3rd Gen General Discussion The place for non-technical discussion about 3rd Gen RX-7s or if there's no better place for your topic

Finally got an FD!

Old Feb 10, 2017 | 09:41 PM
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Finally got an FD!






It's been years since I've been here but I came back to my roots since I got my FD now! It's been sitting for a few years and now it's getting put back to its former glory, I've wanted one of these cars since I was 13 years old (27 now). It's gonna have to be completely gone through so y'all give me all the suggestions! Coilovers, brakes, interior pieces, single turbo setups.....everything.....but anyway here's some pics to make everyone happy!
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Old Feb 10, 2017 | 10:43 PM
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congrats on you getting an fd
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Old Feb 11, 2017 | 12:16 AM
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whats the story with the flim flam on the passenger door?
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Old Feb 11, 2017 | 01:15 AM
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I'm not really sure what happened there unfortunately, but it's gonna go to paint soon so I'll just take care of it then lol. It's a pretty gnarly dent....makes me sad
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Old Feb 11, 2017 | 07:48 AM
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Congrats! Getting an FD was a major event in my life.

Best of luck with the fixes. Don't sweat the small stuff – make sure the car is running well overall and you can take car of the minor issues one by one.
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Old Feb 11, 2017 | 07:55 AM
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And the journey begins!!
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Old Feb 11, 2017 | 10:01 AM
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Congrats. Welcome back. I know how you feel. Had mine since 98 blew the motor 2005 had a crappy rebuilt 550 miles rear rotor died. Parked it in my garage for 11 years, changed my Mechanic to Kilo Racing and now she is on the road. Once again congrats man. We are doing a group buy on ohlins coil overs. The thread is 2015 group buy ohlins
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Old Feb 11, 2017 | 10:43 AM
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Awesome thanks man! I'll look into them!
Originally Posted by spintriangles
Congrats. Welcome back. I know how you feel. Had mine since 98 blew the motor 2005 had a crappy rebuilt 550 miles rear rotor died. Parked it in my garage for 11 years, changed my Mechanic to Kilo Racing and now she is on the road. Once again congrats man. We are doing a group buy on ohlins coil overs. The thread is 2015 group buy ohlins
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Old Feb 11, 2017 | 06:44 PM
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Originally Posted by workinprogress80
It's gonna have to be completely gone through so y'all give me all the suggestions! Coilovers, brakes, interior pieces, single turbo setups.....everything....
First and foremost, congratulations on your purchase!

Keep in mind that the FD got a bad reliability rap due to the owner's being cheap or ignorant about mods. In other words, it is us that are mainly to blame when something goes wrong.

OK from a guy that strated with a 100% stock car my suggestion is as follows:
Aftermarket radiator
AST deletion
Electronic Boost controller
DP
MP
Catback
CAI
Upgraded SMIC (if one budget) - keep in mind that if you go with a Vmount you also get a radiator (with most setups) so you knock out two birds with one stone.
Port the wastegate (if your turbos are going bad just replace don't rebuild)
Coil overs - my preference is ground control combined with some Koni yellows. Perfect for the street as they won't be too stiff
Get some nice wheels
Stay at 10 psi (no boost no spikes)
AI
Change the oil every 2k miles, coolant once a year, perform carbon cleaning every 20k miles
No small battery (pc900)
Don't **** with the fuel delivery system (injectors)
Don't beat on the car with anything less than a 1/4 tank
If all possible stay sequential but if you get annoyed of boost issues know that going nonsequetial is a lot more reliable but it comes at a cost (responsiveness)

Now with those mods and maintenance routine your car will be decently fast and very reliable. It will start everytime (not prone to flooding) and you won't be in constant fear of detonation due to going lean.
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Old Feb 11, 2017 | 11:18 PM
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Any benefits of v mount over front mount? I am keeping ac and power steering
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Old Feb 12, 2017 | 08:35 AM
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Yes there is an advantage. The vmount is the best of both worlds. It keeps both the radiator cooling properties of a SMIC setup and the AIT's of a FMIC.

A SMIC tends to heat soak much faster as most of the ambient air flow goes to the radiator, great for cooling the engine not so much for AIT's. On a FMIC configuration, the radiator sits behind the IC so now it's the IC that gets the ambient fresh air at the cost of efficient engine cooling. For street applications a FMIC is fine as most have the radiator fans blasting the whole time. But between the two setups (SMIC vs FMIC). I'll choose lower cooler coolant temps (SMIC) over lower AIT's (FMIC).

The Greedy vmount retains the AC. The downside is the price.

