2024 Mazda MX-30 R-EV - Can The Rotary Range Extender Save The MX-30?

[@anthonytube]

The engine mic was a work of genius! :-) Thanks

[@OneTireFire]

Thanks! I honestly did it out of my own curiosity :)

[@datathunderstorm]

@@OneTireFire May I ask; where was your engine microphone installed? Was it inside the engine bay? Or installed inside the cabin? The sound does not match with what I am hearing from inside the cabin when the Range Extender Wankel Rotary Engine runs - as witnessed on numerous other MX-30 R-EV review videos on KZbin. I'm both puzzled and curious.

[@OneTireFire]

@@datathunderstorm it was inside the engine bay, right next to the rotor itself. I used one of my lav mics and clipped it to an electrical cable.

[@thomaselwood12]

@@datathunderstorm Pretty obvious that it is not in the cabin vs when he is speaking.

[@FC1032]

Nice! Finally got to hear what that engine sounds like.

[@sergeysedelnikov3015]

I drive this car now for 3500km, I must say that the engine noise is not noticeable over 40km/h speed.

[@whocares264]

yes it is noisy

[@rydinorwin]

They needed to keep the original battery size. What a strange car! Good review, most reviewers really don’t understand it, they drive it 500 miles and say, wow it’s doing 35 mpg / 10 litres/100 km!

[@OneTireFire]

Thank you! I agree it should have had the range extender and the original battery size. It is quite efficient when you drive it in mixed conditions mostly in tow, I will give it that.

[@stevemccormack9948]

Because of the small battery you might get away without installing a home charger - just plug it in to the normal wall plug every night.

[@JD-qd1bp]

Great review, very professional.

[@OneTireFire]

Thanks for watching!

[@MichelleChristine-k2z]

Generator takes 50 liters which goes 600 KMs or 372 miles. So 13 gallons @5.00 USD per, is $65.00 to go 372 miles or 28 miles per gallon of gas. So not much more than the gas model. Yet you can plug it in instead and then use gas if you can't find a charge. So that is an improvement.

[@OneTireFire]

Valid point. Thanks for chiming in!

[@arnum1000]

700 km on 50 liters of petrol, that's not good 14km/L

[@ATR-Sound]

But you wouldn’t be relying on gas all the time. Lots of day to day driving could be battery only or use very little gas.

[@michaelvella8511]

Great idea I thnk.....better then pure electric.

[@OneTireFire]

Yeah, I agree, although a bigger battery could have also worked.

[@taurus4336]

1000% de acuerdo!

[@whocares264]

The all electric mx 30 had a pretty disapointing electric range so they have made this with less than half the electric range,oops now if they still had the 100 mile electric range with this system , success...what ev car makers seem to have forgotten is charging at home is the cheap to run and convenient bit, now i know people will say ,what if you cant charge at home, simple dont get an ev.

[@larryfenix]

Does the petrol engine run the whole time or kicks in when the battery gets low?

[@OneTireFire]

It depends. If you don't accelerate hard, the petrol engine will only start in normal driving after the battery dips below halfway full.

[@jatinpatel2159]

Great Review for EV users that covers info on the R Extender .How and where can I order this Mazda Generator to connect to my Indian EV ?

[@OneTireFire]

Thanks! Maybe get it from a crashed MX-30 R-EV :)

[@alecmally5433]

Any news on possible changes for 2025?

[@OneTireFire]

Not that I know of yet. What do you think they will change?

[@alecmally5433]

@@OneTireFire Only a wish list no inside info,. Too much of the tech is 2021 MX-30 level.....adding wireless AA/Car Play and a touch screen are obvious. Maybe they can perfect the Wankel to use less oil?

[@taurus4336]

Ojalá existan más vehículos con este mismo concepto: ELÉCTRICOS DE RANGO EXTENDIDO. Por ahora el Mazda MX-30 R-EV es el único a excepción del Nissan e-Power pero este último no es enchufable y su batería es ridículamente pequeña.

[@OneTireFire]

Honda tiene algo similar. Sus híbridos e:HEV son similares en concepto, aunque en esos coches el motor de combustión sí impulsa las ruedas cuando se conduce constantemente a velocidades más altas. He revisado un par de ellos en el canal si quieres verlos.

[@lexstockton3785]

A car I’m very interested in but not available in the US, damn it. One point, I think you’re wrong about the reduction in torque in this and other electric cars. My guess is people got tired of tires wearing out far faster than an ICE car. Short of a “burn out” there isn’t much harder on a tire than using max torque at low speeds, so easy to do in the EVs I’ve driven (Tesla S and 3, Audi E-Tron). JMHO

[@OneTireFire]

From what I know, Mazda wanted to bring this to the States but then decided against it for some reason. I guess you're right about the torque reduction, I was just speaking for myself-I liked the burnoutey nature of older EVs :D

[@lexstockton3785]

@@OneTireFire Two different modes, the fun side and the real life part. For me I can say running that “S” I got to drive at full throttle was huge fun, but my buddy owned the car so I didn’t want to turn the tires into smoke. Anyway, nice to see your channel reviewing this car. FWIW, thanks for using your excellent English, my Spanish is weak and any other language is a total mystery so I wouldn’t be able to watch your vids w/o that extra effort.

