Rx7carl

However, since you have to remove and block the ACV when you do this, then why not remove the airpump and do the rats nest at the same time? Or do the rats nest first so the exhaust swap will be easier. Especially if its a daily driver. One weekend for the rats nest, one weekend for the exhaust.

BrewerBob

Daily driver in that I'll drive it to work and what not. I also have a Sentra Spec V. I need a four seater to drop the kids off at school. Then I drive back home, switch cars and go to work. Right now it is down for new rotors and pads.

The RB exhaust ain't cheap. Unplugging the cats is something free. $570 is hard to swallow.

Rx7carl

Tip: do other stuff, save back a few $ and start looking for a used system.

brianw

Okay, don't take my advice to the bank as I am a rotor newbe but I have done many mods on V8's.
I am taking this approach;

0) Cat's were aleardy gone,I'd prabalby not have done this without doing hole system. I agrre with Carl on this,save the $ and find a used sytem.
1) I removed the rat's nest/smog pump. It frees up power from the pump and getts rid af alot of line that I would have other wise had to ifx as I hade numerous vacuum leaks when I bought the car.
2) electric fan. This is CHEAP HP freed up for the whhels to enjoy. It's already there but tied up in turning the fan. I feel this is espeacially true in a rotor.
3) Next will be the ignition upgrade, I'll prabably go with second gen coils til I can afford something better.
4) Will be exaust, no need to addd more fuel till I can burn it and get rid of it.
5) Carb.

I have heard underdrive pullies cause cooling and cahrging prob's on our cars and I doubt it will free up enough to warent the cost on a street car.That's just my opinion.

jammerx7gsl

I have had 3 project Rx7's so far and the one that I have attached the photos to has by far been the best. I had a Daily driver completly stripped to 1800lbs with a full racing beat exhaust, Dual Dellorto 40mm Carbs, and a Dual TWM Intake Manifold. The sucker moved, and I spent about $800.00 on everything. I used it for a daily drive as well as an autocrosser. I loved it so much I am currently working on my 3rd Rx7.

Hopefully the pics will work, but if not, please email me, and I will send them to you....

jammerx7@comcast.net

Ben

pratch

'nuff said. If Carl won't promote out of perceived conflict of interest as a mod - I'll step in here

Killing the rats nest is not really difficult at all. Trust me - if I can do it, anyone can

180sx-x

basically, every1 has the right concept, and they have their own order, so here is my basic general order:
1)remove/change anything that doesnt help HP and will make my engine more simple: fan to electric, no rats nest, no emmisions crap, ect..
2)exhaust-u must remember that an engine is like a big air pump...so for it 2 suck in more air, it must first blow the old air out, so start with the muffler back(cat-back, cat/str8 pipe, then header)
3)intake sys: a carb, manifold, cover,ect would be nice now.
4)do what else u think u need 2 do, such as cooling, ignition, fuel, and the in-n-outs.

Rx7carl

Well this is about powah.
Cooling? no gain there.
Ignition? Small gain, but not necessarily cheap.
Fuel? Better pump and reg, less than $100 and you have adequate fuel delivery for performance. Thanks for bringing that up.

Ooo ooo ooo, I got another one. Weight reduction. FREE hp.

rotarydankus again

biggggg credit limit on visa scary big procharger, F.A.S.T ecm oh wait cheap mod s ? salvage yard tbird supy , twin sunys' from 72 dats 240z, 350.00 or 2 on sale gas leafblowers from home depot ducktaped to cold air intake with 11 year old sun spraying ether through 5 foot vac line from pass. seat ! 70.oox2 + 2.oo 142.00
either way more BANG FOR BUCK! i know , time to take meds.

ray green

iTrader: (14)

Dankus does it again. On my way to home depot and to check on availability of my neighbor's 11 year old.
Ray

timmya2

i'd go with the rb exhaust.


weber 48IDA with k&n filter

then all the neccessities

NGK spark plugs - BR9EQ14, or whatever you use there but with the number 9 heat range

accel or moroso spark plugs wires or 8mm or better wires

MSD coils

Electric fan

STRUT BAR

http://www.cbperformance.com/catalog.asp?ProductID=310 (cold air intake parts)

PLUS.. if u really wanna have a nice first gen..

get a Jacobs RotaryMaster ignition computer
http://www.rx7.com/cgi-local/3catalo...cat=6&part=100

brianw

Okay guys how abotu some pros amd cons on the various exhaust systems. This will be my next mod and I'm not sure which way to go. Are there any dual systems avalible? Is that the way to go on these or should I stay with single. I've nevre seen a "true" system but I know the fc's use dual.

