Steve Robertson

Guys/Gals;

First of all this is my very first post!

I have a "Touring" 1994 Black RX-7 (100% stock) with 92K, but only 30K on a new factory motor and new turbos. The car had 89K when I bought it a year ago. The previous owner had turbos, and motor installed.

Let me say; that I have not researched out any past posts yet......
I need "instant gratification"...sorry about that. I will be better next time...

Very soon I want to install a new (higher performance) radiator on my RX-7.
I have many questions. (please have mercy...I am just a novice)

My purpose for the car; fast reliable street car (2nd car)....maybe in the future; modifications to break 13.0 in the 1/4 mile. No autox. Maybe a short track drivers performance school....

1. I am having informational conflict with; what radiator is the "best fit" for a 1994 RX-7. Koyo vs Fluidyne(sp?) or are there others that are even better?
Are there pros/cons for each? Are there any installation "tricks" and extra materials that will be needed? An SCCA racer/ mechanic will do the installation.

2. Is the factory H2O gauge good enough?

3. Should any upgrades be made to oil cooling at the same time? What modifications would be appropriate? What about an oil temp. gauge?

4. My A.C. is broken....should I just take it out? How about a pulley kit after the AC is taken out?

5. Tell me about exhaust upgrades. I would be willing to do; downpipe, replace main cats, and get new cat-back. Everything needs to be emissions correct.
What are my exhaust options? I heard a downpipe install needs to have a "restrictor element" to prevent too much boost??? What hapens to the O2 sensor "function" in a complete exhaust upgrade?

6. I will save intake/intercooler/engine management controllers for later....
(what ever it takes to break 13.0)

Please answer whatever question you wish.....Every response is greatly appreciated! You have been through some of this...I have not. I need to learn from your experiences. I can't throw away $. (as I am a recently retired High School Chemistry teacher...)

Thanks for your interest and support.

Steve

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

It doesn't get more instant than this:
1) Go to the 3rd gen forum main page.
2) Go the sticky thread labeled "Newbies..." (It's the second one)
3) Read the first few links - esp. the first one in the second post under A for Advice.

And to this: "Let me say; that I have not researched out any past posts yet......
I need "instant gratification"...sorry about that. I will be better next time..."

GFY is what I have to say about that. Most people who know better do better.

Dave

broken93

Put on your flame suit.
Both fluidyne and koyo will require some modification to fit properly. Koyo are a lot cheaper and offer similar performance. Mazdaspeed has an aftermarket radiator with proper fitment IIRC but it is, of course, very expensive.
NO, NO, and NO. It's an absolute piece of crap and will tell you you're getting a bit warm AFTER the engine has failed due to overheat. This should be one of your first mods along with a boost gauge and a downpipe. Read about it here:
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/G...tempgauge.html

The factory oil cooling system is very capable. Some people upgrade to the R1 dual cooler setup, and there are a few aftermarket dual coolers, as well as custom fabrication you can do to fit a large EARL's cooler, but for the most part, worrying about reliability mods and water cooling should be your primary concern.
Sure! If you're into that sort of thing. Personally, I love the extra space in my engine bay, although some people here would tend to disagree with me.
Using a premade downpipe and exhaust rear section with a high-flow catalytic converter in a custom-made mid-pipe assy would probably be easy and not entirely that expensive. You're looking at about $600 for a decent rear section, $250 for a downpipe, and about $150 for a good high-flow cat plus $150-$200 for piping and welding from a decent shop. However, you will run into boost creep which can quickly kill the motor. Enlarging the wastegate ports usually will combat the boost creep, and it's fairly easy to do if you're skilled with a die grinder.

Something that you didn't mention that you should keep in mind are the basic reliability mods. Those include replacing all the vacuum lines in the engine bay with high-temperature silicone lines. Also, I mentioned the downpipe. The downpipe replaces the pre-cat which commonly clogs, causing myriads of overheating problems that lead to engine failure.

Steve Robertson

Thanks broken 93 for your helpful and detailed reply!

I do have a new Al AST, boost gauge, and I have had the vacuum/silicone lines replaced.


1. What are the exact modifications required to make either (koyo/fluidyne) radiator fit?


2. Is there a wastegate "part" that can be bought, instead of having the curent wastegate ground? (sorry for my ignorance in this matter...)

Thanks again,

Steve

Steve Robertson

To dgeesaman:

Thanks for the guidelines on using this forum. I will do as you say.

Sorry if my questions upset you. I am only trying to learn.

Steve

MakoRacing

iTrader: (12)

Just abuse the "search" function before you post and youll be good, you can find anything that you need to know with it. And dump the A/C, real men use the windows!

patfat

real men in the bay area. We have something called humidity here on the right coast, sorry east coast. Keep your A/C

Steve Robertson

To MakoRacing:

Thanks for being understanding...

Yes the "search function", I should know better...

I will try to abuse "search" as much as possible during the next few days, and then ask any major questions.


Fresh air never bothered me either....but what about belts and pulley replacement when the AC is ditiched? (answer if you wish....otherwise I will "search"...)

