In its basic gasoline fuelled form, the Wankel engine has lower thermal efficiency and higher exhaust emissions relative to the four-stroke reciprocating piston engine. The thermal inefficiency has restricted the engine to limited use since its introduction in the 1960s. However, many disadvantages have mainly been overcome over the succeeding decades as the production of road-going vehicles progressed. The advantages of compact design, smoothness, lower weight, and fewer parts over the reciprocating piston internal combustion engines make the Wankel engine suited for applications such as chainsaws, auxiliary power units (APUs), loitering munitions, aircraft, jet skis, snowmobiles, and range extenders in cars. The Wankel engine was also used to power motorcycles and racing cars.
In its basic gasoline fuelled form, the Wankel engine has lower thermal efficiency and higher exhaust emissions relative to the four-stroke reciprocating piston engine. The thermal inefficiency has restricted the engine to limited use since its introduction in the 1960s. However many disadvantages have mainly been overcome over the succeeding decades as the production of road-going vehicles progressed. The advantages of compact design, smoothness, lower weight, and fewer parts over the r.eciprocating piston internal combustion engines. make the Wankel engine suited for applications such as chainsaws, ,auxiliary power units (APUs), loitering munitions, aircraft, jet skis, snowmobiles, and range extenders in cars The Wankel engine was also used to power motorcycles and racing cars