Hello, I know that RX7 Forum is the place to be for Rx7 Owners, so im hoping I can find Jeff Kiesel, the owner of the Blue RX7 that is featured in this months Issue in Turbo Magazine


This car is so bad ***. Im not that crazy about the body kit and the exterior mods as I am with the Engine mods, Dont get me wrong, This car looks bad *** but im just impressed with the engine power. I need to find the owner or whoever know about the mods he did to his car. Im still trying to find a way to upgrade my car and an upgraded rotary engine like Jeff Kiesel's RX7 might just do it for me.

I want to find out how much an engine like this will cost me through Pettit, Labor, Parts and Engine Prices.
If anybody know please let me know
Thanks
Saul V

 

Here is the Article in Turbo Magazine this month

Shape Shifter
Wide body, wild paint, 20B three-rotor power and road race suspension make this 7 a 10

Text by E. K. Cozzene
Photos by Henry De Kuyper

Straight or twisty; it's all about how you like your performance. Jeff Kiesel of San Diego would be a good person to ask about the most perplexing of crossroads--choosing between stoplight dragger or canyon carver. He knows the straight-line game, having owned an 11-second Integra and a 10-second Civic.

And as this impressive RX-7 attests, the apex is a familiar place as well. As part of TART (Triple A Race Team) Kiesel and his wicked three-rotor RX-7 spend plenty of time at play on the road race circuit and two or three days a week on the daily commute.

There are many points of interest on this high-revving Mazda, but the first thing to catch the eye is its silhouette. The car flexes an R-Magic body kit with a molded rear fender treatment from Pettit Racing, which made the RX-7 the perfect car for our "Body and Soul" issue. The installation and paint was executed by Backyard Creations of Temple City, Calif. This body configuration allows Kiesel to run mammoth wheels--17x10s in front and 17x12.5s out back. Talk about a contact patch the size of Texas. Kinesis K5 aluminum is joined by Kuhmo V700 Victoracer rubber (255/40R-17 front, 335/35R-17 rear) to maximize the Mazda's bite in the corners.

Body kits are cool, but a car can be an empty promise if there's little excitement under the hood. Kiesel kept his power promise by sending the car to Pettit Racing in Lake Park, Fla. for the ultimate Mazda rotary swap--the 20B three-rotor. Pettit constructed a 20B to its Banzai Edition 3 specs with a street-ported block, reinforced studs anddowel pins, 3mm high-performance Iannetti ceramic apex seals and ceramic treated turbos. The sequential turbo system was also configured for parallel operation so both Hitachis hit hard at the drop of the hammer.

Pettit's Cameron Worth says that by using a Link engine management system, the crew was able to hone the multitude of vacuum hoses down to just three, which simplifies installation, troubleshooting and maintenance. He was also quick to point out that the key piece in the engine installation process is Pettit's Banzai Subframe which enables the 20B to be directly bolted in place with no welding or cutting. Kiesel runs a Pettit 3-inch downpipe and an HKS exhaust system.

Getting the tri-rotor thrust to the pavement is handled by a Mazdaspeed LSD-equipped factory rear end with ACPT carbon-fiber driveshaft and a stock tranny fitted with an Advanced Clutch Technology Xtreme series clutch with an Xtreme pressure plate and organic street disc. The g-force load is controlled by the RX-7's tried-and-proven suspension. Kiesel has fortified the underpinnings with Koni shocks, Pettit sway bars and 2.25-inch race springs rated at 600 lbs in front and 400 lbs in the rear. Stopping power has been addressed with a Pettit brake upgrade front and rear.

To compete in Solo II Unlimited Street Class, a car must have the proper safety equipment. Kiesel enlisted Auto Sport Concepts (ASC) to construct a chrome-moly roll cage for the track that wasn't too invasive for street duty. Gabe Agana and Dana Czech of ASC fabricated a gem. In fact, at one point, the Mazda flexed some crazy cantilever rear shocks. The cage has been joined by the appropriate Auto Meter gauges, a Corbeau racing seat, Safe Craft fire extinguisher system, a Dave Turner quick-release steering wheel and the proper Simpson harnesses.

This RX-7 makes the most of the Mazda's racing legacy, taking a daily driven street 7 about as far down the track as you can go without trailering it to events. It's more than civil on the street, has an exotic three-rotor engine, fat fenders and all the little details that turn heads. Yes, indeed. This 7 is definitely a 10.

 

Call Pettit, I believe the Banzai conversion is around $35,000.

 

Here is the specs of the Engine

The centerpiece of the Mazda is Pettit Racing's three-rotor 20B engine. Pettit constructed a 20B to its Banzai Edition 3 specs with a street-ported block, reinforced studs and dowel pins, 3mm high-performance Iannetti ceramic apex seals, ported rotors and ceramic treated turbos.

I want one, HOW MUCH????

 

Go to www.pettitracing.com and click on the Banzai section. Mahjik is right, the conversion will cost you upwards of $35,000.

