I am looking into purchasing an RX7 and am new to this board so please bear with me . I know that the 20B is touted as being a better motor than the 13B and was wondering how hard it would be to put one in the FD. Im looking for cost and what will need to be fabricated. Any help would be appreciated.
Joel-

 

Welcome to the board. I dont know the answer to your question, but I know that this has been talked about a few times. Check out the search function on the top right side of your screen, it defintely knows more than me
Good luck....it'll cost A LOT from what I remember.

 

you are looking at upwards of $35K.

 

I have a 20b with only 300miles on it setting in my garage I just dont got the ***** to try to install it I was thinking about puting it in a miata because you can find them real cheap.

 

I have the ***** to install it in mine! I'll be over tomorrow to pick it up....

 

I have a question to add. Since the 20b is 1 roter bigger it means it weights more and is also longer.. For the people who have 20bs installed into thier car How did it affect your power to rate to handling ratio..

I know that stock FD had a allmost perfect 50/50 weight ratio that was what gave it it's handling so does the 20b hurt it at all?

 

Good question......My main concern is cost effectiveness. I want 425 at the wheels. I think that can help me to attain my goal of low 11's in the quarter. If that is possible to do while staying with the 13b then that will be the way I go. Keep in mind I need to be able to do this reliably (daily driven). I already know i am going to have to go single with a standalone, i just need to know if i'm gonna have to fab in the 20b. Thanx.

 

I don't know if 425hp at the wheels will get you into the low 11's or not, but I know these are both attainable on the 13b, however I am not sure how big of a single you will need....

 

425 RWHP is good for low 11's and is attainable through any turbo kit out there, with good tuning.

 

What steps would I have to take (aside from the obvious cooling upgrades) to make a 13b hold that power for a prolonged period of time? i.e. does porting make a difference etc.?

 

Yup. True that.

And why did you pick 425 and why do you want low 11s? It's not a drag car.

 

There is a shop in San Antonio (3 Rotor is the name i think) that does 20b conversions. I've seen their work first hand and was very impressed. 35K is the price tag for the job and the price covers everything...it better, right? You get the engine, single turbo set-up, beefed up frame and a few other goodies. They use engines out of the Cosmo. Their set-up is capable of well over 500hp, but the shop de-tunes the car for civility. The owner said 500+hp on the street was like driving on ice.

 

HOLY ****!!!!!!! A 20b in a Miata!!!!!!!! OMG lets see here 400+ HP, 2100lb car DAMN that would be a ride.

 

YOu could always try waiting a year for the renesis engine to debut in the Rx-8, ****** one up, and then put it in your 7 with the turbos. Granted this won't be easy, but I bet it's easier than getting a 20B in your car.

 

I'd rather go for the 20b than the renesis.

 

alan, i think youre talking about those guys we saw at the drags in san antonio??

im pretty damn sure that those cars were from alamo rotary, which is in san antonio.

 

Why not buy two renesis(es) and make a 20B out of that

Anyway, I have no need for the absurd power of the 20B, and I'd like to have 50/50. So dropping in a renesis has occurred to me.

 

the turbos would be great on the Renesis, but only one small prob---Now you have side exhaust ports, not peripheral> New manifold and directional flow characteristics to contend with!
Just calling it to your attention.
Art

 

Why not Supercharge the renasis then?

Crap you can get 20+psi from some vorteq superchargers.

 

but if you want 400 rwhp cris at rx7.com did it and passed smog to boot!!

I think his set up was...

13B street proted 2mm seals
T-78
profec-B
Haltech piggybacked to the stock ecu
jacobs rotery pro pack ignition
3" down pipe
3" mid pipe w/ 7 inch cat!
J-spec cat back
4 800cc injecters
FMIC
Larger radiator
new fuel pump and reg

and i am sure i am missing a few things but you get the jist of it. The cool thing is that it is dailt driven and smog legal

 

If you're gonna get 20B crazy, might as well go all out and just put it midship. Mid Engined RX-7 That should be jimlab's next project.


You can get a 20b fairly easily, but installation will run you 30,000+ If you're considering daily driving something like that, you probably can't afford it. I know I cant.

 

Hmmm.....very interesting idea....

 

I think RE Amemiya made a mid engined rotary vehicle a few years back...i think he stuck with the 13B-REW, but put it in a custom chassis

 

I can’t believe any one mention Pettit’s 20b (banzai). It’s on there website. They could do the swap for you but again you are looking at prices up to 35k. The 20b you saw at San Antonio was of Alamo Rotary decent. I talk to them about getting parts for the 20b conversion but they didn’t seem to help on helping me to try to do the install myself. They wanted to do the install. It’s not the parts that are making this really expensive. It’s the labor. You can get the engine for about 4k if you looked hard enough (Australia). Then you have to customize the sub frame and suspension due to the length of the engine. Hoses of course have to be longer in some areas and then relocation of the battery radiator condenser etc… Everything is practically fabricated from firewall to front bumper. I use to have a parts list of exactly all I needed and what needed to be done and it rounded out to about 20k. (Includes all electronics gauges, everything needed for the install). Also include having bigger seals port and polishing as well. Considering I spent in the vicinity of that much, it would take too long to do even by a shop that did the swap. That guy that had his done took months, if I recall correctly, finishing. I needed something right away, and highly street able and reliable. So I just stuck with a built 13b at stock boost. Good luck with the 20b but do plan to spend big BUCKS!!!! GOOD LUCK. Here is their website if you want detail info and pics. Pretty nice pics http://www.alamorotary.com

 

Yes, it is Alamo Rotary. The website is known as rx73rotor or something or that sort.

Alamo rotary uses the Pettit subframe and modified spindles ($2100).

It might be wiser to buy a used 20B in the States versus importing it from Australia. There are some shortcuts in reducing the duty on the engine, of course.

The price solely depends on what you have already done to your FD.
The $30k - $39k price quote covers the entire work for the 20B conversion and upgrades (FMIC, Radiator, stand alone EFI, Fuel system, battery relocation, etc).

So far, I have learned that the 20B conversion subframe from Pettit is bolt-on and requires the steering rack to be re-mounted. Tito told me that he has experienced some "bump-steering" after the conversion, but you can get used to it.

You can spend less and get your 13B-REW ported, single turbo, fuel system, and EFI done to hit the upper 300 to lower 400 horses to the wheel. The 20B requires most of the upgrades on top of it's custom subframe.

I don't know enough about the Renesis to agree/disagree about engine swaps, turbocharger kits, or supercharger kits. I doubt most of us really know until it comes out in the market.

Paul Ko has spent less than $10k and has his 20B FC running (still needs tuning).

J