It's kind of pointless to be comparing different rx7 with different powers because you can have a handful of fd's with say the same amount of horsepower. All with different turbos and suspension and will perform differently. 500 hp car can have tons of lag while another 500 hp car may not. To make my point on particular tracks a 350 hp car may perform better then a 500 hp car and then get destroyed by a different 500 hp car.

 

Btw. Cool video. Wish I understood what was being said.

 

Did anyone else notice that the only time the higher powered cars where able to pass was on the straights? Doesn't seem like it takes much skill to do that. Also I find it funny that all the "lowly" 350ish FD's finished the race, can all of the others say that? Judging from the lap time on that particular track a higher powered FD is at an advantage. Now for something quite a bit different, touge/back roads (you find on the street) I'm sure we have all watched and know that the RE Amemiya FD is the champion of this. Hes able to accomplish this on stock turbos at a modest 350-380hp against all of japans heavy weight contenders. And for those who don't know FEED is also a contender with a 500hp single turbo FD. He keeps loosing to the stock twins too

 

If someone would like to trade your 500 rwhp motor setup for my 350 rwhp motor setup, shoot me a PM. I'll wave at you as you drive by.

 

Was just thinking the same thing.
I wouldn't call it being "eaten alive", but FWIW I happened to be in Damien's car at MIDAMERICA a few years ago when he was certainly handling a GT3 at an open track day. IIRC, it finally just pulled over and let him by. I don't recall the other driver's name, but understood he was an experienced driver and regular attendee at many tracks. Not positive but while Damien is single turbo, I don't think his car is near 500 hp. He (the GT3) wasn't carting around my fat-*** (~ 190 lbs.) either.
A thread I posted back in the day....... https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/what-ride-363869/
The video may still be on his website.

OK.

 

In many cases, all a "modded" FD is, is one brought up to the level of what's outfitted in modern cars stock—that part of the car industry has changed, particularly when compared to a high-end vehicle like a $150k Porsche.

You can't tell me that the "aftermarket upgrade" Tein or Zeal or JIC coilovers on Fritz's or TheWird's or Damian's car are really any better than the stock stuff that comes on a GT3... the latter also already having R-compounds, big$$ race seats, a roll bar (chassis reinforcement), and sophisticated aero bits, stock. Z06's come with Ti exhausts now.

In terms of a "prepared" street GT3, now you're talking $7-$10k worth of Motons, spherical suspension, more aero... stuff that that you'll rarely see on even the more serious "track prepped" FD's. Even Brad's and Paul Winter's cars were relatively unremarkable when compared to what you see routinely at PCA events.

Again, there's nothing INHERANT (i.e.: not bolt-on/bolt-off-able) that is inferior about an FD... that has always been the beauty of the car. For the money, Mazda gave you the stuff that you couldn't bolt on later, which is what separates it from 3000GT's and Eclipses and such.

 

Agree, and I think the answer is, maybe not 10 years ago, but now probably. With turbo and engine management and support developments, a 500 hp FD is a lot more livable, driveable, and reliable than it was in '95.

I do think that the OP (and other FD owners) somehow want to believe that the car has been "passed by" in some way, or that a Cayman or GT3 will be worth the investment because there's something inherently "better" about them... Maybe there is in terms of support, mods available, finishing quality, prestige, etc...

...but, there's a reason some of us keep the FD when we could afford "more"...

 

Jesus christ what are you talking about? They are only able to pass in the straights and not much skill?

What the hell is this Initial D?

They are all in the same chassis!!!!!! Of course 150 horsepower won't make them go through the corner any faster. Its pulling on them like a freight train on the straights and going the same speed through the corners. Sounds good to me

How about this...next time thewird goes to a track day he can dial 10 psi of boost out and get some lap times and then go back to 500rwhp to see which one is faster.

 

Cool vid....looks like a fun track (fairly open with longer straights, though, definitely a hp track). I assume this is 500 motor hp not rear wheel (?)

