Well, i'll be putting the 12a into my car soon, and also the Full RB exhaust. I'd also like to remove the rats nest, air pump, and switch to an electric fan.

are there any other cheap mods i can do before i put the motor in, or once its in to get a little more power? What kind of power do you think i'd see from the mods/upgrades listed above.

i'd be running stock carbeuration/iginition for the moment.

any other suggestions while i have the motor out (VERY tight budget, the exhaust will be a christmas present)

 

Mechanical secondaries!

Check out this thread: Carb Crap...Nikki Mods

oh.... and it's free

 

you're looking at a 18 to 25 HP gain.. go with an aftermarket carb for about another 20 to 25 more.

 

you cant pas 140hp with that nikki carb anyways...

 

also a goodidea to upgrade the fuel delivery system, id do that before the carb..

 

I got the RB exhaust, and let me tell ya bro, it sounds great. I love that sound right after about 5K it just roars . At an idle, you can barely hear the damn thing. I hear my electric fan more than the engine/exhaust. It just purrs at an idle, but roars when you want it to. Its great. Anyway, I have yet to do the mechanical secondaries. its on my list though. Actually, I think Ill go look at that right now...

~T.J.

 

and if you don't want to go mechanical secondaries just remove the secondary spring... makes a huge difference at low end.. I did it and was very pleased when i had my nikki of course.. and fuel economy wasen't affected

mat

 

so the RB claim of 22% @ 7000 is off? i'd be curious to see dyno charts of the different exhausts...

btw, what is redline on this motor?

assuming 100hp @ 7000rpm stock, and assuming RB's claims are true, we're looking at 122hp @ 7000rpm... and then add the gains from minus one air pump, smog ****, and the mechanical fan...

130-135... or is that not really realisitc? Dont make me out to be a person that thinks a cai will give you 15, hp, i know the deal... but know little about rotarys, and i know you can feel the difference on SBC when you go to an electric fan and remove the air pump.

 

The airpump doesn't cost you that much power, you simply remove it to keep things simple. Exhaust is a big restrictor, so RB claims are about right. The carb is the next big thing. The combo RB exhaust/Mikuni carb like I have should bring 150+HP. The emmission stuff is just in the way of the header and carb, that's why to dump it. I'm not sure what my electrical fan brings me, but I doubt that it be a big deal.

 

I just took mine out tonight. I think that I like the results so far. It did make a difference, but I think a good part of it is just wishfull thinking. Although, before I took it out I went out for a drive. In first gear, at 4K RPMs, if I floored it, I just went. Now, without the spring, I can floor it on the same road in the same area with the roads just as wet, and the tires break loose .

~T.J.

 

RB claim already includes ditching the air pump, that's part of the installation procedure.

Electric fan makes pretty much zero difference. A slight acceleration improvement in 1st/2nd gear, but no big deal at all. It's not a priority - many people with fast cars run the stock fan.

Although some here seem to like this mechanical secondary idea, I've heard lots of bad stuff about it as well. Haven't tried it myself since I run an aftermarket carb.

Remember, seat of the pants feeling and actual speed improvement can be two very different things - it's best to quantify things like that somehow, like quartermile runs.

In my experience, the best way to go is to cut a little off the secondary spring, but everyone has their own idea.

You can advance your ignition a couple of degrees to gain a couple extra hp - don't go overboard. 2 degrees over so over stock is enough. Remember, with the stock carb setup you don't have much control over your mixtures, and they won't be ideal with that exhaust on there. Be careful with ignition.

Many will tell you to blow cash on an MSD, but it's not worth it (performance wise) for modestly-modded cars if your ignition system is already working properly. It has benefit in some ways, but no one seems to be able to back up any claims of increased horsepower. Many will argue about this, most of the time it's because they replace old worn-out, mis-adjusted systems with new stuff and then adjust them for the first time, or run more aggressive timing than before

An upgraded fuel pump is a good idea, even for a stock carb with exhaust. A good setup that most of us run is the Carter 7psi pump with Holley regulator. It's not too expensive and it does make a difference you can feel slightly with a stock carb. Plus you'll need it eventually anyways.

The biggest recommendation I'd give you is to reduce weight as much as possible - weight reduction makes a *big* difference! It is your best "free" mod.

 

So, is there a good way to test your ignition? I mean besides taking of a plug wire and attempting to blow off one of your shoes or something,lol. mine feels a little anemic sometimes and i'm wondering if a msd would help that. (ignition)

 

The jury is still out (and forever will be, it seems) on these few things...

A stockport 12A is capable of 150 HP. I say 155 or so, others swear 145. We've actually had cyber-slug fests over a handful of HP #s that NOBODY here has a sensitive enough *** to tell the difference!

Removing the emissions control **** adds 5 or 10 HP. People SWEAR they feel some sort of difference. Again, slap my *** blue, and maybe I could feel it - That is IF there even is a measurable difference. SilverRocket's right- It's just to get the crap out of the way for header installation.

Electric fans...Still; A bunch of guys searching for a handful of HP- Purely in desperation, in my opinion. Electric fans should be more appreciated for their ability to let you squeeze intercoolers, ect. into your compartment. It DO look tidy in there. Some guys have GREAT pics here.

A few of MY opinions...

The Nikki carb in its stock form is a good carb. It's easy, adjustable, and built to take a beating. You have to remove the emissions **** to fully appreciate these character traits, however. It's a great starter carb from which to learn tuning technique, in my opinion. You can replace fuel jets, and it's relatively easy to break down for complete modification.
You want Power-ina-Box? Get a Weber.

I love the mods in my write-up because I love to tune my carb. I can see what some guys are like by just how far they're willing to go! But if working on your carb bores you to death, then those mods are not for you. (And niether is a fine car like the seven, IMO. jis kiddin.)

Absolutes...

If you don't get a TOP NOTCH fuel delivery system, your engine will NEVER be top notch. Mar3 reccomends the Mallory pump. I use a Carter, which has served me well for nearly two years, but is noisey as hell. I did not do research, but am not unhappy. Besides, the price was right. Next car will have a Mollary, I think. I use a Holley 5 lb regulator. DO NOT get one of those round diaphragm regulators (by Purolator?)- They SUCK!
My carb is hugely modded, so my settings are not pertainant here. (I also, unfortunately, get about 13 MPG - But that's because of the size jets I run, ect.)

SilverRocket says it again, and I can't help but stand there with him a scream to everyone...YOU DON"T NEED AN MSD!
So far, EVERY rx-7 I've helped clean up (about 14 now, I think) has had TERRIBLE plug electrode damage.
People will neglect the plugs in their boinger motor till the distributer cap needs replacing.
THIS IS JUST NOT ACCEPTABLE WITH A ROTARY! Get brand new BREQ14s from NGK. When you modify, get the next colder plug. (Are they 12s?) Study those plugs. See how sharp the edges of the electrodes are. In 500 miles you can yank 'em and observe wear already starting.

My point is that all these "Upgrade Your Ignition" screamers trying to sell you MSD boxes and better Blaster coils...it's all crap. Just keep the existing system up to snuff,and it'll kick ***.

On that note, however, is an ignition mod perfected by a guy here called Jeff20B. But it's only worth doing way later on when you've modded most all you can, you're about broke, and you're jonesing for a tinkering project.
It did seem to make a difference for me, though this is another one of those "Sensitive ***" things.

Welcome to the wonderful world of ***-kicking micro-rockets called the Rx-7!