Last edited by Montego; Feb 12, 2017 at 09:41 AM.
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Old Feb 12, 2017 | 12:56 PM
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Originally Posted by Montego
Aftermarket radiator
AST deletion
Electronic Boost controller (Manual)
DP
MP (Hi-flo Cat)
Catback
CAI
Upgraded SMIC
Coil overs - my preference is ground control combined with some Koni yellows. (I Have Bilsteins) Perfect for the street as they won't be too stiff
Get some nice wheels
Stay at 10 psi (no boost no spikes)
AI
Change the oil every 2k miles, coolant once a year (I run 3k for oil changes)
No small battery (pc900)
Don't **** with the fuel delivery system (injectors)
Don't beat on the car with anything less than a 1/4 tank
... stay sequential
If it weren't for the small differences in red, Montego just described my car. If he weren't in California I'd think he's a stalker.
Only things I would add...
*IMO with AI you probably won't have to worry about carb cleaning.
*Stay with stock ignition, heat ranges, NGK plugs and wires.
*New owners often seem tempted to go with aftermarket fans for some reason...don't.
*Consider a S5 FC thermoswitch, it's PNP and lowers threshold temps for the fans from 108 C. to 96 C.
*Aftermarket temp gauge (if it doesn't already have one)
*Boost gauge (if it doesn't already have one)

Congratulations on your car. Have fun.

Last edited by Sgtblue; Feb 12, 2017 at 01:02 PM.
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Old Feb 12, 2017 | 01:15 PM
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^Good advice from tenured members.

My advice would be to fix things first, before you get crazy with the upgrades.
It's not always that simple. But, it will help your budget get you on the road faster, when applicable.

Check with good old members like tomsn16 and FritzFlynn. They have lots of good stock parts at fair value. They probably have much of what you're missing on-hand.

Congrats and good luck.
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Old Feb 15, 2017 | 09:49 PM
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This is my end goal.....
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Old Feb 15, 2017 | 10:13 PM
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Nice rx7. Hit the reliability mods would be my recommendation and don't go crazy on the boost. Learn to drive it because trees don't ever move out of the way.
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Old Feb 15, 2017 | 10:26 PM
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Lol its it's locked up, I plan on pulling the motor anyway, it's getting a streetport so reliability mods are almost no point cause all that will get upgraded anyway

Originally Posted by spintriangles
Nice rx7. Hit the reliability mods would be my recommendation and don't go crazy on the boost. Learn to drive it because trees don't ever move out of the way.
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Old Feb 15, 2017 | 11:18 PM
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Originally Posted by workinprogress80
Lol its it's locked up, I plan on pulling the motor anyway, it's getting a streetport so reliability mods are almost no point cause all that will get upgraded anyway
Seen this story before...
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Old Feb 15, 2017 | 11:58 PM
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Lol whats that mean?

Originally Posted by Narfle
Seen this story before...
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Old Feb 16, 2017 | 12:35 AM
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I'm worried you got the cart and the horse in the wrong order. Take your time. If you get in a big rush it's not gonna come together well.


Edit: Here's a fun thread full of mine and other people's mistakes. Don't repeat us.
https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generati...egret-1038606/

Last edited by Narfle; Feb 16, 2017 at 12:43 AM.
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Old Feb 16, 2017 | 09:06 AM
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Congratulations on getting your FD! Like others have said, take your time, I spend about 4 years making mine perfect but it is totally worth it, especially if you are like me and plan on keeping it forever.
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Old Feb 16, 2017 | 02:19 PM
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I'm not in much of a rush, it will be done right for sure. I know what I want and I'm not gonna put stuff on just so it runs then change it later on haha
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Old Feb 16, 2017 | 05:56 PM
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Originally Posted by Sgtblue
If it weren't for the small differences in red, Montego just described my car. If he weren't in California I'd think he's a stalker.




Well to be honest, that's when the car was the most trouble free and fun. Yeah my car now is at 400RWHP (est) and is fast as ballz (IMO of course). But there is something to be said for having an FD that is relatively quiet, non smelly, starts everytime, aren't scared of driving it fast for fear of crashing and or going lean. The stockish FD is not as unreliable as people make it out to be... A modified one... well... Let's just say some real precautions need to be in place as the error safety margin is inversely proportianal to HP gains.
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Old Feb 18, 2017 | 08:49 PM
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Mine is smelly. Every time I drive it I smell like gas. What is the fix
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Old Feb 19, 2017 | 12:44 AM
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Originally Posted by spintriangles
Mine is smelly. Every time I drive it I smell like gas. What is the fix
Stop driving immediately!

I hate to be that guy that says use the search but.....

Anyway first check you fuel pulsation dampener for any sort of leaks. If that's fine it may be your charcoal canister... I can go on for hours typing what to check...

https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generati...e-feul-146031/
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Old Feb 19, 2017 | 01:09 AM
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Yeah, we'd need more details and probably another thread.
Could be an exhaust leak, or it could be your car trying to burst into flames.
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