alright well I posted the exhaust in another thread, now here are more pics of my progress. From now on I will keep it all to this thread so I don't clutter up the place.Car is 1988 Mazda Rx-7 Turbo II. Turbo upgrade consists first of an HKS cast iron, undivided log-style manifold. The turbo itself is a T04S--a 60 trim compressor, full T4 (not t3/t4) with .96 A/R hotside and .70 A/R compressor. Fuel consists of 720 cc primary injectors and 1680cc injectors with an Aeromotive adjustable fuel pressure regulator.Here is what the engine bay looks like right now. The upper intake manifold is not actually bolted down right now because I still have to plug in a few connectors. I replaced the main engine wiring harness with another one from a parts car, for two reasons:1) it was in bad shape anyway. It had been hacked up near the ECU to install an SAFC and other stuff. I no longer plan to use any piggback controllers.2) As a side benefit, I bought an 87 harness with an OEM resistor pack for use of peak & hold/low impedence injectors. All big injectors are low impedence (2-3 ohm resistance versus like 12-14 on most saturated/high impedence injectors). So this allowed me to install the Bosch 1680cc injectors without wiring in resistors separately. Here is bad pic of the mayhem under the upper intake manifold. Those are mostly connectors for the injectors, water temperature sensor (for the ECU), intake air temperature sensor and throttle position sensor. Absent are the 7 emissions solenoids and associated vacuum spider.Under the carpet on the passenger side is where the stock ECU goes. Here I have removed the stock ECU and installed an Apex'i Power FC (which is for a 3rd generation car) and the adapter harness I need to make it work. I considered the AEM EMS but it is most rotary tuners use a Power FC or Haltech.Luckily, the Power FC allows me to remove the bulky stock flapper-type airflow meter. This gives me enough room to actually put an air filter on the turbo (after cutting the fan shroud). The fitment is really tight here, and I'll be the first to admit that the intercooler piping is ghetto. I had to hack up the piping that was designed for my stock turbo. I plan to get it welded once the car is running. that pipe will probably blow off as soon as I get into boost. Unfortunately, the only place I can think of going to tig weld intercooler piping is Phantasm... I'm open to more suggestions. It needs to be a place with the tools, skills, and knowledge for custom intercooler setups and it needs to be pretty close. The car is in North Raleigh.Last is what I did today. I upgraded my previous Warlbro 255 fuel pump for a Supra TT pump. I was suprised how much bigger the Supra pump is physically... they are supposed to flow more too, of course flow is highly dependent on voltage.[Edited on October 27, 2007 at 5:58 PM. Reason : .]
10/27/2007 5:45:00 PM
get it over with and post the final product.or post it all when you get done.none of this halfway house BS
10/27/2007 5:50:06 PM
i know a guy that can do piping.
10/28/2007 12:23:40 AM
as much as i hate to say it, danny at phantasm does great mandrel bending. i would talk to him. or hit up savanna13 on CN he can hook you up with him
10/28/2007 1:01:19 AM
someone who could make house calls would be ideal, although that would probably be too much to ask
10/28/2007 1:56:57 AM
thats not gonna happen cause im guessing you want custom shit right. well that requires bringing a heavy ass bender and a welder and lots of stock.
10/28/2007 9:56:26 AM
you could just get someone to trailer your car to the exhaust shop. that'd probably be the easiest way to get custom stuff done.
10/28/2007 12:41:25 PM
I'll probably just drive it with the ghetto couplers (there are a couple more not pictured to route the piping around the power steering pump) to wherever I end up taking it. A big issue here is the fact that my driveway is steep enough (uphill) that it's highly unlikely I could ever push the car back into the garage. So if I tow it somewhere, they do the exhaust (I need a custom midpipe to connect the downpipe and new catback) and intercooler piping, and the car turns out to be undriveable for whatever reason I'm in trouble. It could have some bullshit leak, tuning issue, whatever, but I can't work on it on the street in my neighborhood either.
10/28/2007 1:58:32 PM
most good tow truck drivers can put a car where ever they want if the space is big enough. so towing back into your driveway wouldnt be a problem
10/28/2007 5:36:13 PM
You can't go wrong with silicone. At least for temporary purposes.
10/28/2007 9:06:11 PM
10/28/2007 9:31:43 PM
I can read.
10/28/2007 9:38:51 PM
10/28/2007 11:08:19 PM
10/28/2007 11:40:34 PM
10/28/2007 11:42:55 PM
made a lot of progress this weekend. I gotta find my camera and see if i can get some pics up. The intake manifold is back on, all the wiring is hooked up, the new catback is on, basically everything but the external wastegate and the downpipe is done. I had an ebay HKS knockoff wastegate that came with the turbo and manifold I bought, but I am not happy with it so I am waiting for my brand new (real) HKS 40mm wastegate to come in this week. Then the car should hopefully start up and be half driveable so I can get it to the shop to get some welding done to it.Oh and wiring up an Innovate LC-1 using its 5 volt analog ouput is a BITCH in comparison to the plug and play AEM unit for example. 6 ground wires alone. The Innovate has more features and better accuracy due to its recalibration capabilities. [Edited on November 24, 2007 at 2:21 AM. Reason : LC-1]
11/24/2007 2:14:55 AM
11/24/2007 3:25:29 AM
bigger block FTW
11/24/2007 7:23:17 AM
11/24/2007 9:20:26 AM
Yeah Danny at Phantasm is actually a very good welder, with a nice quality welder...honestly I would trust him to weld just about anyting I own, he has welded bike parts for both me and my wife, and does turbo parts for both phantasm and turbotime.[Edited on November 24, 2007 at 10:04 AM. Reason : .]
