Why dont more FD owners have a Banzai??
 

Just wondering why more FD owners dont get a banzai (sp?) 3-rotor from Pettit? I mean, I know it costs about $30k, but alot of you guys have a rebuilt and streetported engine, single turbo kits, body kits, aftermarket wheels. ...etc.etc. All that stuff adds up to probably about the same price, and your probably not nearly as fast as a Banzai. Its not like they dont have the money (rich bastards ;) ). Just wondering why more people didnt opt to go that route. Thats something id like to do, once I get a good job that is. * Homer Simpson voice*Mmmmm.....3 rotor..

bump steering is one problem. a 20B FD wouldnt handle as well as a 13B-REW'd one unless the firewall was moved back and engine bay components were moved around to restore the 50/50 weight distribution.

yeah, let's see... lots more weight, lots of bump-steer, cooling problems, costs even more money to repair when you blow the engine (and if you thought it was hard finding someone who would work on a 13B-REW...) not to mention you'd be spending $30,000 for the trouble.

for the total cost of a banzai, which is more like 50k including the car, you would be ahead of the game to just by a used 911TT in my book, unless perhaps you live in FL right next to Cam's shop...what happens when you have mechanical problems? no one else can work on the car

Actually, the Banzai is lighter than a stock FD.

2,740lbs -- Banzai RX7
2,789lbs -- Base Model with 5 Speed Manual

You think Cam is the only person that can work on a 20B? PFS, KDR, Alamo, Rotary Performance are the ones i can name off the top of my head.

true, but the "Banzai" is produced by Pettit....if it was my car, I would want the guys who built the thing working on it...alot more can go wrong besides just the engine itslef taking a dump

don't get me wrong, I love the Banzai...if you have the $$$ and don't mind the hassle of taking it to Pettit for major service, no problem....it is a very unique car

I think Pettits is alittle high ive gotten a quote of 17-25 depending on the parts I wanna use.

Yea, I kinda understand the problems of it being too much for some people to work on. But most FD guys spend insane amounts of money on their cars anyway. And about the handling thing, as I understand it pettit does alter the firewall to take care of the weight distribution issue. I think I read something about pettit having their 20B putting out 610HP now, up from the 550 before. And I believe that suspension tuning and wider tires along with a body kit with the wider fender flares to accomidate the wider tires is all included in that $30-$35k price. So I think that a FD that is capable of a mid-low 9 second 1/4 mile, that still handles as well as any other FD, is well worth the price tag. This is what my dream is ... buy a used FD for $10-$15k, spend another $35k maybe, and have a supercar for the same or less price than a viper or Z06. I just wanted to know if there was some major problem with them, or something that not more people have done it.

The Banzai does something like 550rwhp doing the 1/4 in 11.4, there are guys with 13b's with more power going faster. A 20B is nice, but it isn't really needed if you can get the job done with a 13b. Sure if you wanted more power down low and if you want more torque then the larger 20B would be nice, but not sure if it's worth the $30k for that.

The other thing is very few of the people here have plopped down all the money at once for their mods. For most it was a piece by piece kind of deal. All the stuff on our cars may add up to damn near the price of a 20B, but it wasn't all bought at once.

And I live about 15 minutes from Cam and Pettit and it's not easy getting in there.... for anything. Last time I dropped my car off there I was supposed to have it back the next day. I got it back 10 days later. God forbid you needed them to fix your car on the spot.

true you can get the same power that the 20b puts out but witch motor is struggling more to get that power. obveously the 13b

Re: Why dont more FD owners have a Banzai??
 

Well, as for the money, you have to remember that the guys that are spending mad cash on their cars aren't doing it all at once. It's one thing to spend a few thousand over a few years , butto just dump $30k out right at one time, that's another..

I'm sure there are a few people saving up some cash to do it, but probably by the time they have the money, they would rather sink it into to a new car (like a Porsche or something) than into their older FD's.

3 rotor gives you more torque, wider power curve I believe too...

And don't forget that those 3 rotors making 550hp are still on non-seq stock twins, take all the work/money you put into a 13b to get it to make 550hp+ and BP or PP and single turbo the 3 rotor instead and see what kind of hp you get.

Oh and to answer your question more people probably don't have banzai conversions because like was said who has 35k+ to plop down at once? Most people(not all though) with that kind of cash accessable wouldn't bother with a FD and it's blown rotary stereotypes...

i personally don't like the LOOK of the bonzai. :)

oh yeah, not keen on the shifter being further back either. as a short asian guy, i scoot myself up pretty close and i don't want to have to reach back to shift! ;) :D

That's PFS's 3-rotor car that had the shifter moved back. The Banzai doesn't cut the firewall and the tranny is in the same spot as stock.