Thanks again,

Steve

rynberg

Welcome to the forum.

As others have said, please use the search function but here's my answers to your questions:

1. The Fluidyne is thinner than the Koyo and fits better with MOST aftermarket intakes/SMICs than the Koyo. It will drop straight in on a stock car.

2. No, it is not linear. It will not begin to move until your water temps are exceeding 235-240F, which is not enough warning. An aftermarket gauge will give you more warning but will also make you paranoid....

3. IMO, all FDs should have come with the R1/R2 dual oil-cooler setup. The stock single cooler is barely adequate for street driving in summer temps, let alone tracking the car. That said, upgrading the coolers is an expensive and PITA. If you only drag or track the car very occasionally, the stock single cooler is OK.

4. Personally, I would fix the A/C but that's your call.

5. To maintain emissions, you can install a downpipe, a hi-flow cat, and a cat-back exhaust. This will NOT cause you to boost creep or need to have your wastegate ported. You WILL NEED a boost controller of some type to maintain the stock boost level of 10 psi until you upgrade the ECU. An aftermarket downpipe will retain the O2 sensor.

6. I'm not much of a drag racer, but I think breaking into the 12s will be difficult at stock boost levels. You really start gaining power with this car by raising the boost levels to 12-14 psi, which requires an aftermarket ecu.

Feel free to PM me with any questions.

Steve Robertson

rynberg:

Thanks for the detailed answers....very helpful.

How much would dual coolers cost? Who makes them?

At minimum, an oil temp. gauge seems like a good idea to me. How was your oil guage install....and what oil temp. range seems safe in your car?

Thanks again,

Steve

adam c

iTrader: (2)

Way to use the search button Steve

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

I'm not offended, but most newbies don't appreciate how much good information has been discussed repeatedly. The time excuse is a fallacy. (A good search digs up more info, faster). So I stepped in first to tell you the straight truth. Someone else surely would have.

For gauges, the boost guage is the bare minimum to install. Then go with the water temp gauge - either linearize the stock one or install an aftermarket gauge. Oil temp is probably third (both oil and water are good for gauging engine temps, but the water system is much more failure prone). I currently have water and boost and don't see any immediate need for more.

To get dual oil coolers you'd need to get a scrap part off of an R1 or R2 (the only trim level to come with them stock) and install the extra one. Otherwise, there are aftermarket replacements that probably cost a few hundred new. The for-sale section here is your friend - and for high-demand items like this you may want to check it frequently.

Dave

broken93

And you certainly did so with tact and gentleness not offered by most others.

Steve Robertson

Yes tact...that is true I am sure. Your style is appreciated!

I will learn this forum's system soon...

Thanks for the gauge information dgeesaman

I do have a boost gauge installed. (I just need to learn all the informational details that it can provide)

Today I will be searching H2O gauge information, and oil temp. gauge information.

I read on one post; "buy the oil gauge first....monitor the temps, and then decide if coolers are needed." (that seemed like great advice)

On another post I heard there might be a "center speaker gauge pod" available...so I will search that one out also.

Thanks for everyones help so far,

Steve

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

That's a good point - if you're considering dual oil coolers, then oil temp readings are the way to determine the necessity. I think the driving school (track) driving is the only situation where a single oil cooler may be a liability, and even then it may not matter unless the weather is hot. A search should turn up info on whether the second oil cooler is worth worrying about. But either way, things like radiator, AST, new coolant hoses, etc are much more important for reliability.

Dave

driFDer

iTrader: (1)

"On another post I heard there might be a "center speaker gauge pod" available...so I will search that one out also."

Congrats on the buy and welcome to the club! I actually just installed my dual center guage pod and I love it, very good quality and matches dash really well. Boost guage was easy to hook up but water guage probe is just hanging by downpipe at the moment so its showing underhood temp. Will have to install that later this week.



I bought mine here but there are probably others that sell them:
http://www.i-m-racing.com/newcenchanga.html

Check the 'classifieds' section often as most of what you're looking for can be found there most of the time for great prices. Enjoy the FD!

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

Gawwddaamnn!! That interior is mint!!!

Steve Robertson

I agree!!!

Beautiful setup. Much nicer than I had thought!

Are there any road vision problems when looking from the seated position?

Thanks for the welcome mat. It is appreciated.

Steve

dgeesaman

iTrader: (7)

BTW, those particular gauges (autometer with the chrome bezel) match the console well and are a good value. I bought mine from a generic hotrod store on the Internet for very good prices - google around and you'll save some money.

Dave

driFDer

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for compliments guys, I guess the interior is pretty nice for 80k mile car. Steve, there are no visiion problems at all. I picked autometer guages cause they were cheaper than most the others and do the same thing, plus they match nice. They glow a little brighter orange than stock but they still look good IMO.

rynberg

Frank's tri-pod gauge mount is much better looking IMO and, of course, holds a 3rd gauge. I've been running mine for 1-1/2 years, still fits and looks great. No visibility issues either, unlike A-pillar mounts.

http://hometown.aol.com/flyrx7/Rx7-Gauge-Pod.html