alright everyone has read and experienced how hot the FD gets and how it needs all this cooling mods to prevent overheating. However, ever since i got my fan mod and temp gauge, I havent found a justifiable reason to buy a radiator or similar cooling mods. With my fans on, My temps never go above 85C except when im uphill for a period of time (i.e. the 2 north).

I was wondering if people were having overheating problems only when the fans werent on because I know if my fans arent on, the temps start to rise. But, if they are on, they stay between 80C and 85C. So let me know about your experiences and if you think I'm crazy or not.


- Art

 

i do not have the fan mod, but in 90 degree+ weather. i will see 210f all afternoon with my parking lights on. if im cruising on the freeway it will drop to 195f on the cooler summer days. going up the grapevine(big hill) with parking lights on as well, i saw my temps rise to 230f. uphill in the summer is a killer, but temps usually drop back down to 190-200f on the downhill. in the summer i avoid driving in the afternoon.

 

My engine is all stock except for exhaust. I can pull my tire trailer at 75mph with the a/c on high and it's 100 degrees outside and reach no more than 215F. Stock radiator and front end with Miata thermoswitch and ducts added to the radiator opening.

If I'm willing to slow down a little or not run the a/c so cold it will run under 210 no problem. Keep in mind this is only during very hot Texas summers. If it's less than 90 degrees outside I don't even bother checking the temp gauge.

 

A stock RX7 should have no problems at all overheating on the street under pretty much any conditions. The track can be another matter.

 

just run vmount

i had the same temps as scratch and i was too paranoid so i switched!!!

 

I had a leaky tank seal at 95k miles. when we pulled it the coolant hose fitting broke. plastic parts.

don't overlook tuning as a cause for overheating. there was a write up on this but, the O2 sensor gets its input from 4 fuel injectors but doesnt balance the flow to the two rotors. impaired fuel injector causes one rotor to burn rich and the other lean.

 

I wasn't really asking why my temps go up without the fans on (even tho i guess it is a problem), but more of why bother with cooling mods when u can just have the fans on? With my fans on I get lower temps than any of the temps you guys just listed.

 

Yeah, you can keep 85C cruising on the freeway or bumming around town. Big deal. Now go do several laps on a track on a 90F+ day. See if your temps are still 85C....THAT is why people upgrade the cooling system. Besides, any OEM radiators still in existence should be replaced and it is cheaper to do with an all metal radiator than buying another OEM one with the shitty plastic endtanks.

 

In additon to larger capacity, a reason for getting an all-aluminum aftermarket radiator (reliability mod) is the plastic end tanks that can fail with age. But I agree with others, my relatively stock non-tracked car has run just fine on the stock rad., fan mod and miata thermoswitch...so far. Picking up my Fluidyne this week.

 

The plastic end tanks on my stock radiator failed, which seems to be pretty common as they get old. At that time I upgraded to an all aluminum radiator. I think the stock radiator failing, or a proactive change under the assumption that the stock radiator will fail, is as common a reason for upgrading as the expected increase in cooling performance.

-Max

 

I have never had a problem with overheating in traffic as long as the water pump, thermostat and fans are working properly.

My experience is that even a "modified" cooling system (mazda comp radiator, fan mod and stock duct work taped up) is not enough for hot days (90 plus) for extended track outings (25 -40 minutes). I have to pull off and let the car cool off after about 15 minutes. I plan on adding water injection and a v-mount with a huge radiator (27.5 X 19 inches) to get this probelm solved once and for all.