ChrisLownes

Hey guys my name is chris i have a 1983 mazda rx-7 its been sitting for about 20 years now my father gave it to me and i want to get this baby running im from new jersey i found a rotary engine shop near philly but idk if i want to bring it to them i want to do a engine swap i was thinking on putting a corvette engine it idk im not good at this please give me tips what i should do, or any helpful ideas. im getting a new battery for it but please help me im looking forward on hearing your guys ideas on what i should do first or what engine i should swap it with Or any near by shops

KansasCityREPU

iTrader: (9)

Welcome to the forum. As far as what you should do, it's entirely your choice. Do you want to keep it a rotary engine or go with the corvette engine. That's to me would be the first question to answer before putting money in to it.

On a side note, please us punctuation. It helps us understand your thoughts a little better.

wankel=awesome

Get the rotary running. Its not that hard.

clafoun

I know it's sacrilege, but I am thinking about putting an 85 era Mustang 5.0 with a carb in mine when the rotary goes.. Mind you, I love the rotary engine... but it is getting harder to find parts for them, and when you do they are two to three times the price of a *gasp* piston engine of the same time period.

GRANNYSSPEEDSHOP.COM has all the parts needed to swap in various engines from V6 to V8's in these things.

wankel=awesome

I think id rather take my chances soaking junkyard 12a's in ATF for parts then go out and start buying ford parts...

thule

Does the guy in Philly go by the name of Mario? If so that guy has done work on my car and he's really good at his craft. Good luck

ChrisLownes

Im looking forward to putting a corvette engine in but idk what type i would like to make this a 10sec car

ChrisLownes

Its called jpr imports in blackWood nj

ChrisLownes

Thanks man thats pretty sweet im not looking to keep the rotary im do you think it would be pretty odd to take out the engine and buy a corvette engine?

KansasCityREPU

iTrader: (9)

If you want to get more info on how to put a Chevy motor in a first gen and make it go fast, look up forum member vxturboxv.

clafoun

GRANNYSSPEEDSHOP.COM has the parts you need for that as well. The main reason I'm opting for the Ford motor is that the front mounted distributor makes it a little easier. There are some firewall modifications that have to be done for the Chevy rear mount distributor. Also, it's an economics thing for me... the Corvette motor is nice.. but considerably pricier than a 5.0

wankel=awesome

Can we stop calling it a "Corvette Motor"?

Theres been a plethora of different v8's go into the 'Vette.

LT1, L99, LS1, LS3, LS7, LS9... etc

They arent all 1 friggin miracle motor. Many of them mount different, and stuff like distributors and the like didnt even exist on the later models.

Before you swap engines, you may wanna familiarize yourself with the "corvette motor" you want to swap.

Btw, where are you? I'll take the engine if youre going to throw it away if youre in the northeast.

andernamen

iTrader: (2)

V8s in RX7s aren't exactly a perfect fit for the car despite the power they make for the weight of the car. First, find out the condition of the motor that is in the car. It may still be good. If not, a rebuilt rotary actually may be the least expensive option. Not sure what you are looking to do.

clafoun

True, there were a plethora of motors associated with the Corvette over the years. As with any car from any maker with a V8. I was just trying to keep things simple. My point being that it is easier to deal with the Ford swap due to the lack of firewall modifications needed to perform it.

KansasCityREPU

iTrader: (9)

There is a V8 section on this forum. Might want to jump over there and get some true insight on what it takes to do the swap.

j9fd3s

iTrader: (3)

jest toss it in an chain er down!

Qingdao

iTrader: (3)

For non-rotary engines in first gens I like the idea of the 4.3 Chevy engine from a blazer. Although I have a passion for hating GM; they do do an alright job making engines if they fail in every other aspect.

If you want a cheap alternative get a 13B from a newer 7 in a junkyard. Make an adaptor plate for the Nikki carb you already have. Then spread your headers to accept the longer engine. Aside from the engine it will set you back $15 for the adaptor plate. The engine won't cost much more than $350 from LKQ or wherever.


Why do you want to weigh down a handling car to turn it into a light weight 10 second car? Seems like you'd be more interested in a Mustang or a Camaro if you want to go to the drag strip.

ChrisLownes

Im looking into the LS3

ChrisLownes

First car thats been given to me and im trying to make a great car to a better and faster car. Also i like projects, do you think the value would go up on the car ? Im looking to modify the whole car if i do the engine swap.. But im modifying it regardless if i do the engine swap or not but im looking to for ideas and options as well

economiser

After reading every word of this thread, you seem to need an experienced mentor. You're looking at a $10,000 project, by the time you have everything squared away, even if you do the labor and buy most of the major parts from self-serve salvage yards. If you insist on an LS3 built to run 10s, then closer to 15,000.
You might copy that Granny's shop car, you might get that to run 10s for $10,000.
But just because its small, light, cheap, RWD, and available doesn't make it a good starting platform for a novice to try for 10s.
If you want to see for yourself, then go read all of my build thread, and that's already over $8000 just transforming an '83 into a 200 horse daily driver. I'm nearly 6 months into it, too.

