Well, as much money as Im going to be saving with the powerplant I chose, and the fact that Im starting with a roller, I realized that if I carefully spend money on handling and tires I could probably make it for the $2006 Grassroots Motorsports challenge.

Anywho, besides replacing worn out DTSS bushings and shocks, are there any good cheap modifications, or coilovers out there? Good cheap tire choices? Easy places to lose weight?

I already know what tires can fit under the stock fenders and how good the T-II brakes are (more than sufficient unless I try to endurance race!) but I was wondering what I could get for a few hundred...

 

maybe like front and rear strut tower bars from ebay (the front I may get something a little better than ebay) those are usually pretty cheap handeling parts. Don't know if you want stock shocks and struts but if you want aftermarket and cheap just get the kyb non adjustable shocks and some springs that right there would probably cost you about 3 or 4 hundred.

 

how about not only changing the dtss bushings but changing every bushing energy sells a kit

 

I don't exactly understand what you're asking....

but for rims your cheapest bet will be in the used market....if its raced mostly condition should'nt be an issue right?

tires in my experience - you pay for what you get - a REALLy sticky Yokohama will run you $235 per corner....and wear out good and fast. Bottom line when it comes to rubber is there really isn't a way to get around the cost of good tires (unless you have some sick connections)....relativelty speaking since 235/tire in my experience isn't a tonne of bread...

as far as suspension goes you have a number of choices in coilovers...a search will turn up a load of feedback on the different mfr's and costs

easy places to lose wieght?....you have to remember that you aren't really starting with an obese man........you have a relatively fit individual - therefore there are no quick or easy places to lose 3 or 400 pounds. Mostly anything I have trimmed out of a track car (must use a cage if you are going to this extent) is inner bracing of the quarters, skin the doors, lose the sunroof and skin the roof......lexan helps anywhere you can use it ( good luck with the rear glass)......an aluminum hood helps too. along with the obivous removal of any unwanted/unrequired engine accessories like a/c, air pump, power steering...

 

front and rear struts and srpings. then go onto coilovers later

 

it depends alot if you are a guy that is willing to make your own parts to save on the cost. You can't do much in the rotary world for 2006 bucks. You can how ever use anything you find. I.E. scrap metal for a roll bar, and strut bars. I bet you could even find some used rx7 bbs wheels from a vert for about 100 bucks. I would sell you mine but shipping would be almost as much as the rims.
Also look into scap pipe from a plumbing shop. they usually have scraps of that stuff laying around everwhere that could be used to build a header and straight pipe combo with what ever is already on the car. Just stuff like that. post some status for us.
Very cool project

 

How adding a second stock sway bar? Go with the stock springs, cut them to get the ride height and spring rate you want. If you can't get the combo you need make a spacer to get the right free height. Or make spacers to fit between coils to 'remove ' coils from the spring equation. You can also shrink springs in an oven to shorten them. (easy recipe, let me know if you want it).
It really depends on what you can make yourself, the better the shop, the craftier you can get.
Also what do you have laying around that you can make fit?

 

You can't go cheaper for springs than cutting the ones that you have. However I doubt that you can get the results to be stiff enough. Maintaining front/rear balance will be a trial and error experience that may take more time than you have available. (maybe cut 1 or 1.5 coils from all the springs, I don't know if you could get away with 2 coils)

You could get a set of ebay honduh coilovers for cheap. Use the adjusters and one pair of springs for the front then buy another pair of springs from summit or jegs for the rear. Total cost about $120. The 500 pound springs in honduh ebay kits are a little stiff but acceptable for a race car. then get 350 pound springs from summit for the rear.
https://www.rx7club.com/2nd-generation-specific-1986-1992-17/ebay-coilovers-494420/

If you go with really stiff springs, you can skip the swaybars. Swaybars are nice but the cost doesn't justify them when you are on a super strict budget. Same with strut braces - nice to have but the benefits are subtle. I wouldn't bother unless I could get them for free.

Adjustable shocks are really nice but I don't see how you can get away for anything less than full price. I would go with whatever is on the car if they're not blown. Buy them only if you can easily fit them in your budget.

The most important handling mod is the tires. If you can get a set of used race tires, that's great. Otherwise I would spend the money on a new set of Kumhos. Last time I checked, they were a LOT stickier than the Yokohamas and only a few dollars more expensive. ($135 each)

Consider sticking with 205/50-15 tires. They get nearly as good performance as larger tires and they are a bit less expensive. (although today I saw 225/50-15 for less - must be a closeout)

Camber plates are best but expensive. Buy a set of camber bolts like the ones available here:
https://www.stempfperformance.com

The rear camber should be ok especially if you lower the car a little.

ed

 

Save money with the powerplant....

