tmc3

In about two months I'm going to be in the market for an 84/85 GSL-SE and I'm looking for some suggestions. I have a budget (wife limited) of about 5K and here's what I'm thinking. I'm trying to find a car in good working order with a decent exterior/interior. I'm counting on 1.5-2.5K for that. I won't live without leather so if I can't get one with leather seats in good condition, that's the first thing I'm droping money on. Then comes the stereo, but the expense for that is variable. What I'm really concerned with is the performance aspect. I'm hoping to push 170-200 bhp out of the motor to start out with so I'm thinking MSD ignition and some kind of ECU. My questions are:
1. Who has had good/bad experiences with either one of those mods, and are there better alternatives?
2. Am I being unrealistic about the performance (I think I might be which leads to my next question)?
3. What other "weekend" mods can I look at to reach my goals?
4. Do you guys know of any company that makes a decent leather seat that I can bolt in?

mikewoodkozar

Your answers to questions 1, 2, 3, & 4 can be found when you search

trochoid

iTrader: (6)

Welcome to the forum and the Darkside. For 5k, you could buy a mint SE in top condition. As for the leather seats, very few of them have survived well unless the car was garaged kept all it's life. If you can find a good set of TII leather/suede seats, they are a direct bolt in and very good upgrade. 3rd gen and RX8 seats are nice too and show up in the for sale section and eBay occasionally. I haven't seen anyone that's offering leather recover kits for the 1st gen seats and frankly, in leather, they don't hold one in the seat well for cornering.

For 200 bhp, then it's rebuild and porting time. A standalone ecu will help push the hp up better than any of the stock ecus and the SE one will not work for that hp goal. A stock 2nd gen TII swap with minor mods will put you in the 220-240 hp range if you want to go with boost. Steve84GS is pushing 300 hp with his S5 TII swap and it's CARB certified.

In my sig line are some links for you to read. Be sure to download the online FSMs and get a head start on familiarizing yourself with your future 7. Good luck on finding the one you want.
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rearviewmirror

There are cars out there. I just bought an 85 GSL-SE w/ 67k original miles for $3k. See my thread here:

https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-specific-1979-1985-18/gsl-se-pricing-717341/

tmc3

How far can I get without rebuilding or porting. I'm looking at those things in the future, but not right now.