Worth keeping?
 

Hey guys!

I was almost set on getting my motor rebuilt/ported, but now i dunno. I am the 4th owner of my 88 S4 gxl 5speed. The car was great like the first 2 weeks, but then I ran into a bunch of troubles. (I have other threads concerning the heating issues and what have you). But now (6 months later) some cash has finally found it's way to me and I'm not sure where to go :uhh: I was planning on going with a rebuild/street-port from Kevin @ Rotary Resurrection in TN, But I just dunno if a wanna take the risks with this car. I mean, don't get me wrong i fell in love with it the first time i saw it and heard that first wonderful rumble of it's N/A 6 port 13B!

I was planning on Kevin rebuilding the longblock, doing his best street port (all 6 intake ports w/both exhaust), emissions removal, and remove the 6th port actuators (just run all 6 ports open all the time). I was also planning to run either a Pacesetter or RB street header w/this combo, stage 2-3 clutch, Tein springs, KYB adj. shocks, strut bars, poly bushings all-round, 17" wheels, racing seats, racing steering wheel, and maybe a re-paint.

I'm getting Married and moving to FL @ the end of this summer and I just need to have a reliable, lite hassle, fun, safe car to drive.

So I guess my biggest question is: Is it worth hanging onto my beloved FC, or should I "grow up" and get a more responsible car?

Any help/advice is always appreciated!

How much money would you consider too much? I would consider keeping it.

You might not want to run all 6 ports open all the time

According to his website; with everything I need done (motor-wise) about $1600, which is in my price range. I have read up a lil on the 6 port thing, I've heard its not to bad. Just a lil less low-end power, but u get it all back when you hit the freeway.

Once you get it fixed up you can have the fun reliable car you want. Mine's my only car. I'm keeping it in top shape before adding any upgrades, and then only mild ones that, if anything, improve practicality. Gonna keep it for a decade, heh. Only problem I hear about with couples is the 2 seats. The wife goads the husband into selling and buying a larger car. Maybe you could install the back seats which could fit until your kids turn 8.

But half the people on the forums don't fix up their cars, rice them out, and then the monthly disasters start. At the very least fix first, mod later. I'd put the racing seat in driver's side only, and then only if you're the only driver. OEM bushings may be more practical than poly. And are you (and your wife), prepared for the bribes and smell of emissions removal? A cheap paint job looks tacky and a good repaint will cost you as much as all your mechanical work. If the paint's not peeling or faded, a clay bar and good wax can do wonders towards making it look new. Don't get a header; they're noisy and don't add much. If anything you could go for a downpipe and presilencer for about the same power (or any cat replacement). Dunno what that clutch is, but make sure it's a practical performance clutch and not one of the PITA ones.

Anyhoo you can search the forums for more info.

Hey thanks ericgrau, I appreciate the encouragement! I know, I really hate the thought of finally having enough cash to do what I need and some of what I want to the car and not doing it.

So you think that after this rebuild the car should hold up to a semi-long haul move and daily driving there after? And why no headers? I heard the factory one is crap.

Thanks

Header would be good to free up some Ponies in the engine.you can always attach a Cat or presilencer if you find fit too loud,or the Emissions thing is Active in your area.My Car in the summer is my Daily driver.Has been for Two years.I do just enough Mods to allow me to Get them on and enjoy some Driving.I have a Shitload to put on this year.Hopefully I get to Drive it.as far as the Clutch,try and stick with one that is Full face.That way you aren't Gouging the Crap out of your Flywheel when you get into stop and Start City Driving.Six Puck clutch is not Recommended.I can't recall the one I had(bought used),I think it was either ACT or Exedy..good clutch.Nice grab.Would Hook up Nicely and give me third gear Chirp when Letting the car "do it's thing"..Maybe check into something like that.If you Go Ebay,just get a good Brandname clutch..I too am going to Redo the engine.But First I am getting the Body,Interior Suspension all Upgraded.That way I can throw whatever I choose into the Engine bay and have a Good car around it..Being N/A isn't so bad right now,If the car is Running then you get to Enjoy it.It's when you decide to Chop the crap out of the engine,that is what really takes the Fun out of it.Looking at the car and seeing Nothing in the Engine bay..But I am sure your Car and your plans will Coincide and you'll have a blast..it will serve you good,Just take care of it..Best of Luck,.STYX!