 

I believe that that is Area 51 Batman's old car. He sold it to someone and did the tri rotor conversion at pettit racing

 

I just called someone at pettit Racing and they told me is $39.000 with Labor and everything. Includes,JSPEC engine, engine porting, instercooling systems, Fuels systems management, etc etc etc. Pretty Much! They will Do everything you can actually do to an FD3 RX7. Is pretty good price if you ask me, because if you do it on your own, that is pretty much how much you would spend if not more, may be on little by little bases it costs more but you dont feel it. To tell you the truth I dont know anybody who just has $40.000 laying around to just spend it at one Shot!

Well Going back to Prices, they said that because of the demand on the Banzai conversion, they are going to post prices online in the next 2 weeks with packages for people who want to buy the kits,
Prices for engines, and things needed to do the swap.
20B Engine will run around $5000 but you would need a lot of things to fit it properly and they are going to post those kits. Soon

$5K and even 8-10K i can deal with.

 

wow that thing is damn wild!

 

the conversion does cost upwards of about 35K, but that is for the works, brakes, engine subframe, pumps, rail......it keeps going...

the motor can be had for about 4K, and is found through corksport. the install requires a new engine cradle, but pettit makes their own.

i am inquiring on this right now....

 

A FRIEND BRUNG ME THE MAGAZINE YESTERDAY
CAUSE HE KNEW I WAS A REX MANIAC

BUT DAMN 398 RWHP F*** THAT I SPEND $40,000
I WANT WHAT MY FRIENDS HAVE ON THEIR 20B 800-1300 RWHP
AND THEIR 7'SEC TIMES. BUT I JUST WANT ALL THE POWER.
I COULD BE WRONG BUT I READ THE DYNO CHART ON THAT THING

 

OH YEAH NOW I REMEMBER THAT CAR WAS FOR SALE ON EBAY ABOUT A YR AGO WITH THE 20 B CONVERSION ALREADY.THEY WERE ASKING LIKE $50,000 DIFFERENT WHEELS,WING AND NO REAR KIT FROM PETTIT

 

No you read it right less than 400 hp

Rotary performance gets that out of a 13b with little effort. It would seem to me the whole point of the 20b conversion would be to hit the 525+ hp mark and keep some reliability with the engine.

 

This was Area51 Daves old car.
The car is running LESS than stock boost for reliablity reasons. Dave wanted a very fun car that he could drive everyday to and from work. Thats why he built the car.

 

LESS NO POINT SORRY GUYS I MEAN WITH 13REW BOLTON'S MAYBE LIKE 5,000 OF MODS OR SO. AND WE CAN DYNO THE SAME REAR WHEEL AT 14-16 PSI.
NOW IF U BUILD A 20B SHOULD BE FOR PWR
I WAS ASHAMED WHEN MY BOYS SAID WASS SUP WITH THAT ONLY
400RWHP (NOT EVEN)
OH YEAH IF U WANT RELIABILITY BUILD A 13B N.A LOL J/K
ANYWAYS I WAS AT MY MECHANICS SHOP ONE DAY (MARCOS ACOSTA ) WHEN A GUY THAT HAD HIS CAR DONE IN TEXAS DYNO'ED
495 RWHP IN A 20B "HE SAID HE WANTED MORE POWER"
SO MARQUITO SAID IF I CANT GET URE CAR TO SYNO 800RWHP+ I WILL DO EVERTHING FOR FREE.
GUYS RESPONSE"MAN I DONT WANT THAT MUCH POWER I WILL KILL MYSELF."
I WAS LAUGHING MYASS OFF.
SORRY TO START TROUBLE TEAM ITS HOTT DOWN HERE AND I HAVE THE FLU.

 

FROM HOME TO WORK I WOULD LOVE TO SEE SOME ONE START UP THAT CAR EVERDAY TO WARM IT UP FOR WORK AT PROB.PARK IT OUTSIDE IN A PARKING LOT.OR BETTER YET TO A MOVIE

 

Dude....

 

sorry guys im hooked on mad medicine with this damn flu

 

thats such a sweet lookin FD!!

 

Those back tires are FAT!!! great car though, makes me want to start saving for a 20b swap.

 

put that pipe down!

 

Yeah I think the power on that car has been raised considerably since that article-ask Pettit(Jeff)

 

like the big *** tires, but hate the "bolt on" look wide body kit. How do you put gas in that thing? Also what's up with that hot air intake? Looks like they come directly off the turbos, but without the room you see on singles.

 

It looks awesome except for that damn wing!

 

The only thing I like about that car is the rear shot.

Those tires are ******* massive!

 

The car looks crazy, but You guys are right $40 k for not much Horsepower increase. I will be willing to do the engine swap to 20b just to fix the reliability. But I wouldnt spend more tthan 5K doing so. or else I might as well just Drop all that money in my 13b and Im pretty sure i can get a hell of a car! I lovethe tires. Hate the wing and the body Kit. I like the stock look or Bodykts that do not make the car too ricey!