what it takes for 500hp
 

ok here is the story. my buddy had gotten a salvaged FD and in the past year or so has spent countless hours rebuilding this thing into what he hopes will be around 500hp. he finished everything except wheels. and ironlicly at the same time his funds dropped short. he is waiting on a good find for 18in wheels (he can only have 18's at the least cuz his break kit wont fit anything smaller) he has upgraded his engine with a stage 2 street port, gt35 turbo with boost controler, injectors, fuel pump, fuel lines, full 3in turbo back exhaust with no cats (you think it might throw some mean flames?!) a big FMIC. i cant remember off the top of my head what engine management system he is using but its a common one. not haltec. he only needs these wheels and he will be on the dyno. i dont know every spicific off the top of my head but he might be borrowing the wheels fom someone this weekend so he can get it tuned and then see what numbers he can bring out of it.

what do you all think? ill post what the results are and the spicific mods later

per the FAQ
17) What mods do I need to make 300hp? 400hp? 500hp?

Since stock power levels already push the limits of the car, begin with maintenance items: fuel filter, tranny and differential oil, spark plugs and wires, coolant change, injector cleaning, bleed brakes, replace fuel pulsation damper, coolant hoses, etc. Next, install reliability modifications (alternate list) to correct weaknesses in the factory design: all-aluminum radiator, downpipe, aluminum AST or AST elimination, vacuum hose job, boost gauge, coolant temp gauge, modify cooling fans by thermoswitch replacement or manual control, and others. Finally, it is time to add power mods. FDs respond to power modifications and tuning but can’t handle more than a couple bolt-on power mods until fuel, boost levels, and re-tuning are considered. This advice isn’t meant to slow down your progress, but to ensure you don’t destroy your car. It’s happened many times before, and with modified engines pushing the limits of the stock engine systems, the reliability mods become necessities. See this thread for further info.

i) 300HP can be achieved with some bolt-on mods and piggy-back ECU tuning. For example, Pettit Racing offers a +60hp package for under $1500. M2 Performance has a 290HP kit for $2000, and 315HP kit for $3500. 300hp already exceeds the stock ECU’s fuel maps, so the list includes a remapped ECU as well as intake, exhaust, and intercooler upgrades. Any similar set of quality bolt-on will yield similar performance. Any power beyond this point is difficult to pass emissions testing.

ii) 400HP – At this point, it gets tougher to keep the power on the road, so upgraded tires and suspension should also be considered. One fellow planned his path to 400hp in advance to be $10k plus installation time. This list of power mods includes full exhaust, intake, upgraded turbos, reliability mods, upgraded fuel and ignition system, engine porting, standalone engine computer and wideband O2 sensor, clutch, intercooler and tuning.

iii) 500HP – See if you can afford 400 first. Tens of thousands have been spent to get and remain in this range. Don’t expect your engine to last long.

When youre talking about cars modded that much it gets pretty hard to predict. It depends very much on your tuning and boost levels.

Dave

yeah i know. im for sure gonna update what his dyno results are. he has an extancive list of mods done to it and its a brand new rebuild on the engine. hes really really trying hard to pump those high numbers. i wish i had a list right here of what he has. hes spent more than 15k on just performance parts alone. and about 33k on the entire care in total. im excited to see. and ill also take and post some pics of it when i get the chance.

sadly i couldnt go with him to get it dynoed.....

i had to be at work but his results were somthing like 470hp and 422ftlbs if its nice out im taking pics of it and ill get a shot of his dyno sheets. and ofcourse the engine. he blew a IC hose when he was on the rollers. that seems to be an problem with high power rotarys. i cant wait!

it's got nothing to do with the engine, it has to do with the boost level and how well the piping is secured (ie, couplers and whatnot)... congrats to him on the numbers, though. that's really impressive.

i think its a really neat build cuz he did it from a salvaged car. restored it and redid everything before ever driving it once. its his first real tuner car and his first rx7. i give him major props for completeing it. i just want a chance to ride in it! when hes in 4th gear and at 60mph if he puts down the gas he smokes the rears. and hes got 9.5s in the back. not sure how impresive that is but it sounded bad ass to me. i think he might be needing some 10's in the back haha

Sounds like a great car. Can't wait to see some pics.