Did you put a stop and go motor in there?

 

sticky tires, and maybe you will actually see some benefit from bigger brake rotors in a track setting

 

You could just remove the rear sway to help balance out.

 

Im gonna make sure I get a 5lug/4pot roller to start with. Thats kind of the key dependancy on this... and well, what attracted me to FCs in the first place

I also saw from digitalsolo's post on TorqueCentral that there exists cheapo FC coilovers on Ebay for.. like $129 + S&H. Anyone know any details about them?

For those curious about the motor - honestly, theres no way in hell I could get a rotary to RELIABLY make any amount of performance unless I gave BJs for parts and tuning (cant pay in money afterall...) with as tight a budget as I'm on. $2006 for the WHOLE Car including the price of it! Most likely Ill go with a 2.3T, but the backup for that would be a 302/T5/JY Turbos and inverted manifolds (or a holset). This isnt a slight to rotaries... its a fact of life if the only rule of the competition is to be a cheap bastard. . Last year a 302/FC won the dragrace and concourse parts of the competition - the autocross went to:

37 Lee Graser ThunderMidget 29.657 seconds

For reference, the v8 FC went 8th in the autocross:

58 Jeremy Butts 1988 Mazda RX-7 31.148 seconds

In the long run, as soon as this is done Im going to immediately tear down what I have to in order to make it not such a Mad-Maxian back-to-the-future kind of hotrod it will have to be, and make it cleaner, more efficient, and more sorted out. AN fittings and braided lines, clean up EVERYTHING, rebuild the engine to a 2.5 with aluminum heads or find a 13BT, etc.

Also, I know cutting springs will make them stiffer.... is that really a good idea at all or should I get some $129+S&H coilovers?

 

In rough terms, the new spring rate = the old spring rate x (original number of live coils/ the number of live coils left)

The problem is that for a race car you might want springs that are 100% stiffer. That would leave you with springs only half as high as stock springs.

Also your maximum load and your suspension travel is also getting smaller as you remove coils. Even with spring spacers to get the ride height set, you may bottom the springs in normal driving.

You can't really go much more than 50% stiffer than stock with cut springs. Even that might be too much.

ed

 

Tein Flex. Keep stock sways, do strut bars if you'd like. BBS rims with Hankook (now thats a cheap tire, 40-50$ a peice), and DTSS elininmator bushings.

That's good for cheap . Now if you can get that engine in there for less then 700-800$.

 

Ed has listed the problems of cutting springs pretty well. If the courses you are running are smooth you can get a little more performance from really stiff springs. Since you are drag racing also I'd keep the car on the soft side with the springs but I'd control roll with more sway bar(the two stock bar option would be cheapest and easiest). With a little math a ruler and a dial caliper you could save a ton of money getting springs from a salvage yard from some other car and cutting them if needed.

 

Strut bars...
The ebay one's will hit your alternator and you will be forced to grind a big notch out of it to make it clear.

Try and search ebay for the JDM Infini FC stock strut bar. I have one and it's a perfect fit and can usually be bought for cheap.

Suspension bushings will help too.

Tires.. I love my Yokohama AVS es100's. IRC I bought 235x40x17 front and 245x40x17 tires for around $450-500 total.

For struts and stuff. I'd say Tokico HP's and RB springs and maybe sway bars.

Another way to stiffen the frame would be to fill the rails and stuff with expanding foam. I think Icemark or one of the other guys did it to their car.


Ifg you get a TII then a DP/Presilencer or gutted cat/gutted stock catback/Walbro/cleaned injectors/ported wastegate/MBC should give you a decent performance boost.

 

I have always felt that the GRM challange was totally fixed. People are getting stuff for free, or have friends in the business that are giving them huge discounts.

 

Im thinking the $129+S&H Ebay coilovers would be the best start here.

I could do the engine for $800 no problem, Im just going to be wishing and begging for a free NASH head (fat chance, though, it could cost more than the car, hah) or some porting.

My friend emailed grant last night, apparently the 2.3T mounts are almost done... so expect some turbo ford guys to swarm in here in the coming months, they all loved the 2.3T FB that someone made (and frankly many would like a lighter better handling chassis to work with, anyway). His homeported, Holset-turboed motor on stock internals made over 400 whp on pump gas. I doubt Id get that much performance, but if I did I'd be a shoe-in, lol. Shame Id need to get used DRs or victoracers to put that kind of power down, sheeit.