What you and j9 say makes perfect sense and I would normally agree wholeheartedly.
But...
I don't expect this engine to have many more long runs left in her and won't be rebuilding the NA when she croaks.
So, header longevity is not really an issue.

However, if the sound is going to be annoying and performance degraded, well then, it's time to rethink this.
I have the stock main cat and a stock manifold but nothing in between.
I'm sure there are some precats floating around in this forum or I could have a "test pipe" made (which would involve a tow fee though).

Meanwhile, I redid the booster vac line and am satisfied for the nonce.Temporarily installing the intakes was very instructive and gave me a much better concept of the areas I'm working within and what is ultimately visible.The whole vacuum spider is difficult from a strictly aesthetic standpont but I can appreciate the logic and ease of it. For the most part it's very intuitive to hook up.

Water temp gauge is now connected.
BFD.

I did make some great waffles (yeasted batter...yum), so the day wasn't a total waste.

 

From the different exhaust combinations I've had on FC's, here's my 2 cents.

The only RacingBeat exhaust I can vouch for is the full true dual exhaust since that's what I have on my non turbo FC. Taking into consideration that it's a FULL aftermarket exhaust, and it's on a rotary, it's pretty quiet... With only the header and presilencer and NO Y pipe or mufflers, it's just as obnoxious as an open Pacesetter header. And with an NA RX7, upgrading the header yields a nice HP increase and gives you the best bang for your buck IMO. So... I would say that a Pacesetter header, paired with a functional cat and the RacingBeat mufflers that you have, would be tolerable at idle/ crusing RPM's. When I had the Y pipe off of my RB exhaust a few months back, I started up the car for ***** and giggles and was surprised just how much the mufflers quieten down the car. On my first FC I had a Pacesetter header and I did the same thing, and I think they were both just as obnoxiously loud as the other. So I say go for the Pacesetter header. If you don't like it, sell it to a young kid who wants their ears to bleed to partially recoup your costs

BTW I've really enjoyed following your thread here. The little things like your modified intake snorkel and the uber clean firewall really make the car stand out. Awesome work.

 

Thanks for the input (and the compliment).

I'm rethinking my approach as the situation changes.
The supplemental part-time income I'd hoped for hasn't really panned out (although I'm hopeful)
and my back up rides are harder to access and less reliable than I need.
This thing needs to be done.

I've reached out locally for a stock set of cats and manifold.
Also a set of good stock cooler hoses.
Both of these can be changed later without affecting other parts.
If I can acquire these parts cheaply, that makes this month's available cash stretch far enough to finish the assembly and fill with fluids.

Of course, there are still the administrative fees to deal with as well.
VIN verification ( because it's an out of state title), emission test, title transfer, registration, tags and insurance.
Yikes.

 

i do have a set of pace setters, i ran em on the P port for a while. all three choices have their pros and cons, and i like the stock manifold, but the pace setters might make sense for you, now.

the stock manifold, has a nice mate to the engine, the engine ports are ~48mm, the stock manifold is 50mm. the outlet of the stock manifold is nice too, i think its 55mm? it turns out that that pipe size (55mm ID) seems to be just about right for a stockish NA. so it works really well on a street car.

the RB header by contrast runs 44mm ID pipe, which is about right for a header, however the port match to the engine is bad, 48mm engine into a 44mm pipe! there is enough meat to port the header and fix it (the earlier engines have smaller outlets), but this is why the RB header doesn't show a big power gain, it doesn't line up with the motor! the bends right off the header flange don't help either, it makes the port match worse. on the good side they use thick steel, so its a durable piece.

the pace setter has a better bend than the RB on the front rotor, but the rear rotor is worse, and they aren't equal length! the collector on mine has a lot of welding slag in it too.

so for a street car i like the stock manifold.

have you seen this guy? RX7 1986-1992: Exhaust - Race Pipes: Down Pipe - 86-91 RX-7 - i'd use it in my "ultimate" FC street exhaust.

 

There you go again, polluting my lighthearted romp with hard data...what are we going to do with you?
Assuming I use the stock manifold and cat, that RB down pipe won't work, it's too short.

