Mazda has unveiled a striking 503bhp four-seat plug-in hybrid sports saloon that blends a rotary engine with electric power and promises up to 500 miles of range. The Vision X-Coupé concept, revealed at the Tokyo motor show, gives a bold glimpse of Mazda’s next-generation performance and sustainability ambitions.
Evolved from the earlier Iconic SP and RX-Vision concepts, the Vision X-Coupé carries Mazda’s signature Kodo design language into a sleeker, grand-tourer-style package. It uses a turbocharged twin-rotor engine paired with an electric system capable of around 100 miles of pure-electric driving before the engine kicks in.
Unlike the rotary unit in the MX-30 R-EV – which acts only as a generator – the Vision X-Coupé’s engine drives the wheels directly, just like Mazda’s legendary RX-7 and RX-8.
Chief technical officer Ryuichi Umeshita said the powertrain represents a major step toward a “carbon-negative” internal-combustion solution. Mazda believes that, by running the rotary engine on carbon-neutral fuel made from microalgae and fitting a carbon-capture device to the exhaust, overall emissions could be cut by more than 100%.
“In theory, it can clean the air as it drives,” Umeshita explained. “This is something a battery-electric vehicle can’t do.”
Microalgae fuel also has advantages over synthetic fuels: it’s cheaper, requires less energy to produce, and can work with existing engines and petrol station infrastructure. Mazda is now focused on scaling up production and reducing costs, which Umeshita says is “very close” to being achieved.
However, the company still faces challenges in managing emissions across the rotary’s full rev range. Mazda expects another two to three years of development before the system is ready for production use.
While the Vision X-Coupé itself may not go on sale, Mazda confirmed that several of its technologies and design cues will appear in upcoming models.
At 5050mm long and 1480mm tall, the concept is similar in size to the Polestar 5 and Lotus Emeya, and it showcases a modern take on Mazda’s design DNA - with a long bonnet, cab-rear stance, and proportions suited to a long-range, high-performance grand tourer.
