hi guys. So I recently sold my Evo 9 and took this fd rx7 roller as partial trade. It has 57,xxx miles on the chassis, technically I'm the 3rd owner but the guy that traded it to me bought it from the original owner and owned it a few months before I took ownership of it. It's a base model, montego blue with tan leather interior. Missing full drivetrain but has full interior and body panels. I'm trying to get my 10 posts up so I can start posting to buy parts for the car as I want to get it back on the road and enjoy my rx7! Any tips or advice is always welcome. Thanks guys.

 

 

There she is. Some members may have seen I posted it for sale on a couple Facebook rx7 pages, but, I decided to keep it. I just can't let it go without a proper build.

Also, if anyone happens to know anyone selling a 13b rew long block that needs rebuilt, let me know

 

What's your plan? You've got a great starting point with the mostly complete car that's a hard top with a decent body!

 

yea the only body panel that is messed up/needs replaced is the drivers fender (can't miss that haha)

itll need repainted due due to some clear coat fading on the hatch. That doesn't bother me much as I have a back ground in paint and body work.

The plan is to source a blown 13b rew and have it rebuilt (still deciding on which well known rotary shop id like to use) and have is race clearanced, 2 piece oem Mazda apex seals, decent sized single turbo (thinking maybe borg warner s366 or gt30) but my power goal is 4-500whp. But still researching at to whether that's an achievable goal while still having a motor that will last 30-40k miles. I'm new to the rotary world but have been researching a lot and will continue to. But so far it's seeming kind of hard to find a 13b rew other than eBay, for an appropriate price. I'm not going to spend $3000 on one knowing as soon as I get it it'll need a complete rebuild.

 

Also to achieve my goal I'll run e85. Haltech standalone and seems like meth injection or at least water injection is a must on these motors. So will go that route too.

 

I'd be lying if I said I hadn't heavily considered a 1zj swap, and even an ls swap. But from much research the 1jz is only usable with stock hood if you use the samberg ls subframe with custom mounts welded on. And as far as I can tell it must effect the handling negatively since it's a much heavier motor that sits a lot higher and sticks a lot further in front of the front axels. So that's out the window. And the ls swap, ugh, I just can't get with it. Ls's are some uncommon and played out. I understand why people do them but I just can't put one in the fd. The last option on my list that will most likely cost the most, but check ever criteria I'm wanting, would be a k20 turbo. I'm still pricing things out to make that swap happen. And still pricing everything out as far as building a 13b and going single turbo with it too. I know the 13b setup will cost a lot less, and be as straightforward as possible (since it's the original engine intended for the car) but I'm very afraid that after all the work I do to the 13b, that it isn't going to last nearly as long as any of the motors I mentioned.

Im wanting to get into road racing so I need a motor that can handle the abuse. Not trying to have a rebuild every other season. I need to make a decision soon though so any opinions or advice is appreciated.

 

Do some more reading around in the "build threads", Dyno/Time Slips, and single turbo RX-7's sections. 4-500WHP is possible without meth and you need to keep in mind that 4-500WHP in these car is FAST, it will be entirely different than the same power level an an Evo or STI.

With that being said, since you're starting with nothing a complete LS Swap or a big single REW/rotary build will be close in cost when you're done. I would suggest sticking with a rotary since you've never had one, the feeling/power delivery is totally different.

 

yea I definitely agree it'll be a much different animal. My Evo was making around 430awhp and 370wtq and weighed around 3100. Under a hard launch it would feel like it was pushing your eyes back into your head a bit. But 4-500 in a rwd, 2600 lb car.. that's an animal lol but yea you're right on cost. All in all an ls swap would be around the same cost as building and buying the 13b, but I already know I'll prefer the rotary over the ls. High revving, screaming motor and turbo noises>typical v8 that all sound the same.

 

Beautiful car

 

Looks good! I also have owned a lot of Evo's and had fun but just purchased my first fd rx7! Good luck

 

I guess Evo owners are switching to RX-7's. I also recently purchased my first FD, a 94 Touring that needs some work. I had a 2008 MR and sold it a few years back.