Hey guys,
I was just curious....I've had my FD for a good year now and I've already heavily modded it (single turob yada yada yada). Since the FD is a 10 year old car, its developed a lot of old age problems. I really just want to make my car feel and drive like new again (replacing old parts for newer parts...obviously not everything tho). My car drives really rough....given its a sports car i think my coilovers (tein Ha) are rougher than normal. Should i change to another set of coilovers or is that pretty much the feeling I'm going to get from other brands (i'm decently lowered....I feel every single bump...even get airborne off my seat sometimes). I know people say change the bushings, toe links and trailing....but does that really make a big difference? (dont flame me =) ) Additionally there is this reallllllly annoying sound in the rear hatch....it sounds as if the hatch is loose or something (i have a racing beat wing...pretty heavy). My hydralic hatch thing doesnt even work anymore (spits out oil causing me to hold the hatch everytime). I was wondering if it was the hydraulic thing that was cuasing the noise or some other weird problem. All in all, I was just curious what you guys would suggest changing out to make your car feel new and smooth (with no rattles, squeeks and such). SOrry for the long post, thanks for reading and hope to hear from someone soon.


(PS: Does your car smell so much you think your going to get lung cancer?...any ways around the no-cats smell? =))

 

WOW, you just described my car to down to the teeth!!!

LOL!

 

lol =) I love my car but I just have a few gripes
1: smells too much (i feel like imma die and my clothes smell shizzy after having the window down)
2: I wish my car felt smooth like a heavy car (dont think this will every happen with a sports car....but i Just dont want it soooooo bumpy....gives me a headache once in a while with crap *** roads)
3: NO mooooore damn rattles and squeaky noises coming from random *** places.

I've always wondered how a RX7 drove brand spankin new. I just want to revamp my car with some new parts that will help its way to seem newer =P Any suggestions wil do

 

Well, its a sports car, if you wanted a smooth ride, go get yourself a BMW or a Benz.

Other than that, you can't expect a car made for racing to have a smooth ride and turn perfectly. =)

 

1. You could switch to Progressive (250/350 lb)springs like the Eibach Pro kit's. Those ride really smooth compared to the M2 coil over (linear - 450/550 lb) springs that recently switched to. I actually miss the Eibach's

2. Get a high-flow cat to get rid of the smell. I'd have a midpipe myself if I could handle the smell.

3. Get a louder stereo

 

louder stereo has my vote. It's amazing what you don't hear when your jamming some tunes

 

yeah that was on my todo list....bigger and better system. You guys think another reason why my car is kinda noisy...is because of the shitty falken tires (they're not that shitty but def. inferior to s-03s and etc) i have? i heard they were really stiff and create a lot of noise....actually i know they are noisy...but how much compared to say...s-03s or equivalent tires. Thanks for reading guys.

 

Which Falken's do you have? I was thinking of getting the 451's. If you have these, what is your impression of them?

 

* Softer springs - I have 10/8 and will change to 8/5.
* Tein HA - not familiar with those but if you can lower it without loosing shock travel then you can get helper springs but they are expensive.
* Change the hatch struts - the R2 version will handle the weight of the wing. If the the '99+ is stronger you may want to special order those (assuming price is ok).
* Smell - Did you change all the exhaust gaskets?
* RX-7 is a smooth ride - My touring suspension was just as smooth as a BMW.
* Insilation - You can spray insilation under the wheel wells and dynamat to the doors if you don't mind the weight.

 

Well the touring does have a softer suspension then the R's.

 

DK,

I feel ya on the part that your clothes are starting to smell like the fumes from you exhaust. As far as the smooth ride, our cars are just too light in weight to feel like a Benz(unless you want to put heavy rocks in the bids lol). The FD is a sports car so we sacrifice comfort for speed and I will never complain about that. Maybe you might want to look into the HKS Draggers coilovers but they are about $2500!!!


BTW: How did you do on Fontana?

-dino

 

CHECK THE SUSPENSION BUSHINGS!!!!!!!, I've seen alot of FD's with worn bushings due to the age and mileage that most of them are getting up to right now. Most FD's that have almost or more than 100k miles should be checked for bushing wear, replacing the bushings will make a big difference with the ride quality and stability, if they're worn on your car.

Lithium grease for all the joints and rubber stoppers on the hood, doors, and rear hatch will stop some squeaks.

 

heh....thanks for all the suggestions guys. I was running mid 12's all day. I guess i need to get some drag radials and/or boost 15psi at 91oct (no more premixing...). I think for the most part....when my car goes over bumps and the freaking hatch rattles like crazy....it just adds to the bumpiness (makes it muuuuch worse).

 

Unscrew the lower latch deal and lower it (not on the hatch door but on the car). There's some write ups if you wanna search. This will hold the rear hatch down tighter and help eliminate rattles over bumps. Also make sure the htach is actually closed. I know it sounds silly but my open hatch warning light never came on when it was open and it looked closed.

 

what hatch open warning light? have i been that oblivious for 4 years!

raj

 

Umm, not really....

What you want to do is build up the stops on the side of the hatch where it rests against the body. You simply unbolt the existing stops, (I think it's a torx bolt) put a layer or two of rubber or cork sheet (cut to the same size as the existing plate) and bolt em back on. This will tighten up the hatch so that it won't rattle and keep the level of the hatch the same as the body.

It will never rattle again.

I never knew we had an open hatch warning light, where is it?

 

I did the same thing that RonKMiller suggested and my rattling went away.