With the final config still up in the air, I frittered away some time with more detailing in the bay.
The evap cannister's feed has been rerouted, incorporating a hardline for a more "factory" appearance.
In possibly my most trivial mod to date, the cap on the new wiper fluid reservoir was fixed to eliminate signs of it's origin. You may recall that it was originally a radiator overflow tank and as such, the cap had fittings on top for the required tube connections and was marked "Engine Coolant Only".
I sawed off the fittings and sanded the top smooth before gluing a Mazda horn button trim ring to it. It's actually pretty subtle and hides the fact that the tank was repurposed, so my inner critic was satisfied.
I'll get some pics as progress continues.

Still await news of locally available exhaust parts but if anyone reading has anything, please pipe up (see what I did there?).

 

Right then...(what I pray is) final intake assembly happened.
Naturally, the camera batteries died just as I was getting ready to dazzle everyone with my skills, so you'll just have to assume it's spectacular.
Actually, a few pics managed to make it, somehow:


That's the modified washer reservoir cap...at least it doesn't say "Engine Coolant Only" anymore, because that was just silly.

Here's the final (at least for now) hardline setup for the evap canister:


And a semi-useless shot of how the EM harness ended up:


Yes, the pics are a disappointment (I'll get some batteries soon) but other news is very good.
I've found a good stock exhaust manifold with gutted precats and some used braided oil cooler hoses, both semi-local (each is about an hour from my abode) and will be picking them up next weekend (I hope).
Also committed to a sport/duckbill spoiler, which I've been lusting after forever.

If all goes well, she'll be running by Christmas...a holiday miracle, indeed.

 

i like the black intake on red car, its a great combo.

when you get the precats/manifold combo, take it apart, and you'll see for some reason Mazda welded the flanges on on the INSIDE (s4 is on the outside), so the pipe is 50mm ID, the manifold exit is 50mm ID, but the welds make it like 44mm ID... i ground the welds down on mine (it ended up around 48mm), its not a night and day difference, but the engine is happier.

 

Great looking engine bay man. It looks awesome.

 

I may have missed it... is that the sub-zero coolant tank? If so, has the mounting been altered? I ask because with the stock location of the charcoal canister, it doesn't seem like it would fit in that position?

 

No, it's the coolant overflow tank/bracket from ...ah, something I can't remember right off hand. I modded on the pump from the FC's original reservoir.

That silly little tank basically drove the design of the entire bay.
Thanks.
I think the silver (original) finish on the throttle body and alternator breaks it up and keeps the whole thing from being too monochrome but it's hard to go wrong with red and black.

Will do, thanks for the info.

 

Don't get me wrong I love my manifolds, but if I were to do them again, the black would be my route of choice. I would honestly say your car is magazine worthy just for how unique it is. Sorry to be fanboy dreamy eyed rx7 junky, but your thread makes me that way.

 

Thanks, D.
I just read your build thread (again) and it's quite amazing how similar our cars are.
We both have about the same pathetic budget and have done the same sort of things to the bay.
Of course, I'm only constrained by preference (and cash), not a rulebook and don't expect to keep the rotary engine for long.

I think there's a real corollary between the advice you were given about learning to drive a slow car fast and modding on a budget to get the most bang per dollar.
Once you've learned to do good work on no budget, when money is available you'll make better choices and achieve more interesting results.

 

Nice Score Man

 

Yes it is, isn't it.

While I await the next cash infusion, I find myself with lots of time to think about stuff.
As I'll be getting a sport wing (Yay!), I'm trying to imagine how that will impact the overall visual of the car and have been scanning lots of pics.
Seems like most of the cars with this wing are S4s and as a result have the black body trim, which looks better and better to me.

The black body line seems really slimming for some reason and I think it might look good on my S5.
What I'm thinking is to PlastiDip that molding.

My molding is somewhat faded and the top edge is black in several places already where the paint has worn away, exposing the substrate.

Black PlastiDip would solve that problem and is easily removable to boot.

Open to opinions.

 

PlastiDip does amazing things, I recommend your idea

 

So, one vote for.

 

I second the notion for plasti-dip.

 

All right, just to be clear...the question here isn't how the trim becomes black, it's whether it should be black in the first place.
My concern is that the duckbill will look oddly tacked on being the only black trim amid a sea of red.
Also, I'm thinking the S4 style black body trim tends to reduce the slab sidedness of the body.
From most angles, the FC is quite curvaceous but from a straight on side view, she's kinda porky below the beltline.

This is my main objection to most body kits, especially ones with exaggerated sideskirts...the body looks too heavy down low, throwing off the proportions of the greenhouse to the main shell.
Almost like the top has been chopped, if you see what I mean.

