FD Road Race Car - Feedback Welcome -
 

Guys,

I thought about posting here, as this is not a build thread.

Car is 90% done and basically would like to hear your experienced feedback / Tips / Review / Critics on tracking these cars.

Am not an experienced mechanics in RE at all, most of what I know comes from this forum and am pretty good on google research.

Long Track Road Race Car / Matte White 94 FD / Reliable 400WHP as Target/ GT35R / Haltech / Ludwig Wiring / FMIC / Stock Transmission/ Stock Porting / Coilovers / etc etc etc...

First I will post pics of the complete project so you can find out what am talking about... I will slowly get deeper into some details of the build...

Car is currently on shake down and letting me know what really works and what doesn´t.... So far everything is Ok on night highway no boost driving and just spending some time on maps setup...

There´s still some things to add and some things to re think, but basically after 2 years the car is finally running...

Thanks..!!

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imagenes gratis

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sube

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subir fotos online

Looks pretty nice man.

Only thing I would suggest is looking into a VMIC for track use instead of FMIC though.

Running a Fd for extended periods of time at high rpm is a exercise in managing the heat,I can see you have ducted you oil coolers and FMIC ? not the radiator?
You may want to insulate the lower intake manifold next to the turbo,how about a trans cooler?

Shakedown and test runs on track will reveal what works and doesn't so anyone attempting to give input might be incorrect.

Get your tune done and safe. After that, try to get a test event to check temps and chassis balance on track.

The one thing I can't tell from the pics is what brakes you are running. The front brakes might need some ducting if they are stock. What pads do you intend to run on track?

Hi,

Sometime I eventually will go to VMount, but at the same time I´ll do the a complete tubular front, so that´s probably stage 2 on the project.

So far the oil coolers and Radiators are ducted.

I don´t have a Transmission cooler, can you add it to the stock one ?? Does the oil gets really hot during racing ??

I have stock brakes and Hawk HPS all around, not ducted yet.

Just bought a NACA duct for the passenger side headlight cover, that´s going to the CAI for the turbo.

Might have to drill some holes in the bumber for brakes cooling...

Thanks for the feedback.

brakes will need ducting , and a BBK would do wonders for the car , HP+ arent really going to cut it for real hard racing .

As for Temps .. I'd stay the hell away from a FMIC some people have made them work , by routing a duct so it hits the radiator directly But rotaries run hot . and you know howmuch rotaries hate heat 1 over heat , and your motor could be done for .

You should check out Fritz Flynn's thread https://www.rx7club.com/race-car-tec...videos-285107/ as a good refference , Fritz is pretty much the local Rotary StiG

Also RIDE HEIGHT , I'd suggest the car be high enough that it has some travel , I've eaten through wires and plastics multiple times . Alot of people reccomend 25.5 inches from ground to fender . maybe more dependingo n what tire you use

You might be able to get by with a FMIC depending on the setup and the ambient temps of your local tracks. Go test it and find out. fingerlock and Shipnout run FMIC in SCCA racing w/ a single turbo here in Northern CA and can control temps fwiw. This is on a full on race car with all the tricks though, not a street car...

Need for a Transmission cooler would depend on the temps that the trans oil reaches. Hard to tell unless you add a temp sensor to the trans. I'd suggest running a good synthetic 90 weight trans oil like Redline MT90, NEO or Amsoil and send it out for oil analysis if you can. The oil analysis will help you figure out how many hours you can run on the oil before it breaks down.

Hawk DTC 60 or 70 should be a decent option for the front for use on track. Maybe some DTC 30 in the rear. HPS won't work well on track.

Nice build so far.... very clean and well presented....

Safety: Cage the car ----- you will also benefit from stiffness. Be sure to tie in the front strut towers and consider seam welding.
Cooling: Stock Car Radiators - I use the Ford version. Vertically mounted, very effective. It's massive and the car can run in 100+ degrees all day with a big Spearco front mount intercooler and two stock size oil coolers.
Trans - Cooling is not the issue with the stock trans and redline MTL, Third gear is the weak link. Above 400hp and you will work thru stock gear boxes. .
The urgent cooler need will be for the diff. Stock diff and Torsen are very durable for Road Racing but must be cooled. Invest in a cooler and pump.

