Is there a way to make a Wankel engine with multiple cylinders? I understand the basic design of rotary engines, but could it be made more powerful in ways other than simply increasing the displacement?
by 
Morgan Stepp
ANSWERS: 3
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Oh, most definitely! Most Mazda RX-7s have two rotors, and some other Mazdas had three. Many of the traditional methods applied to engine internals won't work, at least not without modifications. Last I checked, displacement increases were not really practical for a Wankel engine. Most HP increases come from re-shaping the ports; on a Wankel, this is the equivalent of a modified camshaft in addition to the normal benefits of port polishing. Of course, most RX-7s have turbos that can be tweaked/replaced, and any engine will benefit from a decent exhaust system appropriate to the HP output of the engine. (Yes, you CAN have too big a system!)
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There is indeed. As jervinator said, if you add another rotor, you are literally doubling the number of 'cylinders' the engine has. Hence, all Mazda rotaries these days are a minimum of two rotors (A 13B uses 2 x 654cc for a total of 1.3L) Mazda also made the 20B, which was a THREE rotor (the same 654cc rotors as the 13B) engine. The biggest rotary engine I know of is the phenomenal 26B It was a FOUR rotor engine with 2.6L displacement. It was never used in a road car, but ran in the Mazda 787B, a Le Mans car that raced in the early 90's. This 2.6L motor with a special intake system made 700! HP at 9000RPM... naturally aspirated. That's right - 700HP from 2.6L with no turbo. It actually won the 1991 Le Mans 24 hour race... They banned rotaries the next year. It's the only Japanese car to ever win Le Mans, and also the only totary powered car to win Le Mans.
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The Mercedes C-111 experimental sports car in the late 60's was produced with both 3 and 4 rotor engines. http://www.pistonheads.com/doc.asp?c=103&i=6730 http://cp_www.tripod.com/rotary/pg03.htm
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