sterling or holleY? and race beat suspension?
 

looking into definatly getting a new carb set up and wondering wich actually makes more power? i have read alot and some say sterling some say holley but my wallet says sterling?I think I found sterlings are 350 shipped and a holley is almost 600 plus shipping plus u need a new intake! what do you think? Its for a stock port 12a wich is also getting a header at the same time and already has a free flowing exhaust and is getting the race beat springs and tokico shocks.I am getting into to autocrossing since last year and really want to get a little more serious about it now. Has any actually ever dynoed these things I couldn't find anything? And how is the race beat suspension?

This specific carb vs carb topic was recently discussed in the following thread; https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-specific-1979-1985-18/rb-holley-465-vs-sterling-opinions-expierence-725550/
If you have specific questions about the Sterling, please feel free to email me or PM me. I'm not a vendor here, so I'm limited in what type of info I can put here.
I do not have supporting dyno data as of yet. That fact has been a source of criticism with regards to my performance claims. The lack of that data is why I emphasize that I guaranty satisfaction with a 30 day return policy.

My personal advice?
You're slapping on a header, which is a serious power improvement, at the same time that you're also upgrading the suspension. It's now a different car.
My advice is to get used to the new suspension and the power increase, and explore the new handling characteristics & limits of the car, and then get a carb upgrade.
Trust me (us), upgrading performance in those steps will still be extremely noticeable improvements each time.
It's easier on the wallet, and it allows you to get more familiar with how each upgrade changes you car's behavior.
I put a Yaw carb, headers, LSD, Konis, & an aluminum flywheel on mine at the same time years ago. Took no time at all for me to land in a ditch.

tokico shocks
 

i Hear the tokico shocks are very good for our cars im actually gonna give them a shot. those are the only shock and spring set up i see talked about around here!!!

I agree with sterling on this. Start with the exhaust and suspension and see the improvement. If you haven't already do the rats nest removal as well.

good advice,the thing is i not only want more power its that the carb I have is 27 years old doesn't idle well and jumps and stutters some times in low rpms. That is the biggest reason for a new carb and I figured might as well get a perfomance one while I am at it. I am pretty sure I want one of ur carbs from what I have read. I am getting a nice tax return this year and so once that comes in the next week or so I will be emailing you.

I havent removed it yet but thats the plan when I get the carb.

If you are already in need of a new carb, might as well grab the Sterling unless you want to rebuild the one you've got.

For suspension, check out www.re-speed.com before you buy springs. It's not that much more for coilovers, and they come with many benefits. I started with the Rb springs, then moved up to the Respeed equipment later on, so I ended up spending more money. I should have started out with the Respeed stuff in the first place, but they weren't around yet.

You can check out the videos in my sig line. I'm running the Sterling in all of them, and the Respeed coilovers in any of the videos from last year. Good luck.... :)



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Get used to your current stuff first. Try rebuilding your stock nikki and maybe follow sterlings tutorial for mechanical secondaries.

BTW-You should be able to find a Holley in the classifieds. I got my setup (Holley 465, RB Holley Mani, Holley Red pump) for $300 shipped.

When I started the widebody project, which will be 'done' someday, but I don't see that day coming soon, I started with a carb and headers. After driving that for a while I did Stage 1 of basically a full suspension and brake upgrade. Car's handling changed dramatically. At that point I had reached the limits of the stock tires and installed the widebody kit so I could mount the 15X7/8" Epsilons I had waiting. Going to that wide of a tire footprint again changed the handling, even more than I expected.

With those tires I reached the limits of the stock brakes. I could no longer lock them up. This led to the Stage 2 suspension and brake upgrade which includes Re-Speeds full big brake upgrade and camber plates, new wheels, 15X9/10 SSRs and a set of of used Mazdacomp adjustable tension rods and lower control arms. I'm still chasing down the few bits of brake hardware to install the 2nd gen rear calipers. I'm also concidering upgrading the brake booster and master cylinder. The 2nd gen booster is too wide to fit unless I offset both the brake and clutch master cylinders. Just this week I ran across a booster from an 87 300ZX that has the same bolt pattern and diameter as the 1st gen one but is 1/2 again as deep. I may install that one, along with a fresh master and see if it will provide the needed extra fluid supply and pressure for the front/rear 2nd gen calipers. If that's successful, I'll do full writeup on it.