11/24/2007 10:03:17 AM
Here is the new exhaust installed. They are just polished 3" tips. The previous Greddy exhaust had 5 inch canisters. This new exhaust should both flow better (larger diameter) and sound quieter due to the muffler design.My friends and I fixed a small fuel leak, routed some electrical connectors and vacuum lines, put the manifold back on and connected some intercooler piping. I also had to cut the fan shroud further because the turbo intake was not lining up flush with the compressor inlet and thus was not secure in the coupler. finally I pretty much had to figure out all this wiring of the wideband and Apex'i Power FC by reading a ton of instructions and threads on rx-7 forums. I made this wiring diagram to help me.
11/24/2007 3:21:11 PM
this might turn out to be a pretty sweet ridealthough i would've put an LS1 in it instead
11/24/2007 4:03:34 PM
now in most cars an ls1 isn't much of a boat anchor BUT WHEN YOU'RE SWAPPING OUT A 1300CC ROTARY IT IS.
11/24/2007 5:18:06 PM
yet again, you open your mouth about shit you know nothing about. an ls1/t56 swapped fc/fd is heavier by 100-200lbs. at the most, and the majority of that comes in the center of the car at the transmission. weight distribution and corner weights are actually BETTER in some cases depending on the exact swap and how it's executed. [Edited on November 24, 2007 at 5:26 PM. Reason : .]
11/24/2007 5:22:34 PM
so what your saying is a motor smaller than most transmissions weighs the same as an aluminum small block v8.270lbs =/= 450lbs not to mention the additional length which would require the motor to be moved farther forward ohh and these are only engine weights since you already proclaimed that most of the weight comes from the transmission change now will you please shut your retarded fucking mouth.you call me dumb non stop but rarely ever support your claim please please go fuck yourself and leave me aloneIF YOU MOVE THE FUCKING FIREWALL ITS BETTER but then of course if you move the stock firewall and engine back too its better.340lbs is the HEAVIEST of the 2 rotor rotaries ...[Edited on November 24, 2007 at 5:37 PM. Reason : .]
11/24/2007 5:31:28 PM
don't take my word for it, do the fucking research yourself. this is one of THE most commonly discussed topics on the rx7 boards. a simple google search should bring up tons of results, i know you're good at that.no one even said anything about moving the firewall, retard.seriously, have you ever even TOUCHED any of the cars in question? looked at the parts in person? SEEN OR RIDDEN IN A SWAPPED ONE VS. A STOCK ONE?
11/24/2007 5:38:19 PM
an fd but then the ls1 was boosted too so there was a little more of a legitimate reasonyou can't honestly tell me you think some garage monster by some do it yourself mechanic with very little fab skills will actually turn out better than just modifying a car with stock locations yes you can beat stock but you also have to know what the fuck your doingand the main benefit is torque. i just don't like it when people change the soul of a car an RX isn't supposed to drive like an fbody not saying f bodies are bad or that they handle bad ... its just not the intent of the car.350 is fully dressed to the clutch with exhaust manifold and twin turbos in this case 390 is a long block... i'm not dumb man...this probably has a tubular header and obviously it never had the 2 turbo setup and even if it did swapping to a big single is a significant weight loss.[Edited on November 24, 2007 at 5:44 PM. Reason : .][Edited on November 24, 2007 at 5:46 PM. Reason : .]
11/24/2007 5:43:35 PM
a couple notes on LS1 swaps...-- FYI the heaviest parts of a rotary engine are its cast iron parts of course. In the shortblock there are 5 housings, 3 are iron, and two (rotor housings) are aluminum. The new rotary engines I posted about I think have 3 aluminum housings and 2 iron housings to reduce weight.-- the overall weight of a rotary longblock is just going to depend which one you are talking about. The FD's is the heaviest. It has the most bullshit on it.-- the key to a good LS1 swap is to pick the right chassis with the right options. The most desireable ones would be a base model FD or the sport model FC, available only in 86 and 87. The base FD just had cloth interior, no rear wiper or extra sound stuff, no sunroof, etc. it's about 75lbs lighter than the touring, so 2800 vs 2875 curb weight. The lightest FC, the one I mentioned, was 2600lbs and the heaviest (excluding convertible) was 3000, and that was the 89-91 Turbo. My 88 nonturbo weighed 2720 and my 88 Turbo weighed 2850, both curb weights.So in the end, the weight differences and the weight balance difference between a rotary powered Rx-7 and an LS1 powered has more to do with the exact models and options that the respective cars came with from the factory and which of these options you choose to retain when you tear the car apart to do the swap. An LS1 is heavier, yes, but in the end it all comes down to how you build it.I have a friend with a 94 Fd. He blew the original engine at 80k, put in a built single turbo rotary, never got it tuned and blew it a year later. He now has a stock LS1 in there (stock heads/cams and I don't even think he has headers) and ran a 12.6 on 255 Falken Azenis. It's a quick car and it still handles well... but it's not something I would ever personally do to an Rx-7.[Edited on November 24, 2007 at 5:59 PM. Reason : .]
