Great update, David! Do you have pics of some of the interior stuff you've done? I'm interested in the subwoofer, I'm always tempted to do something to add a little more oomph to my stereo but I don't want something that adds a lot of weight or takes up a ton of room.

Glad to hear you're starting a new chapter in Marrakesh, will miss seeing you at DGRR in the future!

Dale

 

Congrats on the doctoral degree.....well done. Let me know if you ever need a guest speaker in Marraketch, wife wants to go visit so I'm sure we will go soon. Great update on the FD....I would also like some pics of the interior. Curious to see what the guages look like?

 

Hey Dale. Great to hear from you. Yep, Marrakesh is going to be quite the adventure and I am sure the rotary crowd is not large. Keeping the car in Asheville for now. Regarding the subwoofer, I selected it for its size (13 7/8 x 9 3/8 x 3 1/8) and for the good reviews the unit gets for sound. I'm not the biggest audiophile, but I do like good sound when I am out on a long drive. Here is a pic of the setup:



The unit takes up little space and is a much better fit than my previous Bazooka tube. As I said, the only issue I've had in mounting it in this location is the vibration it caused on my other plastics to which it is attached. So, I have some rubber insulation between the unit and the pass-thru shelf, and then, I've gone around the shelf and insulated with foam tape. Pretty much kept adding in the insulation until the plastic rattling was diminished.

Thanks so much, Simon. Always welcome to come visit! We'd love to host you and your wife. Regarding the cluster, here are some pics for you:

This is one with the lights on. Note, the blue needles, which I like as a more modern look.


Here is one with the lights off. Note the odometer backlighting is on, as with the OEM unit. I asked SpeedHut to rewire the speedometer unit to function like this. The speedo is also GPS-based, so no more worrying about pulling a signal from somewhere else.


And a shot of how the cluster looks in the car:


Here is one of the three invertors I wired in to get the cluster to the display brightness I liked. With the one invertor supplied by SpeedHut as standard, the lighting was just too dim for me.


And finally, one of the connector I added to simplify removing the cluster for repair.

 

Some interior shots of the car:

An overall shot.


Shots of the new Tillet B5 racing seats. These are the carbon fiber version, with custom Dinamica suede-covered, red diamond stitching seat pads, and red Mazda logo headrests. As I previously wrote, they weigh a little over 12 lbs. each and are very comfortable. There is zero clearance issue with them as well, no rubbing on the center console or the doors.



Pics of the Garage Alpha door sills and JDM hand steps. Give Garage Alpha a look, they make very nice products and are awesome with which to work.




Pics of Anti-Gravity ATX30-HD lithium-ion battery and LC Fabrications tie-down. Very good battery option that produces 970 CCA while weighing only 7.8 lbs. I can't say enough about the battery and support I have received from Anti-Gravity, including the "swag" they sent me with the order. For more on why to order the HD version versus the regular one, see my posts in the SB lithium battery and tie-down GB thread.



Pic of Pioneer MVH1400NEX 6.2 inch Apple Car Play system. This is the best looking double-din radio I have installed, and it is very Apple Car Play user friendly. Note the iPad look and the Mazda logo I uploaded. Also, this is a good shot of the Redline Goods new leather bits done in perforated Nappa leather and a red Alcantara stripe and stitching.



Not new, but pics of my widebody gas pedal - the matching metal dead pedal is also installed and seen in the above pic.



Lastly, a pic of the new OEM rearview mirror. This is how I keep track of my competition.

 

Looks great. Gonna have to look into the seats and the battery.

 

^ Thanks. The battery is a no brainer to save weight (7.8 lbs. versus 36.4 lbs. for an Optima). While the seats are pricey, they are well worth it in terms of comfort and usability over the brands with high side bolsters.

Some more pics.

EXTERIOR
Pics of the Borla XR1 muffler and Acumste Twin-tip carbon exhaust. I like the OEM look with a slight twist.




Pics of the Bubbletech rear tow hook.



New BF Goodrich G-Force Rival 1.5s tires. 285s up front and 315s in the rear.