Qingdao

iTrader: (3)

200 horse daily driver is what I'm after as well. Turbo 13B seems like the way for me. I'm under 3k (including the car) and I have all the parts, I just need time to stick them together.

I think the second gen N/A engine is the best swap. There are a BUGILLION parts floating around, they are pretty reliable, and they are cheap. All you gotta do is mod your Nikki and make an adaptor plate to stick it on the engine.

Jeff20B

iTrader: (13)

You know, I see these piston threads and I just don't get it.

I'm probably close to 200 horse right now. At least 180. Daily driver turbo 13B. This is the way to go.

I went blow through Nikki and I realize this might not be everyone's cup of tea, but it was for me and I'm very happy and fully satisfied.

I couldn't attach a dollar amount but I did spend a year on this project, mostly in tuning. The actual turbo install only took a month and I worked in between rain storms in Feb of '14. I spent the next several months learning how to tune.

I like this setup with a turbo 2 rotor way more than when it had an NA 20B in it. I even test fitted a 4 rotor mock up before that. But in the end, the lowly 2 rotor 13B was the best choice above all others. The easiest and simplest engine to install and get running, and so far the most powerful 13B I've ever driven. Certainly much more impressive than the untuned NA 20B which couldn't even break them loose in 1st gear on dry road. I literally can't get traction through 3rd gear with the turbo 13B and the Nikki. And this is before adding an intercooler and a boost controller. I must be at least 200HP right now. That means the 20B wasn't even close. Sad. All that time and effort I put in. Wasted. Your thoughts?

Again I realize a turbo might not be everyone's cup of tea, but I know a piston install in one of these cars isn't for me and never will be. All that work for less potential. Instead I take an engine I've played with since the beginning of my rotary days; a basic 4 port 13B, then swap a lowly 12A Nikki in, add an FC turbo, and the result is 200 cheap reliable HP? Can it really be this good? How does any kind of piston swap make sense at this point? I don't get it. Sorry.

Wow, this thread turned out a lot longer than it should have. Um, good luck with your piston install. You're gonna need it.

economiser

Before I accuse you of being blinded by prejudice, or brand loyalty, or a few good experiences that were mostly just luck with the first thing you ever tried, I must resort to facts about the above.
200 HP is as much a tool, a point of reference, as a rating. 200 HP isn't much for a 3.8L V6, but with fully twice the HP of the rotary this car was built with, and EPA-rated at 25% better MPG despite higher speed limits now and a bigger, heavier car, and triple the displacement, this is obviously far more efficient than the rotary. It's 300,000-mile reliable, with nothing more than 3 sets of spark plugs, and regular oil / filter changes. Plus on top of all that, it meets Ultra Low Emissions standards. And if there ever is any problem, every mechanic and every auto parts store can help immediately.
Potential? a guy who goes by FieroX has his GM 3800-II V6 running 9s in the 1/4 mile, turbocharged, still averaging over 30 MPG, with not one breakdown in the last 4 years of daily driving plus trips to the dragstrip. No junkyard rotary can ever claim any such thing. Oh, and FieroX can also pass emissions for '96.
Mine is a MPG build. 35 is known fact easily repeatable. The goal is to occasionally spike near 50, mostly due to less aero drag and trying ever less RPM at cruise.
With a GM LSx piston V8, consider the common and cheap 4.8L truck version, available in any salvage yard for around $300 complete, yet proven capable of surviving 1200 HP of twin T76 turbos, with porting, injectors, a cam, and a tune. Stock pistons, rods, crank, et cetera. With the right cam, and putting the turbos after the right cats, this will still pass Ultra Low Emissions standards, and still be capable of averaging over 30 MPG, geared appropriately. I've read enough threads to know that 25 MPG is widely considered good MPG for a 1.3L rotary. I had a carbureted 5.7L V8 in an older Camaro do 25.1 MPG at 65 MPH with the distributor's centrifugal advance not working. So noone can claim a rotary is efficient.
It has no potential, it gets no MPG, it burns oil, so it can't meet Ultra Low Emissions standards, and it's as heavy as an aluminum-block LSx V8. Where's the advantage? It also, as icing on the cake, makes no off-idle torque, which is what makes big V8s fun. It revs? So what? Ever heard a 4.8L at 7500 RPM? No,you haven't, but I have, and it's better than any rotary at 9000, which I've also heard. It just means taller gearing, which it has the torque to pull. You can't have your cake and eat it too with a rotary. Checkmate.

Jeff20B

iTrader: (13)

Good for you. You came into this thread to add something constructive but you made yourself look prejudiced instead.

Please take it to the piston section.

ricsrx

after reading the OP's original post,
if he is needing a shop just to help get the rotary going,....

i think a motor swap would also be way out of his abilities and cost him a ton of money to have a shop do the work, unless he has a ton of money,

and if he does not then staying with the rotary is the way to go