GodSquadMandrake

I've been working on purchasing this FD for the last month, but I finally pulled the trigger on this 1995 RX7.

Did the research, read the faqs, just wondering what kind of aftermarket modifications have been done or what you can tell me about what has been done in the engine department. I know some of you guys are very knowledgeable and could probably tell me a lot just from first glance.

Anyway in case your wondering compression on all rotors is above 8 kg/cm squared (above 120 PSI). The mileage is 40,000 miles. I found a Greddy-Manage in the backseat that was disconnected with scotch connectors on the wiring harness but I couldn't find any indication that it was ever even hooked up.
There is some sort of aftermarket LSD installed, I think a clutch type because it's quite grabby especially in tight radius turns but hooks up extremely well with a little throttle input.
Some sort of catback installed.
It starts extremely easy and runs superb compared to the RX7's I am used to. Seems a lot less beat up. So I know it isn't minty fresh, but the price is right.

Bad:
Power steering pump is leaking.
Little seeping (Class 2) coming from bell housing, looks like motor oil so I suspect real main seal.
Torn tie rod end boots.
Crappy tint job
Wierd silly electronics like Ipod stuff and some alarm installed.
Tiny flicker in the instrument cluster when the brakes are applied, grounds maybe?








Anyway the purpose of the car is going to be racing on Tsukuba circuit. I didn't register it for road use because of that. So just time attack, maybe track days and hopefully eventually real wheel to wheel racing.

zeroG

iTrader: (28)

Everything is pretty much stock. What I see is the intake is from Blitz, it has the HKS IC pipes but it's still the stock intercooler, and it also has a BOV that's to the left of the intakes, but idk what brand it might be. The exhaust system up to the catback is also stock, that's pretty much it

GodSquadMandrake

Thanks zeroG.

Sideo

wires coming off battery look sketchy like it could ground out on the battery tie down. also hard to tell but i dont see a fuse within 18" of battery.

edit: oooo i envy you being able to race on tsukuba love that track!

Chad D.

iTrader: (2)

I saw the same thing.

KompressorLOgic

iTrader: (6)

if you look at those blue wires coming off the battery they appear to be hooked up to the negative terminal, that is some kind of aftermarket grounding kit....
i see aftermarket, intake, blow off valve, and intercooler pipes.

i am pretty sure that is a blitz duel drive bov

Sideo

doh my bad

Polak Graphics

iTrader: (4)

Nice Find. We all envy you for being able to enjoy it on the Tuskuba circuit.

the underbody looks like its been through some weathering. Nothing unexpected. Even with the low miles take a look into the bushings and their condition.

Should have posted a pic of the Diff so someone could possibly identify if and why aftermarket lsd is on there. ( You dont want some shitty OBX lsd)

papsmagu

iTrader: (19)

stock ast, should be replaced

GodSquadMandrake

Thanks. I haven't gotten to race it yet. I'm trying to arrange a garage to store it at Tsukuba but the company (Mecca Racing) is out for the holidays.

I'll definitely check those bushings a little further next time.

I was wondering about the LSD also. I took a look and you can see where the cover was removed and re-sealed. But there's no tags. I checked the freeplay on the differential yolk and it is pretty tight without much freeplay, sorry I don't know how many degrees freeplay.

What is the AST?

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

These cars are not good for lap after lap on a track in pure stock form, the heat just kills them. You'll want to install the standard reliability mods and take it a step further since you plan to do track time. Boost, oil, water temp gauges are a must. Brake upgrades (pads and fluid at first, BBK might be needed later), cooling system upgrades, and an enlarged intercooler (stock mount is ok for stock boost levels). Then suspension/wheel/tire upgrades as you see fit.

GodSquadMandrake

Thanks for that dgeesaman. Reliability is huge factor. One of my goals is to do a 24h endurance race on Tsukuba. This is extremely challenging because it's not only about how fact you can go, but how you can make the tires and fuel last etc.

I've been readinng this. In attempts to increase the reliability of the rotary engine.
So I hear about the heat killing the engine. I guess right now it's cold so it wouldn't be a problem, but come summer my engine will wear down quickly. I have a few thousand I can spend on reliability before power so maybe investing in some sort of water/meth injection can happen. I'm not sure about converting to single turbo yet however. I guess we will see. I am very aware of the danger, so I'm not going to push the engine hard yet.

Most races are less than 10 laps, less than 10 minutes. So I think I can do these without threatening the engine too much. But that reliability is always a concern. So first mod is the oil cooler, temperature gauges, disable oil injection pump and pre-mix gas. Then whatever I can do to increase cooling.

yourmom23

iTrader: (4)

Dont know if im the only one that noticed this but dont the 95s come with an airbag on the passenger side. It looks just like my 93, unless the dash was changed.

Yeah you are lucky as hell the closest i get to Tsukuba is in gt5.

Ceylon

iTrader: (3)

Only in the US

The Euro/Japanese spec rexs don't have passenger airbags until 1999.

KompressorLOgic

iTrader: (6)

i dont know what the models are in japan r1 tourings base or what... ,but does that one have the duel oil coolers? thats a deff must for tracking.

mgoddard1

You bought that car for 480,000 yen which translates to about $5900 dollars???