Rx7carl

timmya2- We're talking about cheap power mods.

ray green

iTrader: (14)

Yeh, stuff an eleven year old can afford, or your average married guy, when his wife isn't looking.

Ray

BrewerBob

Damn, how did you know? My son (age 8) is too cheap to share his money. My daughter is even cheaper. The wife doesn't understand why I have 2 RX-7's so there's no help from that quarter either.

ray green

iTrader: (14)

"Okay guys how abotu some pros amd cons on the various exhaust systems"

I replaced my stuffed up old cats with a bonez presilencer, about an hour of backyard work and $150 for parts and shipping. Lots more power, great sound and cheap. Of course a straight pipe would be even cheaper (and louder).
Ray

chairchild

I'm going all the way with mine - shedding as much as possible:

The rats nest and stock carb went in the bin - they were just plain annoying. And after giving it a quick strip-down, I found out why my car was so godamn slow, the secondary diaphragm had siezed shut!!

The air-pump was already removed from mine, and it already had headers - but they faced the wrong way for my use, so they went as well.

I'm ditching the water-pump, and buying an electric item (around £200 for the pump and controller) And simply running the altenator straight from the drivebelt. And I'm also using an electric fan as well so simplify the setup.

I'm going to salvage a double-pulley from another car, and run a twin-belt setup for a couple of quid. luvvly-jubbly!!

rcurrier44

I 2nd this!!!

300HP in a Chevy Suburban is slow...
but 300HP in your RX7 is fast!

Get rid of anything you can live without. A high peak number on a dinograph is cool and all, but what it ultimatly comes down to is the fastest car on the ground.





Pulling the air cleaner and puting a small fan infront of my carb boosted my rear wheel HP from 77 to 81 on my 79 RX7 when it was stock. Cool fresh air makes a difference!

Also, who needs underdrive pullys? Put a toggle switch on your aultinator. As long as it is not charging it won't rob to much power from your system. On a buddies Ford 302 he gains 5 HP at the rear wheels by switching his alt off. When you pull up to the line just flip it off and run off the battery. I have driven 1.5 hours on my yellowtop optima battery before at night with the lights on. So don't worry about flipping it off for a couple of minuits.

vipernicus42

iTrader: (4)

Here's the stuff I want to do to my 7 to give it more pep whilst keeping it stock.

Remove the e-fan - after this many years, the clutch is stuck so it's always on, creating a few hp of drag at least.

Remove the rats nest and air pump - 2-3 hp form air pump isn't much, but every bit helps. Removing the rat's nest simplifies the engine bay and makes it easier to troubleshoot problems.

DLIDFIS - a third coil and some spark plug wire, a few ignitors and some creative mounting and you have a relatively cheap way to smooth out power and improve the stock system

Fuel pressure regulator, guage and fuel pump replacement - fuel is critical, just check Paul Yaw's sites, and putting in the fuel system paves the way for bigger better carbs in the future if you want to.

Rebuilt or Ub3r-Rebuilt nikki - keeps the stock look and feel, is cheap, and can give some extra much-needed power. I'm having mine rebuilt by Rx7Carl in April-Mayish. For me it's just gonna be a stock rebuild with removal of whatever emissions crap isn't truly necessary. But Carl and Sterling do some good streetrace carb mods which can give more hp

Porting - okay, so this isn't really in teh cheap and easy category anymore. But a mild street port won't change the character of the car, or the sound much, but can open up a world of hp, of course it costs like 2g to do, but it's worth it

Exhaust - okay, this one is MUCH cheaper than porting and is probably the biggest hp-to-dollar ratio that actually costs something (2hp for free doesn't count, but 25% increase in hp for 500$ sure does!). It costs a pretty penny, but less than porting, and you can't go wrong with RB.

