demanded by the rotary. No Pistons Dr. Wankel’s creation has no pistons, as we said before; neither does it have a crankshaft, camshafts or valve gear. It is remarkable in that it uses about one-third the number of parts of a piston engine, is one-half the weight of the piston power plant, and develops the horsepower of a piston engine twice its size. Reasonable fuel economy (on unleaded, low-octane gasoline) and acceptable oil consumption are characteristic of rotary engines. What about service? If the engine is operated within the recommended range, the life of the seals and bearings should run between 60,000 and 100,000 miles. As the rotary state-of-the-art is perfected, that life should be extended. After you’ve joined the rotary club you’ll be pleasantly surprised to learn that for all its differences, the rotary still uses the same carburetor, wiring, tubing, alternator, ignition system, etc. as the piston engine. The same tools are used to take it apart and put it back together again. And there’s no problem of having to re-educate an entire service and supply force. Any competent mechanic should be able to service the rotary after a week or two of instruction.

MohilqßS — ■■ ■FSw-l ■ i ■— ; ~ ~ r V" ' - I Bl BUIB* ™ K o >■ TV-. STEVE AND JIM WHITE - COMPLETE SERVICE ON / | • Alternators • Regulators ■ • Generators • Bench Testing p . mix* I * Carburetors • Transistor Ignitions but OUi ■ • Tune-ups • Starters •Batteries • Trouble Diagnosis TUNE-UP I AC Diagnostic Tune-Ups ■W-i WHITE'S „ „ Mobil o> service \„ fc * A CALL NORTH WEBSTER | 834-2031| ROAD 13 NORTH NORTH WEBSTER IfiJaSM TIRES I SAFTBHT TIRES ® ® ■*** Zw/7f with a dependable difference Sale Ends Oct. 30 <siijwps> /VKFARREN'S (fZlf J) Service Station 0 Road 15 — Milford