MSV2's Mazda Build Thread
 

Hey everyone,
Just wanted to share my build with everyone in the community and because I'm building up multiple cars, I didn't feel right putting it in a specific build area. So here it goes!

Vehicles
1995 Mazda RX-7 Base (Chaste White)
- Current Mods: Racing Beat Springs, Racing Beat Cat Back, Racing Beat Front Sway Bars, 99 Spec Tail Lights, Efini Emblems, OEM R1 Dual Oil Coolers, OEM R1 Strut Bar, Mazdaspeed Miata Steering Wheel, Mazdaspeed Leather Shift Knob

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2004 Mazda RX-8 GT (Winning Blue)
- Current Mods: Mazdaspeed Front Bumper/Side Skirts/Diffuser, HKS Hipermaxx RS Coilovers, Mazdaspeed Cat Back, Mazdaspeed CAI, OEM Euro Lip Spoiler, Mazdaspeed Stainless Steal Brake Lines, Mazdaspeed Brake Pads, BHR Ignition Kit, Advan Kruezer Series V wheels (19x9 +42, 19x9 +42), JDM Weather Visor, AFE Short Shifter, Progress Front and Rear Sway Bars w/ Adjustable End Links, JDM B-Pillar Applique (RX8 w/ Rotor), JDM Piano Black Door Handle Covers, JDM Clear Corners
- Mods in Storage: RE-medy Water Pump, Mazdaspeed Flywheel, Mazdaspeed Clutch, RX8 Performance oil pan, Ron Davis Radiator, RX8 Performance Motor Mounts, RX8 Performance upgraded Oil Coolers and Lines, RX8 Performance Trio Canister, New Belts

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2007 Mazdaspeed 6 (Brilliant Black)
- Current Mods: Corksport LED Light Kit

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There's the summary of the three cars i'm building/wasting my money on. I'll constantly update this post with new mods and such. Maybe later, I'll hop on youtube to do vlogs on this as well as review the parts and such. Hope you all enjoy reading this and feel free to give me feedback on anything! I'll be posting this across a few forums.

So I finally got some pictures uploaded from adding a new mod on to my MS6. I was able to purchase a set of R3 wheels from a rx8club member and installed it! Definitely looks better than the stock 18x7 wheels.

Installed on 9/27/2014

Here is a comparison picture of the two wheels.
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Some pictures of the install
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My comparison picture of the 19's on the rx8 and the new r3 wheels on the MS6
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No jacks on the car.... look at that ride height...
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Good thing I switched out my wheels, one tire was in bad shape, gonna need to check the alignment.
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9/30/2014

Ordered a whole bunch of parts for the MS6.

A sneak peak of whats to come :)
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10/2/2014 Update

So started the install on all the parts I purchased for my Mazdaspeed6. Here is the list of things i got...

- Corksport 4pot Big Brake Caliper
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- Stoptech Slotted Brakes
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- H&R Coilovers
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- SPC Adjustable Ball Joint
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So the first day of work was halted by one main factor... i did purchase the mazdaspeed6 in Oregon and a lot of the fasteners were seized. Mainly the 17mm bolt that holds the front brake bracket , the 17mm bolt that holds the rear brakes and the stupid Philips head fasteners that hold the brake rotor to the hub.

With the help of WD-40 and another penetrating liquid (can't remember the name) and time, i was able to use a mallet with a wrench to brake the 17mm bolts free but those darn Philips heads...

Here's a picture of the front brake bracket while waiting on the penetrating liquid to settle in.
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Some pictures after fully removing the brakes... and also those philip heads...
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I was able to use a step bit with my drill to drill the philips head off finally loosening the rotors! Yay! Trust me, i tried everything.. wish i had an impact driver at this time..

Well, after removing everything, i had to clean the rusty hub and cleaned my rear calipers and prepped them for painting to try to match the front.
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Will be getting to bed now to rest up for the big day tomorrow. With the brakes off and fluid removes, it's time for me to get the suspension off and the H&R's on before the new brakes and the ball joint goes in. And hopefully the rear calipers will come out decently to match the front.

