Rally suspension
12-21-07, 08:08 PM
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Rally suspension
I always wanted to get suspension for my RX7 that could take dirt roads and maby even jumps....... i have seen 2nd gen RX7 in rally events and have always wanted to enter some sort of rally competition .... anyone know where to get suspension like that for my 1987 N/A RX7??? and i would also like to know if anyone knows how to get started in an event like that!!
12-21-07, 11:10 PM
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I've actually (and still do) work as "crew chief" for team rotary madness - an ESRC NASA Rally team with an '88 RX7.
We ran the last few years in S Class, which limits the suspension allowed. The best bet to start with is a set of vert springs. They will raise your NA a little and give you the added ground clearance the RX desperately needs and moreso the added rate you can get to help from bottoming out.
We also run the KYB AGX. S Class if VERY limiting on suspension, but its the class you'd probably be most likely to start in and be able to stay competitive.
As far as getting started, check out nasarallysport.com and read up. There is a ton more information there then I can provide. If you have specific questions, feel free to post 'em up and I'll answer them the best I can. I'm east coast, so I'm not sure what events you have out there...
I've included some pics of our car....
We ran the last few years in S Class, which limits the suspension allowed. The best bet to start with is a set of vert springs. They will raise your NA a little and give you the added ground clearance the RX desperately needs and moreso the added rate you can get to help from bottoming out.
We also run the KYB AGX. S Class if VERY limiting on suspension, but its the class you'd probably be most likely to start in and be able to stay competitive.
As far as getting started, check out nasarallysport.com and read up. There is a ton more information there then I can provide. If you have specific questions, feel free to post 'em up and I'll answer them the best I can. I'm east coast, so I'm not sure what events you have out there...
I've included some pics of our car....
12-21-07, 11:19 PM
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You know, you would be surprised out how well the stockers work out. Very strong, lighter weight then most of the other stock wheels. We have two sets right now, one with Falken offroad tires (now discontinued unfortunately) and one with Falken street tires as some rally events are all offroad and others are tarmac, depending on the event.
Aftermarket alloys would NOT survive the abuse these stockers go through, lol. We ran some once, even for tarmac and they got all banged up.. so now they sit on the parts car,lol...
Aftermarket alloys would NOT survive the abuse these stockers go through, lol. We ran some once, even for tarmac and they got all banged up.. so now they sit on the parts car,lol...
12-21-07, 11:27 PM
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you know you love rally when
*you think of the value of expensive household items in terms of the number of rally tyres it represents.
*“New tyres or eating properly” is no longer a decision worth spending time thinking about – dry bread and/or two minute noodles will keep you alive for ages.
*buying tyres that cost $200 each, and only last 120kms doesn’t seem at all unusual.
*if someone gave you a million dollars, spending it all on rallying would definitely be an option.
*your road car is closely related to your rally car.
*your road car has driving lights on it.
*you have a spare car for your rally car.
*you have considered buying a spare car for your road car
*you know the exact size of the most obscure bolt on your rally car.
*you think nothing of being awake at 2am the morning of a rally because you know nobody else is going to put this rotten car back together.
*you know what bog is, and why they sell 15 kilo drums of it.
*you know what “Brett Walther Speed” is all about.
*you know that “Oscar” has nothing to do with grouches, or dead artistes.
*You know how to spell Juha's, Tommi's and Heimo's Surnames.
*you’re planning on calling your first born “Juha”. Even if it’s a girl.
*any driving story re-enactment involves lots of opposite lock style arm movements – even at the insurance company office.
*the word “works” doesn’t mean "it functions".
*the idea of rolling a car isn’t horrifying.
*you actually know how long it takes to change a tyre on the side of the road.
*you know what your next rally car is going to be – even if you have just finished building this one.
*you see another car stopped in a stage, and your first thought is “Woo Hoo! Another one off the list”.
*you have a story that starts “The biggest accident I ever saw was this RX-2…”.
*you’ve owned an RX-2 or a 1600 yourself.
*you actually have a view on the Mazda vs Datsun, or Sti vs Evo debates.
*you have deeply held views on the strengths and weaknesses of the current WRC cars, even though you’ve never even touched one, much less driven any of them.
*you know detailed mechanical specifications of several cars you’ve never even seen under the bonnet of.
*you know the stage times and finish placings of several people you’ve never even spoken to.
*You can remember your stage times and placings from three years ago.
*you can remember seedings from five years ago.
*“DCOE”, “L18”, “12A”, “V5”, “VR4”, “SP85”, “4G63”, “E6K” and “S2” all mean something to you.
*you use “DNF”, “DNS” and “Sti” like they’re real words.
*your grandmother doesn’t have to ask what “DNF” means anymore.
*you have a heart-break DNF story that involves you.
*you also have an “I’m such an idiot” DNF story involving you.
*you know what a “DNF jumper” is, and why you’d have one.
*You know the bright side of DNFing early is early beers.
*you look at car accommodation as THE most important factor when looking at real estate.
