KA Mallender

A'ight, I am admittedly somewhat crazy, and only 14 to boot. I'm looking into building an RX-7 for my first car, but I may (make that WILL) need a few things answered.



Anyways, I've got a little bit of a grasp on how exactly the Rotary works, but not much. And therefore, my idea for a project is, ehh, on shaky ground, shall we say. I want to do an RX-7 as either a road race car or a street car, (big diff between the two, I know) but I currently have almost no clue what I'm getting into. I doubt that I'll even be able to find a good basis for my price range, but whatever.



The plan (IF, big IF, I can convince my old man to let me do it, he hates anything japanese with a vengance as a project car) is to find a decent car, probably an FC, for 1-2k. It needn't be a turbo car, and it doesn't really need to run perfect or be perfect on the outside. If there's absolutely no way that will happen, tell me. Anywho, I want to take it, strip it down, sandblast it, and piece it back together as either a D Production SCCA car or as a decent street car. I'd like to be able to keep it NA, and shoot for 225-250hp if I go road race, and for the street I'd want maybe about the same if it can be reliable. But here come the questions: How expensive would a port job be to hit the 200-250hp range? Also, would it still be streetable at this power level? And, if I go road race, how bad are suspension bits and pieces? If possible, could someone tell me some normal problems with these cars (FC's) and problems that could arise in the road race build?



That's about it for now, but I already know that there will be more.

KA Mallender

Well, I stand corrected. Apparently, I am almost completely open on power mods in Prepared, but I am limited to being forced into a 32mm restrictor plate. So my only resort for power would be a compression bump as well as some port work to make it run right. Possibly running the aux port a little into the compression stroke to bleed a little pressure whilst running higher overall compression (static). Like I said, I'm a little crazy. But hey, from what I've seen out of a few reciprocal engines, it works. (Nobody except my dad and a few guys on the east coast do anything like it, but it sure as hell works) Whether it will transfer over to the rotary remains to be seen. All depends on how much $$ a new motor would cost. (As to if we'd try)



Now I'm wondering where the heck I saw 250hp at! Seriously, it's like I am living up to my claims of insanity! (Noooo! Not the funny farm!)

Baldy

Start simple. Get an n/a, easily found for a grand. Do a tune up, throw on some exhaust (find a used header, get the rest fab'd by a shop). You can have springs, adjustable dampers, and polyurethane bushings for about $700 new. Get the 5-lug setup if the car doesn't already have it, for the better brakes. Strip the body down, eliminate any excess weight, and you've got a decent-handling, cheap, starter race car.



Then, once your level of skill surpasses the abilities of that car (which will take quite a while), you should have enough saved up for engine rebuild, port, and coilovers.



But that's just my opinion.

Leetheslacker

sounds like a solid plan to me.

ive been on this forum since i was 14 or 13 or whatever. jsut be a sponge, read everything, learn it, know it.

when you actually get a car itll come in handy.



my advice is just follow baldys, keep it simple. its your first car, youre not gonna build a road racer for your first car. just get one and keep it simple.

Baldy

...which is what I've done with mine, except I kept the interior and sunroof, and daily drove it. Though not the fastest thing ever, it would still haul *** compared to most cars you'd encountered on the street. I autocrossed it, and I never came close to outgrowing my car. Engine died recently, though. Stripping it down.

j0rd4n

btw, 250hp isn't out of the realm of possibility at all, you're just going to need to have a ported motor with full exhaust and a standalone ems. of course, you'll need the stuff to support the new goodies (prolly 550cc injectors to replace the 450's to be on the safe side, and that's just one thing), as this is an oversimplification, but those're the areas you concentrate on, i think.



and weight can be the cheapest mod as well it's not always about raw power if you can strip a couple hundred pounds off the car (if you're racing it)

KA Mallender

Thanks a lot guys!



I probably will keep it on the street. Just nabbing a decent set of rims, tires, suspension and brakes would help me out, I'm nearly positive.



Also, out of curiosity, (I KNOW it killed the cat, just lemme say it!) Is a turbo car with a bit of extra boost (thinking 15 or so PSI) as finicky as I've heard in a few mags?



And weight being the cheapest mod: Yes, it sure is! Helps everything to boot. 160-175hp car that doesn't weigh much more than 2700lbs... Ought to be quick enough, eh? Beats the ish outta my Vega.

j0rd4n

i think that's a simple answer....if you have built up everything around the motor (and inside) to hold that kinda boost, there's no reason you couldn't do it ;D

KA Mallender

mmm... 400 horses...

shpaintball

hey baldy i figured out my UIM and LIM issue....i forgot to set the TPS ....anyhow .....buy the bolt ons follow that up with a suspension set up ...i drift my car at actual events ..(.yes its hard to slide but so fun and respected )....and i will say the suspensions down fall is the oversteer ...other than that is holds up well so ...invest in some sway bars and bushings....as well as strut towers weight reduce to around 2400lbs...and then worry about springs ....i can get you a street ported motor for 1700$ *250hp core of 400$ so its 1300$ for a street ported motor.. * **w/ full exhaust ...intake...test pipe ...ported manifolds ...SAFC...and good ingnition..so around 200whp...