It won LeMans the same year that I owned my RX2. I was obsessed with the 787B....then GT3 came along and its all that I wanted to drive in that darn game.
From Wikipedia:
The Mazda 787B was a prototype racing car built for the 24 hours of Le Mans auto race, replacing the 767. It used a 4-rotor 26B Wankel engine which produced over 700 hp (522 kW). The 787B's 1991 win at Le Mans was historic in two ways: It marked the first (and only) victory for a Japanese manufacturer, and the first (and only) overall victory for a car powered by a Wankel rotary engine. The 787B was built in Britain and was designed by Englishman Nigel Stroud. Three 787B's were entered for the 1991 event, placing first, sixth, and eighth.
In order to win the 1991 race, Mazda engineers and the 787B had some new and significant obstacles to overcome. First, a year prior, two new chicanes had been installed on the Hunaudières Straight, breaking the nearly 3-mile long straightaway into three shorter segments, thus reducing top speeds from over 240mph (370 km/h) to roughly 210mph (338 km/h). This increased stress and wear on the brakes, having to stop the car from more than 200mph three times instead of just once as on the old layout, but reduced the chances of a tire blowout which was the purpose of the chicanes.
Second, the 1991 race was run to a fuel consumption formula. Teams were allotted a specific amount of fuel, which was to be used for the entire race event - practice, qualifying and the race itself. Fuel economy would play a key part in the 787B's win.
To increase the chance of winning, Mazda installed legendary six time winner Jacky Ickx as consultant, who then hired French outfit Oreca to run the team. Ickx felt the car was running on too much weight and continued to persuade the FIA to allow the car to run with less weight than previously.
The 787B's 4-rotor Wankel powerplant was specifically developed for this race and featured Peripheral Porting in order to achieve the high levels of power from a naturally aspirated motor. (Road cars utilizing two-rotor engines, such as the Mazda RX-7, more often use turbochargers to obtain a high power output.)
The 787B's 26B Wankel engine benefitted from a variable intake system, optimizing air intake for certain vehicle speeds. Two periscope-shaped air intakes were mounted ahead of the rear wing. Each intake assembly was mated to a telescoping-pulley system which was able to vary the height of the protruding periscopes through a stroke of approximately six inches. The extension and retraction of the intakes was governed by the car's ECU computer depending on vehicle speed. At high speed, the intakes were retracted to decrease drag and smooth airflow over the rear wing, and to reduce the restrictions on the air flow into the engine. At lower speeds, the intakes were extended in order to provide maximum positive pressure to the charge entering the rotors.
Engine speed (RPM's) were deliberately kept low for longevity under the extreme stresses incurred during a 24-hour automobile endurance race. The 787B was reported to have a redline around 9000rpm. However, interviews with Mazda's 787B race engineers revealed that the power of the quad-rotor increased dramatically above 9000rpm. One engineer stated that the car could develop more than 930hp with a redline around 10,500rpm. Engineers also commented that during the post-race inspection and tear-down of the quad-rotor engine they discovered that all aspects of the engine were still in excellent condition and could have run another 24-hour race. This is a polarizing testament to the reliability and performance of the modern Wankel rotary engine.
....how funny is it that Washoe Medical Center is now called 'Renown'?