Radium fuel pulse dampers.


Engine shots.




And finally, the weight of the car with a full tank of gas - 2,991 lbs. The unit broke during corner balancing, so I have to go back when COVID-19 permits.

 

David,

I wish you the best in Marrakesh! Before you head out, we should get together for an FD drive along the Blue Ridge Pkwy or an impromptu Tail run! You will be missed at DGRR for sure. I'll reach out to you shortly.

 

looks great David. Love the guages but damn those seats are SEXY!!!!

 

Thanks, George. It's going to be interesting for sure. Give me a ring on Wednesday and we will chat. I have some items for you.

Thanks, Simon. I'm with you, in love with the seats. I am surprsied that not more FD owners consider them, but that's okay with me.

 

Such a high quality gorgeous build!

But the battery terminals whyyyyyy :'(

 

^ Thank you! What would you replace the terminal connectors with? I was looking at those the other day, but don't have a better option that replacing with some new ones.

 

Okay, just ordered these: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Raptor-R5...inal/849398031

Should be a nice upgrade to the old ones I've had on the car for who knows how long.

 

Love it! Exhaust tips look sweet!!!


.

 

Wow tremendous all around car

 

Thanks! I like the way it turned out. Saw a Borla kit for Cameros and wanted to replicate a similar look.

Thanks so much. I like where the car is at now. Of course, it's no 4-rotor.

 

Beautiful car with a long journey. Jesus had some very nice things to say about you and your car. Your build thread was one of the final pushes to Kilo for me. Jesus seems to be able to sort things out. Well, I hope so any way. I should pick it up in about 1 week.
Can't wait to see this one in person some day!

 

^ Thanks so much. Kilo is like a brother to me. I am fortunate to have been pointed to his shop when all hell was breaking loose for me back in the day. He's the guy that kept this build on track and saved me from selling the car and moving on. Jesus is a top-notch person and a great mechanic, so your car will be done right. Post up some pics when you pick it up and tell Kilo I said "hi!"

 

 

I was looking forward to catching up with you and the old man again at DGRR before this madness broke out. I remember you telling me last year you were going to be moving soon. Seeing your car last year was a good inspiration to me to keep going even though my car was/is driving me nuts. It’s mostly sorted and I was so looking forward to running the dragon again while chasing your extra rotor. That head unit was near the top of my list. Any fitment issues? How is life without a physical volume ****? That’s the one thing holding me back... not having to take my eyes off the road to adjust the volume.

 

^ Really bummed that DGGR had to be canceled. We (my father-in-law and I) are planning on going up to the Tail once things settle down and it's safe to go. Probably in summer or early fall? Maybe a mini-meet then?

The FD is a love/hate relationship, but when running, it's the best drive out there. I've got my tuning issue (running pig rich) resolved from last year and can now use more than 50% of throttle, so I'm game for a nice run thru the Tail. Frankly, it's not about HP at the Tail, it's about the car's suspension and tire setup, but I could test out my new BFG Rivals to see how they perform. Put them on a few months ago but they still have the rubber nubs on them due to COVID-19.

The radio is great - I don't miss the physical volume **** at all. But my last radio didn't have the **** either, so I have been used to it for some time. I make sure, regardless of ****, to only adjust when it's safe. So, I'd say, go for it. There is supposedly a newer model of the unit available that has buttons:


To me though, it doesn't look nearly as good as the old unit. Lastly, no fitment issues at all. I used this kit to fit it all together and took the time to tweak and adjust:

 

I could be up for that. It's a bit more of a trek for me from Raleigh so day trip might be kind of hard but a weekend could work. I've got some new Michelin Pilot 4s and an Ohlins Suspension to test out!

 

^ Nice combo you have there!

 

Pre-Shaming of Battery Terminals:



After-Shaming:

 

I read this entire thread yesterday from the beginning. Was just planning to browse and see how the car started but man what a **** show you have gone through. Glad you stuck with it, car looks amazing

 

David,

As always, your car is a modern art masterpiece!