V8 is great for drag racing but road racing and auto x it's the last thing I would want. The 1st gen's balance and engine placement is so crucial. You can't set a v8 far enough back to get good balance. I had a V8 conversion in a 240z it was fast as hell but handled like **** compared to stock.

You might beat me in a straight line, but try that V8 **** against my rotary on any track with turns and you wont stand a chance.

You change the motor and you will also change the gear box. I had a t5 tranny and it felt like dog **** clunky and slow shifts. The rx7 box is quick and smooth plus the motor winds like no other powering out of turns.

I got a large streetported 12a it cost me $4500.00 Canadian (3k U.S.) for everything, carb, porting, carbon seals, new rotors, fly-wheel, rb exhauast... I got about 210hp and the thing screams all the way to 9k. Never taken it to the drag strip but I can tell you right now that it tears the snot out of most cars I race on the track, including a ton of V8 powerhouses.

 

Haha, now you hear it from someone else, you V8-guys!!! Welcome, Willhogan! That's quite an entry, I'd say :-)

 

Not really. The GTS class has been around for a while. In it's current form the GTS has it's roots in the class made for cars like the McLaren F1. A class that was supposed to be the top class...however Porsche killed it by building a car that was a racer first then a production car. The Oreca Vipers won the GTS class 3 years running. This past year the main competition has come from the ProDrive Maranello. That car is faster than the 'Vettes but not as reliable...it should have won the Petit but broke in the last hour.

BTW, I saw IMSA versions of those Silk Cut Jags at Road Atlanta several times...they were pretty awesome.

 

I'm currently building a 79 with a small block chevy and a single 72mm turbo. back halfed with a ford 9 inch and 325 drag radials. the motor made 650HP. I had the same motor and trans in an 85 Supra and it went 10's at 135 MPH spinning he tires badly at the top end of the track. The RX7 is about 450 lbs lighter than the supra (maybe more) so it should go 9's easy. that was at 12lbs of boost. the motor is safe to about 16 lbs or about 725 HP. don't get me wrong this thing will handle like a tub of crap, but the wheels up launches at the strip will be exciting. and NO you do not need a kit to put the V8 in, it's all common sence

 

What class do you get stuck in with that beast? Or do you do the timed bracket racing crapola? (You can tell I'm a big fan of Biondo... ) A turbo'd SBC in an import body pretty much defies classification for most of the big sanctioning bodies...

 

It's a street car. The supra only made it to the strip a couple of times. mostly saturday night street drags. Theres no point in racing in the big name races. waste of time and money and to many F__kin' rules. buy the way, the total cost to build the Supra was $4,800 including the price of the car. the RX7 will be around $2,500 considering i already have 99% of the parts. how can you go 9's with a rotary for $2,500???

 

I am SO pissed off hearing about supposed "reliability problems" with rotaries...My first Rx7 was an 83 that had 90K when I got it, and 140k miles when I sold it...the car is still running. I have talked to people that have put over 200k miles on rotaries without a rebuild...I have seen damn few pistons engines reach the same mark, and those that did were usually extremely well maintained, and adult driven, and most of those were 4 cylinder import econo-boxes. I would be willing to bet that 80% of rotary failures are maintainance related, or driver error, ie. over reved, or excessively abused.