Will update tomorrow! Thanks for reading!

P.S. Sucks that i'm not able to modify my original posts. :(

Update: 10/6/2014

So it's been several since i started work on the MS6 and after several set backs due to seized fasteners, ridiculous fastener placements, girlfriend, dogs, work and two injuries from the install, i'm finally ALMOST done! Yay! Haha.

So, here are some updated pictures of the build.

Front's are done and just need brake fluid and bleeding :)
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Right Rear is just about done, need to torque the bolts on the brakes and confirm torque for all suspension components. I used my impact gun for the fasteners and just want to make sure it's good. Though the B*tch bolt for the shock is cross threading and going in crooked, I'm going to either have the dealership or a shop see what they can do to secure it. I feel so defeated after trying to install it three or four times.........After securing all the fasteners, time to bleed the brakes.

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I know the color doesn't match the front, i'm probably going to primer white over it and then paint it blue to get a bit lighter and more vibrant blue.

It will be time to work on the LH side, i'll only be putting an hour or two while i have work for the rest of the week but after the experience i had with the RH side, i'm sure it will be a breeze. I wouldn't mind spending the money to have the dealership or a shop drop the rear sub slightly to secure the shock bolts though, safety first! I understand coming from a manufacturing point of view why they did that but when working on it to try to just switch the shocks, damn, they couldn't have made it a bit easier... I wonder how many people try to fix up their Tesla's now cause i know they our cars are not easy to work on, haha.

Oh, here's a sneak peek of something for the FD ;) well, it's more of a pleaser than a teaser :P Thanks OkinawaFD3S
!
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I still got to take picture of the other things for the FD, can you guys guess what it is???

Thanks for reading!

So it's been awhile since i've posted an update. Took some pictures of the car at my work's parking lot. Just some teaser pictures. I still need to get my rear fenders rolled and probably lower the car another 1/2" and do an alignment. But here are some pictures with the new rotors and front new calipers as well!

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Will be getting the fenders rolled tomorrow at Motorsports Technique in Hayward. I do recommend going to them if you're in the area, they did my RX-8 very well and helped troubleshoot some issues with rubbing against the inside fender liner, they charge a little more than other shops but i do trust them not to crack the paint and everything. Will also get my alignment done here or at AutoRnD, both are great places.

It's been quite some time since i last posted anything on here. Here are some updates!

RX-8: Nothing new, still sitting in the garage, changed the oil last month.
Mazdaspeed 6: Readjusted the height to sit a little lower, need new upper mounts for the front shocks, getting some noise up there. Will be ordering a Mazdaspeed Cold Air Intake in the near future and the Corksport TMIC.

RX-7: Updates below :)

4/6/2016: Installed Spirit R Gauge Cluster and Spirit R Head unit (Thanks: Ramy). Would of went with an aftermarket system but loving the stock look for the FD.

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Need to upgrade my other Dash Lights now.
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Got two sets of wheels ready for the FD: BBS RG-R (Refinished) and MS-01 (Refinished). RG-R will be going on first.

BBS = 18x8.5 +42 / 18x9.5 +38

MS01 = 18x8 (forgot offset) / 18x9 (forgot offset)

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(Tried something new with the center caps, might put this on the rx8 as well)

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I just purchased tires two days ago, went with 235/40/18 and 265/35/18 RE-11's. Should get them today or tomorrow. Stay tuned! Also, got a bunch of parts in for the rx8, need to get the rebuild going so i can utilize everything. Will take pictures this weekend.

Some pictures i took over the weekend and right after work!

MS6 w/ R3 Wheels
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RX7 w/ RX8 (Changed the oil on the rx8 and thought i should take some pictures with big brother)
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Wow, that chaste white looks amazing! Do you drive it very often?

I just bought a 1993 Montego Blue Touring model--you might've seen it on Craigslist. It was up in Clearlake, NE of Napa. It has 13,700 miles on it now and I'm trying to figure out how to preserve it.