The only thing I wonder is, why spend 33k on a salvage car? I hope he never sells it.

500whp on pump gas or C16? I hit 501whp on pump gas with my GT42R with methanol injection @ 20psi. The GT35R is too small of a turbo to hit 500whp on pump pas safely. You should be able to hit that on C16. Just turn the boost way up.

he might be on pump gas but im not sure. and he didnt buy the car for 33k. thats how much he has spent on it in total including the car itself. the majority of his investment was into his engine and suspension which im glad he did. looks can come later. im really trying hard to get the photoshoot going for him but....the midwest is still fucking cold and its actualy snowing here as i type this!!!! god when will this END!?

he might be on pump gas but im not sure. and he didnt buy the car for 33k. thats how much he has spent on it in total including the car itself. the majority of his investment was into his engine and suspension which im glad he did. looks can come later. im really trying hard to get the photoshoot going for him but....the midwest is still fucking cold and its actualy snowing here as i type this!!!! god when will this END!?

he might be on pump gas but im not sure. and he didnt buy the car for 33k. thats how much he has spent on it in total including the car itself. the majority of his investment was into his engine and suspension which im glad he did. looks can come later. im really trying hard to get the photoshoot going for him but....the midwest is still fucking cold and its actualy snowing here as i type this!!!! god when will this END!?

Or just Better tires..

i dont know anything about tires.

I mean that I don't understand why you would put 33k INTO a salvage car. The resale value on it will still suck.

all u need is a shot of nos. u may need alittle fuel too.

im sure that nitrous is not what he is looking for because he and i both dont like drag very much. its all about auto-X, and road course racing for him. but about the salvage title. i think it only had fire damage in the engine bay but only a little thing. somthing tiny that doesnt affect driving quality. and im sure that we wont want to sell. at least not for a long long time. i just talked to him. and he was pissed about the snow we got yesterday. this weather we have been getting has been really frusterating! it was 80 lastweek and everyone thought that winter was gone for good but then we got snow and we are getting more i hear next week, maybe like an inch or two. i hate this spring so far

the rotary could handle atleast a 200 shot. that should get him there....he wont even need to raise boost much...say 18 psi. NOS is anaswer for everything.

hes running more than 18psi. he wasnt origionaly worried about getting exactly 500hp. he was just predicting close to that much cuz thats what his turbo is rated at. maybe i can convince him to tune the suspension for drifting after hes gotten better at AutoXing it. my FC drift project this summer might inspire him to try it.

There is no problem that cannot be solved by the proper application of duct tape and/or conventional explosives. :devil:

money

Autocrossing a single turbo FD with 470hp is going to be very long learning curve, no matter what suspension or tires you have.

Dave

No wideband? Did he upgrade internals?

I am almost to 500 WHP with a GT35R, but im cutting it really close. My suggestion would to take an easier route, with the GT40R or GT42.

He should also do some major thinking about keeping his engine cool. I diddnt see any cooling mods. You should do methanol injection, or water/methanol.

On pump gas? Hmm.....after he blows his motor, perhaps we'll start a new thread: "what it takes for 500hp and to last longer than 1000 miles".

about his up to date supporting mod list ill have that up as soon as i can get the photoshoot going. illpost a pic of his Dynosheet too (if he can get a copy) hes redone his internals im sure. he spoke of it origionaly but that was a while ago. until then its still unconfirmed of his full mod list. ill keep you updated for sure. the other thing is he is working on a sti project as well. its amazing to look at both cars together. his sti is pritty fast too. never dynoed but is scary to see take off from a dig. its gota mean case of boost creep and hes shooting 4 foot flames on his shift from 2nd to 3rd. its a nasty car.