Nine point three six seconds, that's how quick Phil Awramenko's first generation RX7 takes to cover the quarter mile at a flying 150mph, yes that's 240+ kph in just 9 seconds! All on 26x8.5 inch tyres.



The Mazda bug came after helping Craig Dyson with his RX7 drag car and seeing how much power could be made with a rotary without a huge outlay, Phil decided to build an un-tubbed RX7 with the aim to run 9's. From the start, the car was setup with a roll cage, an external fuel system (which meant enclosing the hatch area from the driver's cockpit), fuel cut off switches, harnesses and many more safety features. Originally using a Toyota Supra 5spd, Phil soon gave it the flick and took over the 4spd Jerrico from Craig when he upgraded to a Lenco transmission.



Phil's first ever race outing was at the 2001 4, 6 & Rotary Nationals at A.I.R, South Australia where he netted a 10.7 sec time slip. Back in Melbourne a month or two later at Calder Park, Phil improved to a 10.1 at 138mph, knocking on the door of a 9 second pass and already a few tenths off the rotary un-tubbed top ten at the time. Phil then decided to go hardcore, replacing the Garret T66 with a monster TA45 which immediately resulted in that 9 second pass. Phil wasn't stopping just yet though.



Week after week, the car was trailered to Heathcote Park Raceway when he soon discovered the limits of the car with constant breakages including tail-shafts, uni-joints, wheel studs, control arms, (now solid custom made) and diff housings.



Phil persisted, improving time and time again and running 9's every single pass. By this stage Phil had laid down the quickest un-tubbed time at a 9.38 at 140mph and had over eighty 9 second time-slips! Going quick is one thing but doing it consistently is even harder.



Phil then had a bit of lean time when he increased tyre size to 26x10 inches and struggled to match his previous pace even experimenting with a small shot of nitrous. Taking an extended break from racing after damaging the gearbox, Phil re-sprayed the car in that classic factory lime green.



With the recent Turbo Titles approaching, un-tubbed rules at the event required maximum tyre size permitted to 26x9inches. A new set of 26x8.5 inch Mickey Thompson were purchased and the wheelie bars taken off the rear. The gearbox was rebuilt along with a new Direct Clutches custom built twin plate. The result was a new personal best of 9.36 at 148mph and as fast as 9.4 at 150mph, despite the car bogging it off the line and dropping 2/10th's to the 60ft!



A series 4 13B is the basis for making 440 rear wheel kilowatts (590hp) time and time again. The common street extend port has been carried out along with extra dowells while retaining the factory 2mm seals. It's amazing how strong and how much power these motor's can make with bugger all changes. When using Nitrous, power jumps to approximately 480kw (640hp) at the wheels.



Controlled by a Turbosmart 45mm external waste-gate, the big Garret pumps 28psi boost through a rather large custom intercooler and log style plenum. C16 Race fuel, mapped by a fuel/ignition Microtech MT12L is delivered via 4 Bosch Indy Injectors (1700cc). Two Carter pre pumps and two Bosch Motorsport high pressure pumps supply fuel from a custom made stainless steel fuel cell.



The Long shifted 4 speed Jerrico is relied upon for its strength and much quicker gear changes than a regular H-pattern shifted gearbox. Phil launches at around 9000rpm and keeps the loud pedal nailed for the entire run, so when the clutch bites, the driveline has to be able to handle the extreme forces. As you'd expect a custom 3.5 inch tail-shaft with Hardie/Spicer uni's meets a Ford 9 inch diff with a fully braced housing, Moser 31 spline axles, Strange nodular diff center and Richmond 4.56 gears with full spool. This combination has proved to be pretty much bullet proof over hundreds of passes. You won't find coil overs or ladder bar setups as used in many of the fastest un-tubbed cars around the country; it's ALL factory standard with just the change to stiffer shocks.



Even with huge trap speeds, Phil's never felt the need to fit a parachute. The standard master cylinder and front discs are still there with the rear upgraded to Nissan Pintara discs. The car is setup up so well, Phil says you can drive it with one hand on the wheel!



So what's the future of this green missile? Phil has made the hard decision to part with it and start a new project, namely using a V8 engine of the Toyota kind. Phil would like to thank a few people during the time he's owned the car.



"Everyone that dropped everything to repair or make something for me. I would like to thank Craig Dyson who had a lot to do with the build of the car, where we spent many hours and countless runs on our dyno (Geelong Tune-Up), developing a set up that has proven to be a very successful and powerful combination in both our cars".



If your interested in a fully ANDRA tech inspected race car (race weight is 2560lbs), guaranteed of running 9 second quarters, every time, all the time and with the potential to go even quicker, contact Phil (0417 317 601). Serious enquires only, no time wasters please. The asking price is $32,000 which includes one set of 26 x 10inch Mickey Thompsons, one set of 26 x 8.5 Mickey Thompsons and one set of dyno tyres and all tyres come with rims. Phil also has approximately $1,000 worth of race plugs and all spares. The car is turn key ready to race.





By Muzza

That needs to moved, this is where being a global mod would be handy.