Blacking out the trim line would also allow for the logical use of black in some other areas, primarily the mirrors.
I'm still searching for some manual mirrors, which AFAIK were all black from jump, but until I procure them I could black out the aero mirrors, which suffer terribly from the "sandblast" effect of driving and tend to wear the paint on some of the edges (especially the venturi-type opening).

Of course, even a black mirror will suffer from this...hang something out in the airstream and it's gonna get blasted, but black is much easier to touch up and doesn't require color matching to the factory red.

This is all speculation at this point.
Till the duckbill is installed I won't know exactly how it looks.
Also, it's now officially winter (currently 10°) and not exactly ideal painting weather, so even if I want to do this, I'll have to wait for more paint friendly conditions.

 

I guess it's a pain to match the paint (I've never done it before) but why not paint the duckbill red? I think that would look sharp and maintain the s5-ness of the car.

Either duckbill red or everything black. Which is probably what you were thinking already, which means this post is worthless. I like the Mazda overflow tank cap, looks sharp. That is all.

 

No, your post isn't worthless, jeez, have some faith in yourself, boy.

The sport spoiler is not metal or fiberglass, it's the same kind of weird urethane/rubber/whatever the hell material that the mudflaps are made of.
Thus, painting it would be difficult (I'm guessing) and, as I mentioned before, color matching is always a problem.
IMO, a black part on red is much more acceptable than two reds, even if they're very close.
On the old '91 I had a Sunrise red front fender on the Blaze red body and it always pissed me off. Even were I willing to spring for real color matched red, after 23 years, my factory color wouldn't match the faded paint of the rest of the car.

I'm not trying for, nor do I expect, show quality results from my work but if I can avoid looking too shadetree, that would be good.
And, although I'm pretty fearless about modding stuff, I try- at least in the beginning- not to make irreversible moves and Plasti-dip is (supposedly) easily removed, so for around $10 and a few hours time I could at least see what she'd look like.

This "reversible" stricture is the only thing holding me back from installing the hood vents I showed much earlier in the thread. I think they'd look great and have had them sitting on the hood several times...even have gone so far as to make the templates for the cuts required. I find myself trying to convince me that my hood ain't in all that great condition and it's no great loss if I trash it.
Still not quite there though...

 

try the plasti dip, if you don't like it, peel it off. you're right the molding on the S4's will make it look longer and lower, it'll also make it look less monochromatic, which is super dated, unless its white.

on the subject of mirrors, the normal black S4 mirrors are the best looking ones, the S5 mirrors are horrible, they are like dumbo ears.

 

Not sure I agree with "horrible" but I'd buy "incongruous".
The FC is mostly a straight line car with some subtle curving but the mirrors are very curvaceous, nothing straight at all.
In fact, they almost look like design studies for the FD.
The simpler rectangular S4 mirrors fit the overall aesthetic of the FC much better.

The S5 mirrors- Dumbo-like as they may be- do provide a pretty good field of vision though, something to be appreciated given the giant b-pillar (c-pillar?) obscuring the rear/side view.

 

I've done the opposite of the route you're thinking of- I've turned 2 S4's into S5's, I've just finished the 2nd car about a month back. The way I see it- when a new car is released- the bumpers might be chrome or the door handles and side skirts might be unpainted black plastic. Then after a year or two, they update the car and make everything body colored in an attempt to refresh the car.

Both of my S4 to S5 FC's have been tornado silver so the slightly faded black trim blended in alright. But I never really liked the wimpy S4 front bumper and the mirrors. I actually painted the black trim body colored on my FC about a year ago and it held me over well until I could do the whole S5 exterior conversion.

My first FC with black S5 trim:

The latest FC with body colored S5 trim:

I also think the S5 trim looks rather 'fat' when it's not body colored too, I thought I had a picture somewhere of a red or blue S5 with black trim but I can't find it... But I mean if you're going to do something irreversible and you've got the time, I don't see why you shouldn't do it...

 

Thanks, Brett, I'm still mulling it over.
Priority one right now is just to get running and then mount the duckbill and see what that does for the overall look.

What seats are in that car in the first pic?

 

Not sure if that was directed at me or not, but they're stock S4 base model seats. The S4 GXL seats I have now though are much better though.

I found the picture of an S5 with black trim:


I also found this- you might find it useful when installing the duck bill spoiler, I sure would have...