--- title: "This Six-Rotor Mazda RX-7 Will Make You Plug Your Ears and Grin" description: "This is what a Mazda RX-7 drift car with triple the engine sounds like—if your eardrums survive the experience." date: "2023-01-04" modified: "2023-01-04" authors: - name: "James Gilboy" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/james-gilboy" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/this-six-rotor-mazda-rx-7-will-make-you-plug-your-ears-and-grin" categories: - "Mazda News" - "News" - "News by Brand" --- # This Six-Rotor Mazda RX-7 Will Make You Plug Your Ears and Grin ![Wankel six-rotor Mazda RX-7 kicks up tire smoke]() *\@p.p.r.e. on Instagram\* In the [Wankel]() hierarchy, two rotors are for commoners, three are for nobility, and four are for royalty. That must mean, then, that the ear-splitting, six-rotor [Mazda RX-7 (FD)]() being built in New Zealand must be for a god, because no mortal can survive bearing witness to its B̳̠̥R͙̮A̸̖̯͇̟̞A̞̥̲̤̩̱͞À̱A̟̠͇A͍̖̪͇A̦͕̻̫̼ͅA̛̟̠ͅA̪̟͙̼͜P͇̙̦. The massive six-rotor Wankel engine is the work of kiwi shop Pulse Performance Race Engineering, which evidently developed it from the two-rotor 13B used in the [Mazda]() RX-7 and RX-8. With triple the number of rotors comes triple the apparent displacement, which should measure in around 3.9 liters. That's about 10 percent smaller than the 4.3-liter V6 in a [Chevy Astro](). Because rotaries are famous for their power density, though, the six-rotor has no problem making 820-plus horsepower. That's over 200 horsepower per liter, which is normally *serious* turbo engine territory. It's also enough to blow out your eardrums if this video is anything to go by. https://www.instagram.com/p/CmlJVrGBntP/ The shriek of the six-rotor sounds like a mix of a three- and four-rotor, with the former's buzz but the howl of the [Mazda 787B](). Admittedly, it's not *that* nice-sounding; it's a bit like a nitromethane weed whacker. But it's more than enough to put on a show, which seems to be this RX-7's purpose—other photos show it has an angle kit, so it'll probably be a drift car that could upstage [Mad Mike](). If you're hoping to get your hands on one of these six-rotors yourself, we have good news and bad news. The good news is [PPRE sells them through its site](); the bad is that they require lots of custom machining, and the crate engines alone cost more than what the majority of us make in a year. No, literally; they sell for roughly $68,000. They also take up a lot of space, with estimates based on three-rotor 20B specs from [Drifted]() indicating they're around four and a half feet long. That's almost a foot longer than [the V12 in a Jaguar XJ](). Suffice it to say, getting one in your car will require making more than a few big cuts—not just to the firewall, but maybe your pocketbook too. *Got a tip or question for the author? You can reach them here: james@thedrive.com* ## Author James is a former staff writer for The Drive. He has changed the conversation around electrification, debunked misinformation online, and become a prominent hunter of what he calls "automotive cryptids." ### Author social links [Instagram]()