banzaitoyota

Final project approval was supposed to take place in June 1983 and as the final design for all componants were nailed down in April the designers found that the car weighed rather too much!.......


With the months breathing space Uchiyama launched operation "gramme per head", every designer and engineer on project P747 was to find a way to save one gramme in weight on each of the components they were responsible for. The design team dismantled a car and spread all its componants on the floor of the design auditorium to pick over at length looking for flab reduction. So fabricated steel suspension arms became forged aluminium saving 4.4lb each, cast iron wheel hubs became alloy, saving 14.7lb total, alloy engine brackets saved 2.4lbs, 3lbs were shaved from the engines rotors and an aluminium final drive cover saved 4.4lb. Versions of the car that were closer to the weight limit also got an aluminium bonnet and spacer saver spare wheels were adopted and an aluminium jack was sourced in Germany saving another 3lb.

Credit to:
http://www.rx7uknet.dircon.co.uk/rx7_fc3s_3.html

NZConvertible

That's an excellent site, thanks for the link Banzai.

BTW, you'd think with all that RX-7 info he'd know how to actually spell RX-7! (i.e. not Rx7)

Scott 89t2

"In Japan the Convertible only came with the 185 bhp 13B Turbo engine and a choice of 5 speed manual or 4 speed auto transmission. The increased weight would have pushed the car into gas guzzler territory in the US so american buyers only got the146 bhp naturally aspirated manual box Convetible."

stupid US rules!!!

why the hell didn't they bring turbo verts to Canada!!!!

Scott 89t2

"Two transmissions were available, a five speed manual and a four speed automatic. Naturaly aspirated engines got the type M 5 speed manual gearbox, while the turbo with its 30% greater torque required the sturdy type R, last used in the RX-3 but with several modifications to make it sturdier still. The type R had a separate bellhousing while the type M's was integral."

SWEET, my car has a type R part!!! ahahahaha

Scott 89t2

"The turbocharged 13B was set the goal of 170bhp. Later this goal was revised to 180 bhp in response to hikes in power offered by rivals. However conventional turbocharging hit a solid wall at 160 to 165 bhp, increasing the boost pressure only resulted in destroyed development rotary engines!"

ahahahaha....

man this thing is sweet!!!

Scott 89t2

"With an official urban fuel consumption of 17 mpg and highway rating of 23 mpg every RX-7 Turbo owner now knows it does'nt take too much use of the throttle to get this down to 11 mpg, though you will have travelled damned fast in achieving that!"

Rotorific

iTrader: (1)

Now that is a quote for the gas mileage worry wort

Manolis_D

iTrader: (2)

11?! HA! I scoff at 11

more like 10 when you rag on 'er... oh well! It's only gonna get worse with the TO4

Manolis
--------- Record mileage: 18.5mpg
--------- Worst mileage: 3mpg (blown j-spec...yeah baby )

neofreak

Most, if not all of the text on that site was pilfered from the 2nd Gen Yamaguchi book.

Just FYI.