*co-operative neighbours are the second most important factor when looking at real-estate.
*your neighbours all know you as being “the rally car guy/girl”.
*you meet new people and they know your house already – “the rally car house”.
*you look back at your first rally car with a mix of horror and joy – mostly horror.
*you want your first rally car back anyway.
*you have gone through a stage in your life when making things lighter is THE secret to going faster – “if I can get enough weight out, I can win outright”… in a stock 1300cc car.
*you’ve gotten over that stage, and just decided to drive better instead.
*you’ve seen someone vomit in a full face helmet.
*you know at least four alternative sources of the acronym “CAMS”. And they’re all derogatory.
*you know at least two people at CAMS on a first name basis – eg: “We’re not going to send you another temporary licence Nathan”, “But Melissa…”.
*you have been to virtually every rally in a 400km radius of your house for the last five years – except for that time when your great aunty died (selfish bitch).
*you don’t really know what you’d do with yourself if you weren’t rallying.
*you have a car worth many thousands of dollars, and you only use it eight times a year, at the most. This doesn’t seem unusual.
*you quit rallying several years ago, but you still go to every rally you can get to.
*you think of the value of expensive household items in terms of the number of rally tyres it represents.
*“New tyres or eating properly” is no longer a decision worth spending time thinking about – dry bread and/or two minute noodles will keep you alive for ages.
*buying tyres that cost $200 each, and only last 120kms doesn’t seem at all unusual.
*if someone gave you a million dollars, spending it all on rallying would definitely be an option.
*your road car is closely related to your rally car.
*your road car has driving lights on it.
*you have a spare car for your rally car.
*you have considered buying a spare car for your road car
*you know the exact size of the most obscure bolt on your rally car.
*you think nothing of being awake at 2am the morning of a rally because you know nobody else is going to put this rotten car back together.
*you know what bog is, and why they sell 15 kilo drums of it.
*you know what “Brett Walther Speed” is all about.
*you know that “Oscar” has nothing to do with grouches, or dead artistes.
*You know how to spell Juha's, Tommi's and Heimo's Surnames.
*you’re planning on calling your first born “Juha”. Even if it’s a girl.
*any driving story re-enactment involves lots of opposite lock style arm movements – even at the insurance company office.
*the word “works” doesn’t mean "it functions".
*the idea of rolling a car isn’t horrifying.
*you actually know how long it takes to change a tyre on the side of the road.
*you know what your next rally car is going to be – even if you have just finished building this one.
*you see another car stopped in a stage, and your first thought is “Woo Hoo! Another one off the list”.
*you have a story that starts “The biggest accident I ever saw was this RX-2…”.
*you’ve owned an RX-2 or a 1600 yourself.
*you actually have a view on the Mazda vs Datsun, or Sti vs Evo debates.
*you have deeply held views on the strengths and weaknesses of the current WRC cars, even though you’ve never even touched one, much less driven any of them.
*you know detailed mechanical specifications of several cars you’ve never even seen under the bonnet of.
*you know the stage times and finish placings of several people you’ve never even spoken to.
*You can remember your stage times and placings from three years ago.
*you can remember seedings from five years ago.
*“DCOE”, “L18”, “12A”, “V5”, “VR4”, “SP85”, “4G63”, “E6K” and “S2” all mean something to you.
*you use “DNF”, “DNS” and “Sti” like they’re real words.
*your grandmother doesn’t have to ask what “DNF” means anymore.
*you have a heart-break DNF story that involves you.
*you also have an “I’m such an idiot” DNF story involving you.
*you know what a “DNF jumper” is, and why you’d have one.
*You know the bright side of DNFing early is early beers.
*you look at car accommodation as THE most important factor when looking at real estate.
*co-operative neighbours are the second most important factor when looking at real-estate.
*your neighbours all know you as being “the rally car guy/girl”.
*you meet new people and they know your house already – “the rally car house”.
*you look back at your first rally car with a mix of horror and joy – mostly horror.
*you want your first rally car back anyway.
*you have gone through a stage in your life when making things lighter is THE secret to going faster – “if I can get enough weight out, I can win outright”… in a stock 1300cc car.
*you’ve gotten over that stage, and just decided to drive better instead.
*you’ve seen someone vomit in a full face helmet.
*you know at least four alternative sources of the acronym “CAMS”. And they’re all derogatory.
*you know at least two people at CAMS on a first name basis – eg: “We’re not going to send you another temporary licence Nathan”, “But Melissa…”.
*you have been to virtually every rally in a 400km radius of your house for the last five years – except for that time when your great aunty died (selfish bitch).
*you don’t really know what you’d do with yourself if you weren’t rallying.
*you have a car worth many thousands of dollars, and you only use it eight times a year, at the most. This doesn’t seem unusual.
*you quit rallying several years ago, but you still go to every rally you can get to.
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12-21-07, 11:40 PM
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I told Jeppy in a PM I'd post some pics up from a Rally-X event.
