hey everyone I want to sell my 2002 mustang to get a sports car and rx7s are my favorite car....so yeah, I had the mustang for commute purposes but I just graduated and am looking for a good project, but I cant decide what to get. Ultimately I would like to have a turbo but I was thinking I could get a n/a 89-91 rx7, give it suspencion and wait for the engine to die, so I could put a turbo in. Or should I just wait and geta turbo 2 I really cant decide. I would love it if I could get everyone's opinions, so please let me know what you guys think. Thanks =)

 

Boost or no boost?? That should be an easy answer!

Why put a turbo on a non turbo car? when you can buy a turbo II that was built for the power.

 

you can't put a turbo onto a non turbo. if you want a turbo. buy a turbo II.

 

yeah I think so too but do you guys think that I could do enough mods to make a n/a engine as fast as a turbo and if so what would those have to be?

 

No! Why would you spend the money trying?

I'v got $1500 into my TII bought it for $1000 and the car is making 219 RWHP and 222 torq before my 3" dp and mid pipe! Stock I\C and turbo, your not even going to come close with an N\A for the same money.

 

You could Never, make a N/A as fast/powerfull, as a Turbo, thats not to say that a N/a can't be fast. With a Peripheral (sp?) port, and 150 shot or better Nitrous system, you would have a damn fast (and very sweet sounding) RX-7. But your driveablity will go to ****, and don't expect to keep the engine long with PP

But to Turbo a N/A Is much larger task than u would think. You cannot just Drop in a T2 engine, you would also, have to drop in the tranny, and the rest of the driveline from a T2. As far as Putting a Turbo on a N/A, well i will just say that to my knowledge, it has only been done by one Crazy ****.

If you got the monye, get a T2

 

yeah thats cool... I found a 88 turbo 2 for $3800 but the engine is leaking and the transmission isent that great, and Ive been looking for about a few months now, do you guys think I should wait it out and see if I can find a 89-91 or should they mostly be about the same. t2's seem to be scarse around here. And once I sell my mustang I should have about $14000 and Im not entirely sure what to do. I just wanna get a few oppinions and Im looking around as of now and trying to see what my options are thanks alot for answering my questions.

 

Really what you have already heard...buy a Turbo II. There Is far to much Involved than "swapping out motors".

 

well thanks for all your guys help I appreciate it

 

TII all the way or even an FD if you can afford it.

 

Absolutely, and here's what you need:

Aftermarket EMS $1,000-3,000
K&N Cone Filter $20-30
Intake Pipe for Filter $30-50
Catback Exhaust $400-900 (Full Exhaust is Better $800-1,200)
Weight Reduction $0 (The cost is that your car looks like a POS)

This will beat a stock TII with no problem, and will run very close with a TII with basic mods (catback, FCD, and intake). However, once the TII moves into the more serious mods, you will not stand a chance.

All that being said, a TII only sells for $500-1,000 more than a comparable NA, so I see absolutely no point in dealing with an NA if you really want a turbocharged car. Yes, the insurance is the same, and the EPA gas mileage is only 1mpg less in the TII on the highway. In addition, the TII comes with a stronger transmission, stronger driveshaft, stronger halfshafts, stronger rear end, and you are guaranteed the LSD and big brakes which may or may not be included on an NA.

Since you mentioned getting suspension first, I should also point out that the NA handles much better than the heavier TII. If you like autocrossing, then I think that you would be happier with an NA, and just accept the fact that you are going to lose at the drag strip. Also note that turbocharged cars are not allowed in most of the upper-level SCCA racing classes, such as IT, EP, and GT.

Boost or no boost, that is the question. Make your decision, and stick with it.

 

I USED TO HAVE A TURBO VERT. YES IT STARTED OUT AS AN 88 N/A BUT ME AND MY BOY DECIDED TO DO A LITTLE PROJECT WE COMBINED THE 3RD GENS UPPER IN TAKE MANI AND THE TURBOII LOWER WITH THE TII HEADERS PUT BIGGER INJECTORS AND PUT 2 EXTRA INJECTORS. WE GOT SOME ONE TO DO THE DOWNPIPE AND THE 3" EXHAUST ALL THE WAY BACK. WE PUT THE STOK TURBOII TURBO ON IT AND NEETLESS TO SAY, WE SPANKED 2 GT'S A FEW GST'S AND A 300ZX NONTURBO. WE TOOK IT OUT ONE NIGHT TO THE RACES DOWN HERE IN MIAMI BUT AFTER THAT SOME ONE OFFERED ME 8K FOR IT. COULDNT REFUSE IT SO I SOLD IT THE NEXT DAY. I NEVER SAW THE CAR AGAIN

 

I would go with a non-turbo and just do a motor swap, get a new bumper with a front mount IC =) those are sweet

 

You can do ANY swap into ANY car with the right amount of money and time. Dont let ignorant people tell you "you cant turbo an N/A car"... um... if you look at the sticky at the top of the Second Gen section, you will see many post by Aaron Cake who did the "impossible", he turbo charged his 86Base using the N/A motor.