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

The OMP is not that big of a deal, removal is permitted by using a standalone ECU and you can remove it whenever you've got good access to it. You can add premix (not as much is necessary) while the OMP is in place. Water/meth injection works great but make sure it's permitted in the class you're intending to compete. (Speaking of which, all of these changes are subject to class limitations)

The oil cooler is important but I think to spend any real track time you *need* a stock mount intercooler, AST replacement/upgrade, all new cooling hoses from Mazda, and an aluminum radiator. I was able to push my coolant and oil temps quite high in under 5 laps. The fans are pretty good, you can leave them alone. Then rework the radiator intake air to eliminate leak spots. You might want to look into a V-mount radiator/intercooler setup to really maximize the effectiveness of both.

For an endurance race I'm pretty certain that unless the track is super easy on brakes, you'll need a BBK to make the brakes last. Adding air ducts to blow cold air on the front calipers helps quite a bit but I don't think that alone is enough.

GodSquadMandrake

Single oil cooler and it's pretty old and full of debris. Definitely taking note of that, thanks.


That's right. I know, extremely cheap isn't it?! Believe me I understand what kind of deal I am getting compared to what it costs in America. There are just so many of these, I found like 20 for sale in one parking lot! They had some special editions that looked brand new with less than 8,000 KM on the clock for around $19,000 USD. But I think for the price, I am getting a good one. They had others for the same price, or even less but they were poorly modified or mechanically neglected. This one looks rough, but mechanically it's been taken care of. So I think the rough paint job and crappy peeling tint is what makes it so cheap. Most people in Japan don't want to buy a car this old though because the annual inspection is $2,000-4,000 USD. It's much cheaper to buy an RX8 or something.
But like I said the car isn't registered for road use and will only be used at Tsukuba so I don't have to bother with any of that. The train is fine for me anyhow because I live in Yokohama. It's just a bit of a bother traveling to Tsukuba because it takes hours by train and you have to take a taxi to the track. It's in a really small country side town called Shimotsuma next to Tsukuba science city. The track is wonderful though. It's got that dirty home grown racer spirit to it. None of the fancy restaurants, amusement parks and museums like Twin Ring Motegi. Just old dirty track and intense competition. Even the little Nissan March one model races are so intense they purposely crash into eachother. It isn't even nearly about who has the best car there either. The fastest car had a fancy LSD and was leading by half a lap but he wore his tires out completely in that 10 minute race and he lost because of it. The ojisan style (old man style) drivers who stayed in the back and let the young bucks battle it out were the ones that finished first.


Ok so I can't remove the OMP without getting standalone? I'll look into it more. Good note on the class restrictions, I hadn't thought of that yet.

Again, what is the AST?
Cooling hoses, check.
Aluminum radiator, check.
When you say stock mount intercooler, do you mean an aftermarket one that replaces the OEM one in the stock location?
Radiator intake air, check.
I'll look into the v-mount, I've heard good things about those.

No the track isn't particularly easy on the brakes, but nothing like Fuji speedway. Usually the highest speed on the back straight is only 120 MPH max and then back down to 70-80 for the final corner.
I really like the Racing-Brake setup. But for now I may have to settle for OEM with racing pads like Hawk HT10, they give more than twice the maximum operating temperature of stock. Good idea on the air ducts though, I'm sure I can search up some threads.

I really appreciate your input guys. I'm trying a total balance philosophy and bringing in good old American know-how and engineering is a big part of that. The Japanese are excellent with the technology, science and math of things but they aren't as balanced. I've noticed that more and more of the young generation of Japanese especially are specializing in one thing only.
So one shop does the engine, one shop does suspension, one does body/aero, etc. And the drivers often never touch a wrench. So without that mechanical empathy the driver doesn't understand on as deep of a level what the car needs to go faster although he is an excellent driver. He trusts the tuning companies to do their job.
You just don't see things like what Racing-Brake has developed with the curved convergent vane rotors that use mountings tabs on both sides of the rotor. Or Synchronic's piston operated diverter/blow-off valve. Or Karack's water jacket weave porting. So I'd like to bring some of that here and just see what happens.

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

One other points worth mentioning: the suspension bushings, balljoints, and pillowball (pivot) mounts can wear out on this car, even at 40k miles. I recommend that you have all suspension points carefully inspected when you take it in for the race spec alignment.

David

Sgtblue

iTrader: (16)

Hard to tell from the picture, but something looks 'different re: the alternator terminals. Are they covered?
I'm also wondering what's been zip-tied to the strut bar.

AST= Air Separation Tank. It's the oddly shaped army-green plastic tank attached via a bracket to the intercooler with a radiator cap. They are prone to fail with age and heat. Replace with a metal one or, since your JDM car looks like it's got the bolt on filler neck you can delete the AST altogether with a FC filler. Search for more info.

Along with the standard "reliablity mods" you might also consider a faster reacting IAT. Here is a discussion and some pictures......https://www.rx7club.com/power-fc-forum-47/any-air-temp-sensors-share-same-range-fd-842255/ You can relocate it upstream from the throttle-body for a little added safety.

GodSquadMandrake

The alternator thing is another ground that was added, zip ties are for that also.

Point taken on the AST.

That IAT mod looks pretty inexpensive and promising.

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

They are actually black but turn green as the coolant cooks and weakens them.

David

mgoddard1

I'm going to have to hate you on general principle for being able to get that car so cheap. Nothing personal though

I can see how that annual inspection fee would deter someone from buying an older used car. I'm assuming that the older the car gets the higher the inspection fee is.

Force13B

iTrader: (19)

Stock AST is plastic get a metal one