Basically, for anybody interested in getting into rally racing, regardless of the vehicle, the best place to start is to find a local (or as local as you can) Rally-X event. Just as the name implies, its basically Auto-X, but instead of using parking lots... it takes place in fields.
Here in VA there is place called Oakland acres we used to run at, but I believe its no longer being used. Check out dc-rally.com for more information..
It's about a mile long "start to finish" type of race that gets you used to driving a car in loose terrain. It's great for setting up your car's suspension travel and your driving style. This is where "drifting" takes place!
Here are some pics from an event a few years ago to give you the idea. Oh, and yes.. thats Virginia Red Clay dust.. its a MESS when you're driving or just trying to watch..everybody bring your respirator.
(that blue thing is my friends rally civic, its white now and is very well setup, so dont bash me because I ride in a honda on the dirt...)
Basically, for anybody interested in getting into rally racing, regardless of the vehicle, the best place to start is to find a local (or as local as you can) Rally-X event. Just as the name implies, its basically Auto-X, but instead of using parking lots... it takes place in fields.
Here in VA there is place called Oakland acres we used to run at, but I believe its no longer being used. Check out dc-rally.com for more information..
It's about a mile long "start to finish" type of race that gets you used to driving a car in loose terrain. It's great for setting up your car's suspension travel and your driving style. This is where "drifting" takes place!
Here are some pics from an event a few years ago to give you the idea. Oh, and yes.. thats Virginia Red Clay dust.. its a MESS when you're driving or just trying to watch..everybody bring your respirator.
(that blue thing is my friends rally civic, its white now and is very well setup, so dont bash me because I ride in a honda on the dirt...)
12-22-07, 03:19 AM
#11
................................why take a rwd car or a fwd car and make it a rally car? to me it would make more sense for the fc as a rally car if it were awd, such as the awd fc that either amemiya has or foust had, dont remember.
dont get me wrong, i LOVE rally, always wanted to try it, its probably one of the craziest and most skilled forms of racing, but why a rwd or fwd?
i take it there are different rally classes then?
peace
dont get me wrong, i LOVE rally, always wanted to try it, its probably one of the craziest and most skilled forms of racing, but why a rwd or fwd?
i take it there are different rally classes then?
peace
12-22-07, 03:55 AM
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Why not? yeah there is different classes and each one takes on a whole different driving style it's more what do you like better.. or in my case what i like and happin to have.. i have more experiance with RWD also....FWD is fun but is 2 simple with just being able to use the ebrake and gas pedal to controll the slide.. i like to downshift and d-xcell slide a RWD way early into a corner then power out sideways the whole time.. i cant say i have any AWD rally experiance besides my lifted toyota truck in 4WD in the snow... but ya.... because i want to!!!
12-22-07, 10:12 PM
#13
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4WD rx7 would be kick ars tho i agree whats the deal with that anyways custom as hell or were there really a few of these things made (4WD RX7)??
12-23-07, 02:28 PM
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To be honest, FWD, RWD, AWD.. doesn't really matter. Sure the AWD guys make more power since they are better equipped to plant that power, but that same statement could be made for ANY racing environment, not just rally. Why race anything in any circuit. It is all preference, driving style, cost investment.
We toyed with the idea of getting a WRX and moving to an AWD class a while back, but stuck to our rotary roots. We've come out of stages in one piece where AWD cars are literally in pieces! Just be a good driver and you can make any of it work.
FYI - there are more than just one 4WD Rx7s. Mazda actually co-built and sponsored an AWD FB back in the 80s... and I've seen some others from Ireland and europe with AWD rotary setups. Never asked them how they did it though...
We toyed with the idea of getting a WRX and moving to an AWD class a while back, but stuck to our rotary roots. We've come out of stages in one piece where AWD cars are literally in pieces! Just be a good driver and you can make any of it work.
FYI - there are more than just one 4WD Rx7s. Mazda actually co-built and sponsored an AWD FB back in the 80s... and I've seen some others from Ireland and europe with AWD rotary setups. Never asked them how they did it though...
12-23-07, 03:51 PM
#17
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12-24-07, 02:35 AM
#18
................................why take a rwd car or a fwd car and make it a rally car? to me it would make more sense for the fc as a rally car if it were awd, such as the awd fc that either amemiya has or foust had, dont remember.
dont get me wrong, i LOVE rally, always wanted to try it, its probably one of the craziest and most skilled forms of racing, but why a rwd or fwd?
i take it there are different rally classes then?
peace
dont get me wrong, i LOVE rally, always wanted to try it, its probably one of the craziest and most skilled forms of racing, but why a rwd or fwd?
i take it there are different rally classes then?
peace
If you are a novice to racing, I dont believe you are permitted a AWD for the first year. They force you to run either a FF, FR, or MR class and to boot it has to be a non turbo car. At least those were the rules in some of the local rally events in the Pacific Northwest.
Here is a helpful link not pertaining to rules: http://rally-america.com/
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