Previously, the Japanese car maker announced that it was working on a rotary range extender - a compact version of its iconic Wankel combustion engine that it used in the iconic RX-7 series and other models. It would supplement an electric car in the way that the BMW i3s can be optioned with a small petrol motor, quietly generating electricity to charge batteries low on charge.

The Mazda version would do essentially the same thing, bringing its famed engine that was never emissions friendly into production again.

However, Mazda has made a further breakthrough in development, with an electric vehicle announcement scheduled for later this year that may include details of a rotary engine hybrid car.

Speaking with Drive at the launch of the brand’s all-new CX-30, managing executive officer in charge of powertrain development, Ichiro Hirose, said that it had developed a flexible rotary hybrid platform that was so efficient it could go on sale in the world’s most emissions-strict markets, leaving the door open for a driveline currently named ‘XEV’ to arrive in Australia in the future.

“We made an announcement that we are considering the combination of the rotary-based range extender and combined that with battery EV,” he said.

“What that entails is not simply a combined solution you’d find normally but it falls under what we call an umbrella term ‘XEV’, and what that means is that of course the range extender and the rotary engine has two functions.

“It has the generator function and also it can be used to provide the drive force to give you traction.”

The setup Hirose describes is similar to a vehicle such as the Toyota Prius, where a petrol engine is the main driving force and a light-weight electric hybrid setup supplements the traditional engine, using an electric motor for standing start acceleration and low-speed cruising – conditions that require high fuel consumption and thus produce high emissions.

“The enabler is simply because the rotary engine is compact in terms of its packaging size [and] if we should choose to do so we can have the generator, rotary engine and electric motor all in the one [driveline] because of the small packaging.”

Mazda’s approach is innovative, with an adaptable electric platform that can be modified to add or subtract the required electric-battery power – from a lightweight mild rotary petrol hybrid car to a full battery-electric car with a rotary range extender. Could this be the big electric vehicle announcement scheduled for later this year?

“What we intend to do is that with this combination you can vary the amount of battery and also the amount of fuel tank supply. What that allows us to do is, depending on the ratio between the two, is that we can have a derivative that can work more like a plugin hybrid.

“If you reduce the other way around it could be a pure battery-electric, using really the rotary engine as a range extender and, according to the balance, you can even provide something akin to the series hybrid that is providing the drive force.

“So, we are looking at a wider coverage and scope. Based on this architecture it allows us to do that, to explore the huge range of applications we can have with the rotary.”

Mazda remains coy on talking about production, but Hirose said it had already tested the new rotary to make sure it meets the most stringent emissions standards in the world, confirming it could be sold in the US.

“There are certain difficulties in order to comply with as you can imagine.

“What that means is during a typical drive the rotary engine would have been stopped but when certain conditions are met it needs to start moving suddenly. And this is where we need to look at the emissions for hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide and we need to be looking at a way of where the catalyst starts working exactly when the rotary engine starts moving. This is the difficulty in trying to meet the regulations when the ramp up happens of the rotary engine.”

But it appears that this is the reason for the flexible XEV hybrid architecture Mazda has developed, that can be altered easily to meet a region’s emissions requirements without going into the considerable expense of developing a new system for the one market.

“The reason we are taking this [flexible hybrid] approach is that we have many different requirements that are coming from many different regions if you look at it globally. I mentioned three main ways of doing so and one is most befitting and appropriate to a specific region. So, for those reasons, we introduce one sort [of hybrid setup] and change it to the other [for another market]. So, we will make appropriate arrangements that fits that region.

“If we were to introduce it in the US we would comply with the [stringent] level regulations during when the rotary is in operation. So, we have been able to make progress.

“I’m just saying that – theoretically - if we were to introduce it in the US we would be able to comply with the strictest of regulations.”