Hey so I just imported a 1996 fd from Japan. I'm not looking to make any more power but I definitely want to make my car reliable as possible. The car is completely stock at the moment. What mods should I do if reliability is my main concern?

Right now I'm thinking about getting a boost gauge so that I can verify that the turbos are working properly and possibly a power fc with the fc commander. I'm sorta on the fence about getting the power fc, just because I'm not really interested in more power, I'd be mainly getting it for the ability to monitor the engines sensors and inputs. If anybody has a suggestion on that I'd like to hear it.

Anyway please recommend mods for me!

Thanks in advance

 

Search, believe it or not this has been asked a few times before.

 

Here is my opinion.

Look at your car and make sure these are in good working order.

Radiator hoses
change vaccuum lines to silicone
radiator cap is good
engine harness is good and connectors look good


Lots of people upgrade
dual oil coolers
aluminum radiator
Apexi power FC (probably need a tune)
Downpipe
mid pipe (possibly)
exhaust
Boost controller
fuel pulsation damper (change it if its OG)

 

Awesome thanks for the suggestions! In terms of gauges what should I get? I know I should get a boost gauge but what else?

 

Read this post by fritz.
https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generati...nners-1010998/

 

I think getting a boost controller is more important than a gauge. This way you can turn the boost up and down, and use the controller as a boost gauge. More efficient use of the money spent IMO.

I use a Blitz boost controller (very simple) and has been fine for me. I use the controller to gauge my boost pressure as well.

Does your car have dual oil coolers? Does the car run hot at all? One important factor is cooling the cooling enough since oil lubrication is important and it also cools the engine.

The apexi power FC can monitor other areas of your engine, so I would also go with that before buying gauages. That is just my opinion. you can monitor water temp, knock, air temp, etc.

and getting the heat out of the engine is important, so downpipe, mid pipe, exhaust to get the heat out. Or at a minimum do a downpipe.

This is just my opinion. You could get away with just a boost gauge, water temp gauge, downpipe. and make sure your water temps are under control.

 

The above mentioned references are great, it would be hard for me to put in better. In terms of gauges, IMO, I would suggest:

Water Temp
Boost
In that order.

Temperatures are one of the bigger engine killers, and the stock gauge is very non-linear and misleading.

Boost gauges are cool and fun to watch, along with giving good insight into how the turbos, and the control systems, are working.

Good choice of cars! Welcome!

 

This is an awesome thread, thanks a lot for posting it!

You can't just modify the boost right? If you change the boost you need to get the car tuned for the new boost right? And yeah I am definitely going to get the power fc, & water temp gauge. I'm not sure, but I think the japanese spec FDs had a straight pipe for the downpipe instead of the US spec cars that have some pre cat thing so I think I might be good there.

 

1) Maintenance items are number 1. Check and fix as necessary: oil, plugs, coolant, brake pads and rotors, vacuum lines, tires, missing IC ducts, clamps, bad electrical connections, etc.
2) PFC with commander
3) down pipe (if it has one)
4) high flow cat
5) Aluminum AST

Drive it like that for a bit and enjoy it! Then worry about other mods.

 

Boost modifications of any sort are not reliability modifications.

Forget adding components in order to modify boost or any part of the stock engine. Leave it right alone.

Begin with proper reliability mods- check:

Engine belts for wear and tension
Alternator output voltage is good and within spec.
Check wires and plugs that you can see, for any damage.
Monitor water level and oil level, check for high usage.
Check tires for cracks or perishing.
Check brake pads and brake fluid.
Coolant flush if coolant is suspect.
Verify engine does not run below 80C or over 109C water temps, and cooling is good.

Replace spark plugs with good, brand new items.
Replace oil, air and fuel filters on time, properly.
Buy a simple boost gauge, nothing fancy. Hook it up.
Buy a simple water temp gauge, nothing fancy. Hook it up.
Check the three rubber fuel lines by the oil filter for any damage.
Check for fuel smell. Investigate FPD if there is.
Invest in an aluminum AST.

You dont need racing exhausts, boost controllers or Power FCs. Those are not sources of reliability.

 

Nos

 

We need some pics of your car before we can REALLY make any worthwhile recommendations

 

Once you assume the maintenance on your car is up to date (including all 50 or so vacuum hoses, etc), there are very few mods truly aimed at reliability.

The ones I can think of are primarily related to cooling:
Larger radiator
Metal AST
downpipe (about the only one that may add a few hp)
dual (R1 like) oil coolers
Lower temp thermostat
High flow water pump (maybe)

And to help us out with specifics:
How many miles on the car?
What kind of shape is it in?
What kind of care has it had?
Do you have any particular issues or concerns?

Cheers!

 

Almost everyone has said get a PFC + Commander as a reliability mod, why do you not suggest it? It seems like the argument is that the PFC allows you to monitor the engine at a level of detail not possible with the stock ECU, seems pretty logical to me. What are your reservations?

Lol, yeah nah.

This is the car that I purchased: 1996 Mazda RX7 RB Bathurst - Bonsai Rides: JDM & RHD Import Vehicles Canada

Its got 60k KM, seems to be mostly stock. The importer said that it had good compression so the engine is probably OK. I actually still don't have the car, its waiting in japan. I should have it in canada in april some time. My importer told me that if I got a list of parts together he could source them in Japan at a much cheaper price than what I would pay here in Canada, hence the thread.

Anyway here is my short list of reliability mods:

-Power FC
-Metal AST
-Defi water temp gauge
-I'm going to get a boost gauge as well but the cluster is damaged so I'm going to be replacing it, should I just get a cluster that has a built in boost gauge or should I get a stand alone gauge?
-I don't need a downpipe cause japanese cars have no pre cat.

Anything I missed?? P.S. I am definitely going to be bringing this car to the track.

P.S.2 I'm going to be doing a bunch of cosmetic mods as well (i.e stock bumper, shift **** + parking break, stock mirrors, maybe some recaros) but that's for another thread.

 

Thanks for sharing!

Nice car! I am not a fan of the bumper or mirrors, but your car looks to be in good shape. No oil all over the undercarriage, that is a good thing! Cool steering wheel. That momo has an OEM kinda look to it. FDs look great in white.

 

I'm not a fan of the bumper or the mirrors either, going to get them replaced for sure.