Great dash, how did you do it?

I have roadraced a 1993 rx7 13b gt35r for 5 years. After that we went 20b for another 7 years.

The following I would consider mandatory.

A small power steering cooler
A diff cooler and electric pump. Without it the diff oil will fry and cook the seals.
All synthetic oils
Castrol srf , motul or brembo full race fluid
A front big brake kit with a 929 master cylinder for a firm pedal. mintex f2r pads. ( good enough for nascar at Montreal.)
5 inch brake ducts to a fully closed stainless or aluminum backplate behind the rotor.
air fuel ratio gauge
racing alignment.
Move the wiring above the front tires higher up.
slicks for sure. With 420 rwhp these are a must. I like yokohama 00, hoosier s100, or r7 for short races/ cool temps. 300/650 18 front, 320/650 18 rear will work.
run a big front bar with 1300 front and rear springs.



The following will greatly improve the car.

aftermarket trailing arm with solid ends
racing transmission. Most tracks I find the need for a gear between 2nd and 3rd gear. Plus its hard to shift 2-3 after 7500 rpm.
trans cooler
solid motor mounts
urethane lower and upper front arm bushings. I made my uppers out of aluminum and off set them to get enough front camber. (3-3.3 degrees.)
urethane trans mount
reinforce ppframe
racingbeat swaybar support.
rear brake ducts.
lighten the car . lexan rear window. fiberglass doors, fenders, hatch, etc.

I'm sure there's more, but i'd have to go look at the car.

Oh yeah , a surge tank for your fuel. And I ran a hose from the catch can bottom back into the oil pan. It will fill up quick. Double up on side seals will give less blowby/ less oil in breather.

run a plate under gas pedal the height of bump in floor with no slip tape. and a wider gas pedal. more insulation on tranny tunnel.

Well...

Lot of good tips here..!!

Am a private racer with a backyard project, there`s no sponsor here or big wallets to get all the parts I would like to... So I need to go step by step...

In a short term I`ll go ahead on:

- Transmission / Differential Cooler (Did a search on the forum and couldn`t find much info about it, any advice on what Cooler/ Pumo would be affordable and ok for the application ?? Do I need to weld fitting on the cases or there`s a plug I can use ??)

- Pedals fix up / Wider gas pedal and plate under it.

- Fuel surge tank

-Hawk DTC Pads

- Ride Height

- Oil Catch Can return line to Oil Sump ( Any picture somewhere ???, can`t really imagine where to plug it on the oil pan... )

Thanks everyone of their advices, each one was carefully readed and printed to be discussed with my mechanic team (AKA Drunk Gear Head Buddies)

Take a read through this old thread. Yes, it's old, but still a lot of relevant information:

https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generati...ionale-136678/

300 or more HP and the car needs:
big rubber at least 275
heavy springs 750 or more (I like equal springs front and rear with stock rear bar and tri point front)
VMIC or as mentioned by ship n out a serious FMIC with a massive radiator and very good duct work
Single turbo because twins pretty much can't be run in heat without major complications
Diff and trans cooler (trans cooler does help and is needed if you want your trans to last) but again as mentioned by ship n out if you make over 400 3rd gear WILL EXPLODE!

Safety and supporting mods for all the above or: cage, big brakes, aero, etc......

If you don't have a big wallet and a good supporting shop stop right now and buy a spec miata.

:lol::lol:......oh wait, that includes me :blush:

I think you should track it get experience in the car and go from there.

How much track experience do you have?

The oil cooler line going through the wheel well hole scares me

Ok,

These two statements above really got me scared...

So what's the point of spending money on the transmission if is going to blow o matter what... Isn't it better to save for an upgrade sometime ??

I ran Karting for 6 years, from Honda 4 cycles to Rotax Shifters 2 cycles.... Also ran a couple of years on Track Days on a B18 N/A CRX.... But this is my first experience on a purpose RWD built race car...