The point of this lengthy post is plan out your upgrades. Decide what/how you want your 7 to perform when you're done and methodically work towards that goal. As you complete each stage of your upgrades, the performance/handling is going to change. Take your car out and relearn how to drive it after each upgrade. As your car improves, so will your driving skills.

I'm still sitting on parts that will eventually be installed on the widebody. The biggie, which was my main goal that started all of these mods are 2 TII engines sitting in the shop, torn down, that will eventually be rebuilt and installed. Had I simply just did the TII swap without first spending the time and money on the supporting upgrades, I most likely would have crashed the car due to the weak brakes, suspension and inadequate traction from the stock tires.

agreed completely i want to get my suspension done first then i will get the TII engine. i just bought almost 800 dollars of RESPEED stock. this should drastically improve the handling. i have some TII front calipers but no hubs, looking for these, and am thinking about getting a 9inch instead of going the respeed, TII 5lub way for the rears.

so sure you might spend more money now, but you probably would save money in the long run by upgrading to respeed first instead of racing beat, unless you don't have grandiose plans!

admittedly, i did not read the whole thread because i'm drinking right now. what i will say is this:

1. you're comparing apples to apples. so kudos to you, man. if Sterling's carb does what he says, then i'd go with Sterling simply because it's built to work with your manifold. it flows the same as the only Holley that i'd use on a 12A. i beleieve comparing Sterling's modded Nikkis to 2-barrel Webers is pointless.

2. Holleys are hard to get right. i admit that. it can be done, but it's not easy. i think if you start with a Nikki, modded or otherwise, then you're ahead of the game.

i've never used a Sterling carbie, but it's just my thoughts ....

My setup:

RB springs
Tokico Illumina's in the front
Tokico Blue's in the rear
RB SP Exhaust
MSD Blaster 2 Coils
Magnacore 10mm wires
185/70R13 All Season BFG's

I am in desparate need of new tires. I like my RB springs, however they seem a bit soft for hard auto-x work, and as Kentetsu pointed out, for the slight bump in price (and if I had paid for the springs by themselves) I would definitely go with the ReSpeed stuff for the adjustability.

Here is the modification path I'd suggest:

1. Overhaul your steering. Wondersteer slows you down around an auto-x course.
2. Bushings. I went to replace my rear end when I blew it up this summer, and the bolts that hold the rear axle to the trailing link bars were fused to the brass bushings in the rubber bushings. This will make your suspension bind, and wreak havoc with your ability to control your car.
3. Rebuild your carb and save the money for suspension. You will outgrow your suspension long before you need more power. My first auto-x, I was .5 seconds behind the second place person, and they had more power and stickier tires. I, however, had an upgraded suspension where they didn't.
3.5 Put on a RB uncollected header and have a full 2.5" exhaust made with Magnaflo mufflers. Or just get the whole RB SP system, if you have the 1100 to spend. Great system. I have it. Great sound, no buzz, heavy SOB, but it will last FOREVER.
4. Suspension. Save up your money and skip the RB stuff, unless you can find someone's used setup for cheap through the classifieds. If you can find a cheap spring/shock combo, go for it. If you can't find a cheap setup, buy ReSpeed. Your wallet will thank you in the long run.
5. Tires. Your weak link now. (I am at this point)
6. Brake pads. Your weak link now.
7. LSD Rear End. Your weak link. You CAN break a big bearing rear end with shitty tires. Search my user name under the non-tech section, or click the link in my sig. There is a video in my RX-7 album (on my photobucket) of what my rear end sounded like when I removed it. Bad News Bears.
8. Learn your car. Drive many events.
9. Carb upgrade. I liked my RB Holley setup, but it was weak in the low revs. Once the secondaries kicked in, it was one of those hold-onto-your-head because it snaps back, but the power was not very linear. I am positive that I'll go with a Sterling when I need a carb upgrade.