cheap/easy power?
 

i jus bought an n/a 89 rx7 convertible last week because i was looking for something with a little more power then my civic and it def does but i was wondering if there are any easy ways to gain some more power out of the rx7.
i was told by a couple of people that the emissions suck alot of power out and that i should get rid of everything except power steering and ac. i have a very limited budget. anybody have any suggestions?

what is your budget? THere are planty of mods to gain power

im 16 and still in school. where my money goes depends on how much i have to save up. i get good money 4 a 16 year old but i would still have to do a little saving but i need get an idea of wat im looking at

intake/exhaust? Really hard unless we get a few numbers. 100 a week, every other week, every month? :P

So just power, no suspension or body work? Intake and Exhaust would be the cheapest and they're hefty ho bags anyway. Porting is where real power comes in but that would mean to go ahead and rebuild the engine while you're at it. Intake might as well stay stock because w/ cone filters you gotta be careful of that heat soak, isn't that right everyone?

i can do my own body work because im on my second year of it at school and it has decent suspension. i get about 800 a month after paying for insurance

Well, first off, do the whole "tune-up". Flush and fill all fluids, & redo all your grounds, while you're at it, look for leaking van lines. Get new plugs&wires then start fromt here.

An RB exhaust is hella popular, and the only downside is that it weighs more than most aftermarket systems, but it's built to take anything. Good gains too.

Other than that, I'd say try to get some sort of S-AFC or similar, and see if you can lean your car out. My 89 ran rich as hell, so it might be the same for you.

If you want more, then you'd need to port your engine, so it can wait. The Vert is a heavy mofo, so I'm not sure if it was the best choice, but it should be more than enough to keep up with most civics with an exhaust.

just do a Tune up and change ALL fluids.......stay away from the cone filters, keep the the stock air box but if you want a lil better air flow drop in a K&N filter..

What are your power goals? If they are anything like 250rwhp+ STOP NOW!

My Advice:

SAVE YOUR MONEY!

I went through the motions of trying to get more power out of my NA vert engine. cold air Intake\exhaust etc. etc. For the money you put into them the gains aren't worth it.... at all...

A turbo swap will be THE BEST thing you can do to set yourself up with a platform that has more power and much more power potential with mods. But, its not exactly cheap. So if you get $800 a month, save up for a good 6 months+.

To save money and effort:
1. Keep the NA. Turbos put out much more power but also involve much more headache and $. But if you want a lot and have the time and $, turbo may be the way to go.
2. Do all maintenance items to prevent future problems.
3. High flow cat. Bonez, I think. You could just get a straight pipe but then you have to get around smog tests later. A $150 bribe is one method, I hear. Not to mention legality, effort, etc.
4. Mufflers. Racing Beat is more expensive but they are quiet and they last.
5. Get a cone intake and make your own cold air box for the intake. I'd re-use the stock snorkel so you don't have to do any cutting. Search for more info.
6. Stop. There are other ways to get more power but they are expensive and time consuming. But you could do the standard handling upgrades. Or at least replace the shocks and any worn out bushings.

In other words, best way to save time and money is to spend time and money now on what counts. Or you'll be spending more later.

No.


-Ted

Standalone ems, megasquirt n spark would be cheap, and has autotune built in. Then you could also run nitrous.

You bought the wrong car- the least powerful engine in the heaviest chassis.

Either learn to love it for it's unique charms or forget it...there are no "cheap/easy" fixes.

maintain what you have and save it for turbo :) thats what i'm doing.