The CD player isn't working, so I want to replace that and definitely don't want to go aftermarket, so I am trying to find out if anyone sells remanufactured OEM 1993 head units. How well does that Spirit R head unit work? I don't know the details, like how it plugs into the harnesses (and whether it would work with the Bose).

Thanks! I do drive it once every couple of weeks to go to the local boba shops to hang out with friends. Did take it out to a meet last weekend which was sweet as well.

I do remember that FD, good find on that! The Spirit R head unit works fine though the frequency amplifier i purchased doesn't work too well so i don't really listen to the radio. I have the aux input and a six cd disc changer for the head unit which sees a lot more action. You might actually want to look in to getting a late model protege or even 626 head unit as they do look like the spirit r's (except for the volume is on the correct side). Those definitely are other good alternatives.

Y'know what sucks? I stayed in Benicia on Saturday night before driving the car all the way down to San Diego on Sunday. Had I read this forum before then, I'd have known about your meet and I could've brought the car by to get tips from all y'all!

It's alright, always next time and seven stock!

The mazdaspeed kit on the 8 looks so good, wonder if it would look as good with some more ride height.

I had the 8 dumped at one point but was just completely unusable so i settled it at the current height where i feel that it definitely looks good. A little more lower would just scrape everything and a little more higher would mess up the look of it.

I think the best kit for the 8 is the MS kit. I'll be getting spacers for the 8 as well soon to get the wheels to be more flush with the body.

I dig it, as an FD and 8 owner myself, still have a soft spot for the 8.

I still enjoy the 8 as well. I got some parts for the car im sure 8 owners would love to have. Mainly all reliability parts. Need a rebuild as my rear rotor is losing compression but am looking forward to driving it after it's done.

Who knows, they may become as rare as an FD since the car itself is worth less than a new engine.

Wow - your CW FD looks amazing - feel free to post more pics : )

P.S. - let me know should you ever decide to sell her.

Thanks, i appreciate it! I'm getting this compliment from a guy with a TT Supra and Gallardo. Lol, nice collection you have!

Will let you know though i do not plan on selling it any time soon.

Is your Spirit R CD head unit a direct plug & play? I notice your CW FD3S is a base model. I have the stock BOSE system, and also want to change to a 99 spec head unit.

It pretty much is a plug and play with the exceptions of...

- Steel support beam/bracket behind the head unit needs to be cut (if LHD)
- Frequency Amplifier did not work for me (still looking in to that) so can't get any station above 85.0
- If you're LHD, volume knob is on the right instead of the left.

The first item was the only hurdle really. I have the 6-CD Disc changer and the aux module so i usually just have my spotify or CD's on. The HU was made for the bose system so you'll make the most out of it :)

Quick Update
BBS wheels were supposed to get mounted on last week, only problem was that they did not come with Valve Stems and the Valve Stems for the wheels are smaller and a bit more unique. America Tires ordered the valve stems for me directly from BBS and should be arriving today or tomorrow. Once they come in, the BBS Wheels will have a nice RE-11 tire with it.

Also, had to get one of the front wheels powder coated once again due to some scuffs on the wheels and a chunk of the coating fell off. This has already been done so just waiting on the tires. I'm wondering if i should buy some Red BBS center caps for the wheels. I have the RZ/Spirit R brakes that still need to get painted to the Spirit R Red w/ light silver as well as upgrade the pads and change the rotors to the mazdaspeed/spirit r rotors though i do like slotted more than drilled... What do you guys think on what rotors i should get for this system?

Thanks. I have always been a huge fan of the the FD RX-7 and think they look particularly beautiful in white and yellow.

It's probably in your best interest to keep her forever as you will not find another in that condition.

That will most likely be what happens with this one. I do plan on getting a CYM one and actually building it, wide body and all that fun stuff.

I'm currently looking for a 20B Cosmo Type SX as well to import.

I am dabbling on to what seems to be a common evolution of FD owners and looking at a 997 GT2 as well.

How would one acquire right of first refusal on that white thing?

Just ask and all shall be revealed :nod:

Quick update on the 7.