92 or 93 JDM 3rd gen?
 

Hey there guys. I'm new to the whole RX-7 world clearly, but i'm a little confused about the car I just bought. It's a RHD JDM FD3S. I read somewhere about production differences in what came out in 92 and 93 based on the JDM and American market. I wasn't sure if the 92 JDM was equivalent to the 93 USDM or kind of where it falls into place. Any clarification is greatly appreciated! Thank you! :D

One has a steering wheel on the left hand side of the car..lol!..the other is on the "wrong side"..(chuckle!)

What about the specs of your car do you need a frame of reference from in comparison to a UDSM model? Is your JDM car on a manual transmission as with most models? If so, you are not likely to have a touring model which was available as an automatic for the USDM. If it is a base model under the efini type brand, you would most likely not have an air bag steering wheel compared to the 93 USDM version. There are also differences in oil cooling capacities depending on whether you got the Type R model in JDM spec or the R1 model for the USDM, which both have twin oil coolers.

Off-hand I think the RHD will have a different ECU, no CEL, engine harness and a few other differences beside steering wheel location. Diagnostics will be different and IIRC, no EGR. If i's JDM, from what I've seen their definition of routine maintenance is different than ours and it's not likely to have ever seen the inside of a garage...and exposed to a lot of salt air. As mentioned above, the steering wheel is located on the right. After the novelty wears off, you'll find it a PITA to use a fast food drive thru, bank drive-up and driving thru a toll-booth without a passenger's help. Being RHD also negatively affects resale... maybe that's why you bought it.
But getting to the point I'm sure you were really asking about... no, AFAIK there was no significant performance difference between the JDM 92 and the USDM 93 models.

US Specifications for 1993 FD3S
Japanese FD Models and Specs

Thank you, a lot of helpful information and things I didn't really think of before hand. It's very well taken care of and inspected by appraisal agent and their mechanic(no rust except on after market exaust), and believe me that appraisal was not cheap. I have a '14 hatch WRX for convenience use in the US also but I live in Japan every 2-3 years for a bout 2-3 years at a time so it is definitely handy to have a RHD over there(I dont pay for shipping or importing costs). The main reason I was asking was actually because if I was shopping for performance parts, they are often listed up to 91 then 93 and up leaving 92 gapped. From what I read basically my '92 JDM was what was released as 93 USDM but I wanted to try and verify before I went on a shopping spree replacing the radiator, intake, ecu, turbos, IC, etc. Thanks again!


Not that it's necessary but here it is for referance: 1992 Mazda RX-7 RX-7 | eBay

So you're buying this to drive in Japan? :scratch:

Hey guys - I just picked up a 92' FD3S. Does anyone know how to figure out which model (Type X, R or S) I have?

I don't seem to have much written on the VIN plate.

Uh, post details about the car and it should be pretty easy.

Well it's a manual tranny, turbo car, with ABS, PS and A.C.. it also has the rear seats and twin oil coolers, that I believe are original. It has a mazdaspeed exhaust on it.

T

The build sticker on the drivers door sill should tell most of the details. You can enter your frame number here ??????? ????????? Mazda RX-7 and get the same information (using google translate).

For example here is my one
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...c4a5a8f043.jpg

My 1994 build sticker

which translates as

Body number FD3S-202143
Release date 09/30/1993
Exterior NU [vintage red]
Interior FE5 [black vinyl?]
Seats STC [2+2 seating]
Door type
Grade TYPE-R [my car has ---- instead but this is inconsistent between vehicles]

detailed information
Coupe,
2-door,
without hatch, [no sunroof]
RE, [rotary engine]
13B,
turbo,
MT, [manual transmission]
5-step, [5 speed]
LS differential, [LSD]
A フ "レ - キ with, [eight tentative suspension / eight drop, not sure on that translation]
4 ニ ン ノ リ, [4 ninori ???]
hard control [hard type suspension, same as R1 afaik]

The "special edition" subheading is confusing. Some people think it means that their car is a special edition. But only if there is text below that subheading does it count.

Being a version 2 Type R (first digit of frame number) I have:
2+2 suede seats
black vinyl interior
Textured finish on interior plastics instead of paint
Clear fog lights instead of yellow
twin oil coolers
boot / trunk, glovebox, and ignition courtesy lights.
luggage cover
Spare wheel cover
Alloy 16" spare wheel
16" wheels

I bet its a Type R. I've never seen an early Type S (with one oil cooler). Type X had leather and climate control amongst other things.