Suspension - every straight ends in a curve! RB springs and KYB shocks can give you a major upgrade from stock suspension without really breaking a huge set of bills, especially compared to Eibachs and Tokicos. Bushings are awesome too

Steering - CP Racing makes a Rack and Pinion Kit that can totally revamp the steering system, or you can try in vain to get the stock one working right. I say save up the 1g and get CP

Jon

BlastinSideways12A

I have never done this, but how about rejetting the good ole nikki carb after exhaust, ignition, emmisions removal, and air filter upgrades? Mazdatrix sells jets for 5 something each. Seems like it should be good for a few horses in the high end after the engines breathing is increased.

Rx7carl

Absolutely. Rejetting will yield more power. The rule of thumb is something like 10% of your power increase will come from tuning.

BlastinSideways12A

This is what my car is right now:

Right now my engine is an 82 stock port in good shape (I replaced the soft seals) with a 79 intake manifold with coolant passages blocked, rebuilt Nikki (82 model), no rats nest or air pump, K&N with a custom made filter housing (open sides), MSD direct fire, Yaw Power Timing lock and advance, underdrive pulleys with only alternator and water pump, and electric fan (big difference by the way, first mod I would do) I also put a used, resurfaced light steel flywheel and a clutch kit on.

As for my exhaust, I am still using the stock manifold (I know it sucks but I'm saving for the ISC header and then I will make my own system), I have a bonez cat eliminator pipe with built in presilencer (2"i.d.), and I made my own 2" exhaust from that all the way back using a 2" magna-flow muffler. It sounds mellow but good.

Right now the engine runs pretty well and I was able to run a 16.1@82 in the quarter. Not bad considering I ran 18.1@76 when I only had the bonez cat eliminator.

SUSPENSION/BRAKES/WHEELS/TIRES STUFF:
I also put urethane bushings in the front and in the rear except for the upper and lower links. Also did the mod from www.pbandjracing.com to the watts linkage and links. I have stock springs (for now) and a Racing Beat front sway bar. My struts are Tokico HPs. Wheels are stock plus style with 195/60/13 BFGoodrich Radial T/A in front. In rear same tire with 205/60/13. The brakes are machined stock rotors with braided stainless lines and performance pads. I rebuilt the calipers while I was at the brake work. I have the rear disk with LSD from an 82 GSL.

After doing these things to my car, the thing has gone from being kinda sluggish and sloppy to being a total blast to drive. Thats what I love about these cars, you can do so many little, inexpensive things to them and these things add up to make it a really cool car.

I have three questions for whoever can answer them.

1. What setup should I use for the carb jets with my current setup?

2. Would a fuel pressure regulator do anything for me right now?

3. What about an upgraded fuel pump? I tested mine and it is performing to factory specs but if a better one will help, I will get that.

Rx7carl

2&3- The stock pump is barely adequate. Upgrade the pump, get a regulator and a good gauge.

1- rejetting is a subject widely covered on the internet. Do some reading to get an idea of what to do.

jaspertrix

I've heard from several sources that I consider to be reliable- rx-7 club rotary review and from rx7 book 1st gen- advancing timing by 2-5 degrees boost up a few ponies and extends engine life. K&N filter is a easy add on although a bit much for a filter. Dropping the exhaust is a good idea but not much you can do on the intake side. Performance plug wires (magnecor my choice) and new coils help and are pretty cheap. Haven't put one on yet myself, but every racer at MidOhio had a MSD unit on it and they have come down a lot to just over a hundred. Personal best suspension mod other than new shocks and springs ,which made it a new car, was changing the bushings in the watts linkage in the back, the car actually turns now instead of locking up. Synthetic gear oil in the rear diff and especially in the transmission made a noticeable difference in shifting. Hope they help.

1stgen4life

iTrader: (1)

I would probably recomend a Sterling and Carl modded Nikki carb over an aftermarket one. You will save a lot of money and get a good carb.