 

I didn't see any over takes in a single corner throughout that video (and no you don't have to be a cartoon character to do that.) The current debate is weather a 500hp rx7 can out accelerate and out corner a 350hp rx7. So far anyone with a brain can see that the 150hp handicap is going to play a major role in straight line performance but has yet to show it can actually use that extra hp in the turns as efficiently as a lower powered rx7.

 

Its the same chassis with very similar track prepped setups. Who has said that 150 horsepower is going to help in the corners.

Also am I the only one that is rarely impressed by the Japanese shops in those videos? Most of them I have seen have at least one or two cars that seem to break or are poorly set up.

 

I have to say, power will always make a difference if the driver has the skill to control it. Just looking at GT car racing, when looking at 2 of the same makes, the higher powered cars produce better times.

I don't think the question is about how much speed is actually being carried while turning but rather the overall performance of each car throughout a sequence of turns and straights. Much of this isn't just answered in the straights but rather in the ability to brake late, control through the turn and apply power at exit in the earliest of instances.

HP plays a significant part in this but so does driver skill.

my2cents

 

The only thing similar about these cars *may* be the tire brand.

 

So many other factors come into play, it's hard to make a comparison.....

example: maybe the higher-powered FDs have cooling issues, so aren't pushing the rpm/boost as hard as the lower-powered ones.

Personally, I love the extra power, and an my recent track days I've simply turned down the boost at the beginning of the day. It's a nice option to have to increase it later on if I think it's a good idea.

In the end, I think 400 rwhp on a track-prepped FD is more than enough. Brakes, suspension, cooling, powerband, and tires are just as (if not more) important as peak horsepower.

 

so its time to add some more bracing on your car now?

 

almost same video, but with more details of the cars, dampers, tires ect...
and the fastest car has the old outdated t78,
you know, the laggy shitty turbo so many people mean is useless.. hehe

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuiD0...eature=related

 

Not sure how relevant it is to the discussion(s) but Maxim Taylor who's a regular Nurburgring junkie and has raced an FD in the Nippon Challenge in the UK set a best time Bridge to Gantry at the 'Ring of 7.44 in his modded FD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxQjteQsOtg "only" running ~400 rwhp (Euro). Ironically, he's just traded it in against a Manthey modified GT3 which has posted a best time of approx 7.14. I dunno what that really proves, possibly nothing, but I reckon the costs of building the FD came nowhere near the costs of the Porker. Again, I feel what it does prove is that a really well-set up car is perhaps of more relevance than outright power.....driver skill helps a good deal too.

Anyway, it's an excuse to link a damn cool video

 

love seeing those tachs wrap around so fast.

 

We need alot more tracks like that here and far fewer NASCAR ovals (better yet, none).

I can't imagine anything more fun with your pants on....

 

So was it a good idea later on?

 

So what kind of tires come with a 200K car? Seriously I’m asking…

Ok this just threw me off so I gotta ask:

Wait wha? WTF Mark… Do you just like to argue for the sake of it? Just a couple of months ago I asked you to video your lagless set up and your response was to belittle me…

And this was your response:

So what gives?

 

Some gallardo's come with pirelli's p-zero tires.

Or at least the ones i saw at my dads dealer.

And yes every phone out now has a video feature. If you own an FD, with all the money it takes to maintain one, you should have a decent modern phone like every guy who needs a fancy tech gadget.

My phone shoots 720P video and is a 8MP camera.

 

thanks



yeah my point was that he blew me off about the vid but here he is asking for one as proof... rather hypocritical if you ask me.

------------------------------------

did someone say GT3?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJqIL...eature=related

 

^ The last 1/3 of that video got my heart pumping literally . Thanks for that.

thewird

 

Yep, that 7:14 is an estimate for a Bridge to Gantry time as well, since the best lap was a 7:51 but that was a full lap so needs pruning for a proper BtG time. IIRC Nissan have been trumpeting the fact that the new R35 GTR makes a 7:29 lap time, and that's the £100 grand-plus V-spec edition generally acknowledged to be one of the fastest current road cars. Also puts it into some perspective, I think. The Nurburgring is argaubly a better comparison for street cars' ability than most tracks because of it's unique layout