[@DonaldFaulds]

I have the pure EV version and it is a sweet drive. I did not get the R-EV because the battery range is too low and significant company car tax applies (in the UK) - which is a shame as I really like the R-EV as an idea. Probably the tax is different in other markets.

[@OneTireFire]

It's a fine EV for short journeys and carrying no more than three people. Thanks for sharing!

[@golfy808]

I was of the understanding that the engine spun at constant rpm only

[@OneTireFire]

I thought so too, but after putting a mic near the engine and driving the vehicle, you can hear its revs increase as you accelerate.

[@taurus4336]

@@OneTireFire En ese caso, posiblemente funcione enviando energía al motor eléctrico en forma conjunta con la batería.

[@toyotaprius79]

Everyone thought so too! The presumption was that constant revs meant minimum wear and tear.

[@toyotaprius79]

​@@taurus4336_duh_

[@deansmits006]

It makes sense that it varies to add more power in certain scenarios. I would hope that it still keeps within it's most efficient range, but I'm not a Mazda engineer

[@deansmits006]

Imagine if Mazda put this CX-5, paired with a larger battery....say around 25kwh. Could get 100-120 km (plenty of range), rarely needing the rotary generator. Still, the wankel is a bit of a hard sell for many people

[@Wilsonangij]

why the engine so noisy?

[@OneTireFire]

It's not especially noisy from inside the car. In the noisy bit of the video, I put the microphone under the hood, right next to the engine.

[@squint09]

The new rotory only powers a generator. It charges the battery in an ev

[@OneTireFire]

It sure does 👍

[@lazziebardakos2956]

To me this makes a lot more sense than a plug in hybrid but the design lets it down. It's basically a 2 seater, no adult could sit in the rear seats and having to open the front door and then the rear door and then slide the seat forward makes zero sense

[@OneTireFire]

@@lazziebardakos2956 Yeah, it is indeed a two-seater… I don’t understand why Mazda made it like this either.

[@seanlytran]

This car would have sold well in U.S if it was a little bigger.

[@khanmimaad]

Drop the rear doors, reengineer the BEV powertrain, lower it all, and you have an electric Miata

[@milithemuffin4534]

I don't get how manufacturers can still get simple things this wrong. We already learned from BMW that a loud, inefficient engine is not a good range extender. Obrist Powertrain has designed a near PERFECTLY SILENT solution. They have tested it in a modified Model 3 and it proved to be about as good as the newest Prius in terms of fuel consumption. Yet almost no one talks about it. Even the "cordless Tesla" project which, aside from being made by a youtuber, is worse in almost every aspect imaginable, is an order of magnitude more popular. Louder. Less practical. Inefficient. Smoking. Overheating. Unreliable. And people loved it~~ because it was all of the above. They are watching KZbin to be entertained and not to do actually discuss a Tesla-like hybrid.

[@OneTireFire]

Yeah, that's all true. I actually got to drive the Obrist prototype and it was a really cool experience. I think we averaged 1.2 l/100km over about 30 km around Munich.

[@toyotaprius79]

Fun fact! In the early 2010s Mazda had working Mazda2 REx prototypes, quickly killed it and celebrated at why they will never need to build or invest in EVs

[@OneTireFire]

And look at them now :)

[@arnum1000]

700 km on 50 liters of petrol, that's not good 14km/L

[@OneTireFire]

@@arnum1000 it is what it is. It should have been better, really, but it isn’t

[@arnum1000]

@@OneTireFire my seat arona on small trips drive 16.7

[@KClO3]

​@@arnum1000you are not thinking about it right, even tho that consumption is high, it's optional to turn on the generator, for a trip to the store etc you never need it so you save fuel in the long run while still having the option of driving 700km or charging the battery when its low if you have no options

[@amremad5758]

Never gonna make it because of the suicide doors and it's small size , if they went for normal crossover it'd sell

[@OneTireFire]

Yeah, I agree it would have been more popular if it was more conventional. Access into the rear is tricky and even once you manage to climb into the back, space and outward visibility are limited.

[@DonaldFaulds]

I said "suicide" doors at the car show room and the dealer said "we call them freestyle doors sir" 🙂. I actually think they are quite cool. (If you want a large SUV there are other options).

[@cbbgenki4315]

I like it being unique & rare

[@andrewallan5442]

Sounds like …utter toss

[@OneTireFire]

It’s pretty interesting and unique, although not necessarily enjoyable 😅

[@whocares264]

yes that is the wanker engine

[@whocares264]

if only it had a hundred mile electric only range and the petrol engine was in the back so you dont hear it, oh yes the 2014 bmw i3 rex.....yes you sure can hear that wanker engine...

[@OneTireFire]

Wanker engine :))

[@whocares264]

@@OneTireFire correct

[@davidkelly972]

I have done 6000 miles now and my running costs have reduced from £300 per month with a Octavia to £50. This figure includes electricity and fuel. In normal mode the engine is only heard if you put your foot to the floor, normally you don't hear the engine. It is designed for shorter journeys and the occasional longer journey without any range anxiety. For me it is almost perfect as most of my journeys are 30 miles and under. A recent longer journey of 284 miles returned 42MPG. I do drive gentle.