The real story with the RX-8 is its 1.3-liter Renesis rotary engine, which is the only one of its kind currently in production. It works by replacing the pistons, valves, and other reciprocating parts of a regular internal combustion engine with two chambers, each containing a three-sided rotor orbiting a central axle. Despite its low displacement, the rotary engine puts out around 240 horsepower.