Also you do not HAVE to use the TII transmission with a TII block. In order to use the N/A trans with the TII motor you have to use the N/A flywheel and clutch assembly.

Im not saying that turbocharging and N/A car is cake, its just not as hard as everyone makes it out to be. Put it this way, if i found a really nice car, in great shape, with a blown motor and it was an N/A. I would get that over a ratty *** TII. You can find an N/A car with a blown motor for next to its weight in dirt, if not cheaper. Go the easy route and get a (even though somewhat risky) J-spec motor off the net somewhere and put it in the N/A. Say you get the car for 300 bucks or less, spend ~900 for the TII long block and you are good to go.

Also, you can use your N/A ecu on the TII block, you are just running more of a risk bc it doesnt have the boost sensing capabilities as the TII ECU and you will have to run all your own guages and things and probably, more likly than not, will have to run an S-AFC or some other sort of fuel management.

I can go on for days, but thats the general idea man. Good luck an dont let anyone discourage you.


Oh yeah, and about the "N/A can never be as fast as a TII" check my sig....

 

I dont know much about the actual car yet but thats what I'm doing right now I bought a '87 NA for $500 cdn a little beat up needs some things replaced but I was planning on upgrd them anyways so it was a good bargin I believe. Shocks Tranny and some other things need replacing... But since I plan on swapping in a T2 in two months the tranny would have had to go anyways and a stiffer ride and better handling would be a great thing to have as well... It's going to be a lot of work but I'm glad I have a second car sitting around for daily use! gl

 

can anyone tell me about what I would expect to pay for a rebuilt or new t2 engine and transmission?

 

I wasen't aware of that...Any specific reason?

 

 

Because if you put a turbo on the engine then it is no longer an NA.

$2,000 - 5,000 for the engine rebuild, and $400-1,200 for a transmission rebuild.

Some rotary engine rebuilders:
http://www.atkinsrotary.com/
http://www.hayesrotary.com/
http://www.mazdatrix.com/
http://www.pineappleracing.com/
http://www.rotaryracing.com/index.html

 

well, i only have an aftermarket cone air filter and the adapter, gutted precats, and the electric fan, i've raced 3 local turbo 2's and have beaten them. i'm in an 86 base. dont even have tire....i've also beaten a 3.8L v6 firebird, but we're talking rx7's...so, given that i've only put in about 20 dollars (filter and adapter) and am beating stock turbo II's...i think if you want an n/a to start with, go ahead, you CAN add a turbo on it, especially if you're waiting for the engine to die before you do, since you'll have to rebuild it, you can use the higher compression rotors and get a little more power, you'll have to beef it up though, signifigantly, so if money isnt a concern, i'd say go n/a, then add the turbo, can we say, sleeper ;-) otherwise, start with a t2...

 

don't forget the biggest factor that decides what car can beat what......the DRIVER. My GXL is in the garage getting some basic mods(and working on that damn flooding!), and my daily driver is a 96 honda Accord EX. Before you all start throwing rice at me, it is a bone stock 4-door 4cyl. I just use it cuz I need the room for work and I have 2 kids--don't race it around town cuz I know it isn't a racer!! BUT I have taken out some people in much faster cars only because they couldn't drive for sh@t. Be careful that you dont build up a car that you can't handle.....7s don't look good in the wrecking yard no matter which engine they have

 

Im surprised no one has mentioned reliability vs turbo and n/a. Non turbo RX-7s will last 200k+ miles if proper maintenance is done. TurboII usually last 120-150k miles BUT I've heard of SOME lasting longer. Engine rebuilds run for $1000-$5000. It all depends on what you want replaced and if you want porting/polishing.

You can make an n/a as fast as a relatively stock TurboII. I raced a stock TurboII in my SE and I was pulling on him VERY VERY slowly.

I believe you can drop in a 13BT engine and tranny into an n/a. I've heard that the automatic tranny driveshaft is the same length as the TurboII's driveshaft and you can use it and still keep the rear end from your n/a. Some one correct me on this.

 

yup, all about the driver skydivr...hey that rhymed. lol...
when my iroc (bless its soul) only had exhaust and k&n's, i pulled on a 92 camaro with a new engine, headers, and other such things, but hey, i know how to drive ;-)

 

Hmm turbo sounds good very fast NA sounds good semi fast.... its all down to money if you want to spend 3k for an NA to make it as fast as a Turbo or spend 3k on a turbo and be as fast as a corvette

 

Sho' Nuff