I said no header because they're noisy. Yeah, the stock manifold is rather simple, but even a manifold made from pipe at Home Depot wouldn't be so bad. You don't actually gain too much from the upgrade. That's why replacing the cat with a downpipe (bolted to the stock manifold) and a presilencer provides about the same power as the header. And it's cheaper and quieter. I assumed noise would be a factor for a family car. I'd also get the Racing Beat mufflers if you want power without it getting too loud. I had similar reasoning for the rest of what I said; keeping the noise and ride comfort reasonable. Not that poly bushings aren't bearable, they can be okay if the suspension is soft. But for a practical car it'd be better to have soft bushings so you can upgrade the suspension a little more before it becomes uncomfortable. You likewise wouldn't want a family car with a clutch that jerks you all over the place (dunno if the one you want is like that).

Well, my car isn't exactly going to be our "family" car, rather my daily driver/occasional track car. I'm mailnly worried about engine life.

Alright. I decided to keep it! Since my last post My fiance and I hauled my motor up to Kevin at Rotary resurrection (very nice guy, highly recommended) He is rebuilding my motor using S5 housings w/ 2mm mazda seals, giving it a full streetport, removing my emissions w/ removing 6th port actuators, sending my injectors to be cleaned/ opened up. I also purchased (via ebay) koyo aluminum radiator, F1-stage 3 clutch kit, KYB AGX 8way adj. struts, Tein s.tech springs, fr/rr strut bars, and pacesetter flangged header. Hopefully this will be a bullet-proof, safe, and long-lasting street setup. I'm debating getting rims, but I'm planning to go to school @ UTI this fall, and I'm getting married. So the $700-$800 for rims could go a perty good way. On the other hand, this will probably be the last car I "fix up" for a few years.

What do you guys think?

Sounds good. The only thing I would change would be a Racing Beat header instead of the pacesetter. The RB is good for increasing the low end torque you will loose with the 6 ports open.

KEEP IT!!
besides, there are a lot of people down here in florida who tune/work on rx7s.

Really?! Where? Any in or around Orlando?

I am now around Orlando.

I moved from down south where Zander (Chaotic FC) is.

I'm well versed in MegaTune and I am helping out Ken with the bussing problems that they've been having with the new ms v3.0 board/ ignition daughter board. I've been working with rotaries for quite some time now, got to work with Matt from Redline Turbo in Ft. Lauderdale while I was in school for automotive.

Feel free to ask me if you need tuning services or general help with your car. I'm currently a UCF student.

-Jon

Excellent, I'll have to look you up when I get down there (probably Aug.-Sep.). Mabie we can plan up a meet.

Wouldn't mind it at all,

always down to help out a fellow motor-enthusiast.

Wow, I'd like to see this in person. Sounds like it's gonna be pretty nice. I'm in Cumming GA, around Dalonega, Gainesville, and Dawsonville. Maybe we could meet up sometime and I could see this. That is, once it's finished :-)

The car probably wont be done till April. I just finished installing my Tein springs and KYB AGX struts. Lets try to plan up a GA meet for everybody sometime in April. I'd like to get some of your feedbacks and opinions on the build up. And I'd like to see some of your rides.

I've been going to these lately...

www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=675955

So the car is coming along very nicely (will have some pics up soon), I'm still waiting to get the motor back from Kevin (rotary resurrection) have the intake ready to go in, the header is wrapped and ready to go on, The exhaust I already had done custom before the motor went out, I have the springs/shocks on and set, the wheels and tires are mounted and on the car, the koyorad radiator and F-1 clutch are waiting to go in with the motor, I even threw in an old school grant steering wheel, and the last thing I ordered was a cusco drift turn knob.

What are some other cool things I could do to it?

I would keep the car. i dont know how it is in your area but around here it is really hard to find an fc worth buying. and if growing up means getting rid of my fc i dont ever want to grow up