This is my hobby, my A side pays the bills and toys, will never turn professional and spend tons of money on the car... Am looking for a support shop and should be able to make a sponsor deal with a local one to get free labor... Parts and operational cost will always be on my side...

Am kind of confused now....

Yep I assumed you could drive based upon the car you are building and I'm sure you realize driving a fast 2600 pound car is going to cost approx 2k weekend if everything goes your way.

IMO it's a mistake to make anything over 400 on a road racing FD and even then you should really consider e85 etc.....

If you truly need 400 plus go v8 and don't look back BUT get ready to spend another 500 for bigger/more tires and brakes etc.... hehe

I'm about as cheap as they come for someone driving a fairly fast TT2 car and I easily avg 2k per weekend. A spec miata would cost about 1/2 that.

Drove a GT3 for several weekends and just tires, gas and brake pads cost close to 2k a weekend.

Bottomline: the faster your car, the faster your money burns

Honestly Fritz I got tired of Karts and at the same time the FD was breaking my back (am already 40) as daily and it was to cool to let it sit week after week as a weekend toy car.

My daily is a 135 Bimmer and already have a TTS Audi as weekend car.

So everything mixed together and decided to build the FD as a race car

I´ve driven both of my cars (near 400HP and A LOT of torque) at several local track days, but am sure the FD will be different, not as gentle as the Euro gentleman oriented pocket rockets.

Honestly never really thought about the cost of racing it until now when is close to hit the track... I REALLY need to do a little research about it, am not willing and mi wife would kick me out of home for spending that kind of money on a service for my hobby.

May be time attack is not that stressing for the car ?? Couple of hot laps and park at the pits..!!

Need to do a lot of planning before making the final decision.

What would you do first ?? Transmission or Differential cooler ?

CC

^ Diff fluid is more likely to get cooked. Transmission pan spacers a la Bubbletech afford extra fluid capacity and are relatively cheap, and the install is relatively quick and easy.

Understood, just turned 50 and actually hurt my back this fall and couldn't even drive my FD for a couple of weeks.

No doubt TT is easier on the car so that will help save some money for sure and that's the approach I take.

However there is no cheap way out if you want to go fast or be on the podium.

Even HPDE events will cost big dollars unless you run slow laps. I went to 7 events this year and dropped over 25k (only 2 events were time trials the rest HPDE) on my car for various things but the track days cost me at least 10k.

I've been driving an FD on track since 2001 and just put the trans cooler in last year or maybe the year before last and the diff cooler in this year. I wouldn't sweat the coolers at this stage I'd get it up and running at 350 max power and sweat the small stuff later. At 350 rwhp you should be as fast as well driven c6 corvettes which are very fast track cars. I'm not a gifted driver so it took me about 5 years to get a decent handle on the FD. It's a great car but it's not an evo, GTR, Audi TT (hehe) etc.... or in other words you have to work a little to go as fast as the Z06s, GT3s, GTRs, Vipers, modded (sti and evos), etc.... it's brutal out there LOL

A well prepped FD with a good driver will completely crush a stock m1 or audi TT as in BLOW it's doors or be 10 seconds a lap faster.

Here's a vid from this years UTCC and there was a really nice heavily modded m1 (probably 50k invested) making 450 plus rwhp driven by the e30 NASA multi year champ (extremely good driver) and my FD was a little quicker with approx 350 rwhp. I think the bimmer was also on larger tires with softer rubber. I'm not going to out drive the E30 champ so I'm simply saying the FD is BADASS and it doesn't need much power.

I didnt think it would be so expensive for to run HPDE's. but I suppose if you want to be competitive it takes money.

And a stock FD can hold it's own with most, at least in the twisties. I gave a lot of pass by's in the staights though. You don't necessrily need to drop a fortune, if you are okay with enjoying improving your technical abilities and aren't concerned about getting passed. I actually like the HP handicap which makes it that much more rewarding when you can take someone on skill vs HP.