11/24/2007 5:52:56 PM
11/24/2007 5:53:06 PM
11/24/2007 5:59:14 PM
it would be a more accurate comparison to look at an LS1/T56 vs a single turbo 13B-REW with a stainless steel manifold and all emissions equipment removed. That's the choice an FD owner usually has to make.also note that the torque of an LS1 is a lot harder on the drivetrain. A stock FD drivetrain can do 10's easily with the lower torque of the rotary, but it's not quite as durable with an LS1.
11/24/2007 6:03:32 PM
yeah, you're bringing in a lot of valid variables.BUThis original post was this:
11/24/2007 6:06:34 PM
yeah... which it is... when you nearly double the weight of the alternate engine transmission package it is an anchor in this case... hell it will save weight in tons of engine swaps... but this one it is still heavy and a poor choice imho.unless drag racing is the goalthe stock engine in his single turbo car is still 150lbs less... than a ls1 now in a light car THAT IS A SHIT TON. i'm sorry but it is...look mah its a 150lb boat anchorhttp://www.jmsonline.net/ANCHOR-MUSHROOM-150-LB.htmback to the point of this... the car looks great next time i'd love a ride when its finished and i'm visiting r town[Edited on November 24, 2007 at 6:18 PM. Reason : .]
11/24/2007 6:12:35 PM
you need to go back and reread. in the real world (which is what most of us live in, not your magazine fantasy world), the weight differences do not add up to what's on paper. i'm not saying you couldn't end up with a swap that's 150-200lbs. more JUST on the front end, i'm saying it rarely if ever happens. 90% of them end up with a total curb weight of 150-200lbs. more, much of that being distrubuted evenly front/rear.
11/24/2007 6:47:36 PM
and you're the one who brought distribution into it... i just called it a boat anchor ...and you are the one who took the 350 as the baseline number when i said that its the HEAVIEST 2 rotorwhich would be the one in the FD due to the twin turbos and clumsy manifold they require. Which is certainly NOT the motor in his car.listen you dont like me i know this... but you fabricated an argument that either isn't what i was trying to say or that you're calling 150lbs and insignificant amount of weight ... which may be the case in my moms 2 ton luxury car but is not the case here.
11/24/2007 6:53:22 PM
again, you need to go back and read the thread.
11/25/2007 2:20:14 AM
11/25/2007 3:15:11 AM
11/25/2007 5:18:19 AM
if i blew my motor like 3 times i'd consider it, i admit. that's why I'm not sitting here like a hardcore rotary partisan... i have a pretty balanced look at it. but it's still a little unnatural to me.but then again i've detonated (20psi boost spike), overheated (busted clutch fan), and run my motor on half a quart of oil (boost gauge line got pinched in the oil filter pedestal at the top of the engine and apparently my low oil sender is broken) and it keeps on truckin. hopefully it can handle this kind of power as long as I keep race gas in it, which I fully plan to do.
11/25/2007 11:32:15 AM
if the car weighs 2800 lbs why go through so much effort to put a v8 in it?do people do the same for miatas? at least that makes sense
11/25/2007 11:35:03 AM
^did you read anything posted? the duke, arghx, and myself all explained the primary benefits/gains to doing it.
11/25/2007 1:06:37 PM
Wastegate is here! pics later. gotta do homework etc
11/28/2007 3:36:57 PM
NICE... what flavor is it?^^ yeah you turn an rx-7 into a camaro.[Edited on November 28, 2007 at 4:27 PM. Reason : .]
11/28/2007 4:08:46 PM
Does this mean we crank 'er this weekend, Ray?By the way, the biggest reason I'd retain the rotary is purely because it's a Wankel and I like oddball shit. Especially if it goes like stink.It really is hard to argue with an LS1, but I tend to (a) like weird shit, (b) don't find pushrod motors that attractive, though most these days are truly bulletproof...they just aren't "pretty" or neat enough, (c) enjoy blowing money on really expensive car parts.Ray's really done a lot of homework on this, and he devours any information he can find on the subject. Furthermore, he's not afraid to jump in and get his hands dirty doing it. I say GG, man. It's fun doing this shit purely for the geek factor. Why do you think I have a thing for Datsun/Nissan straight sixes (and really every other Nissan engine)?
11/28/2007 4:13:38 PM
again, excuse the poor image quality. This is a real, brand new HKS 40mm standard wastegate (even comes with unintelligible instructions in Japanese). A very quick mock-up demonstrated that it will bolt up perfectly to my HKS manifold and happens to be the exact diameter of the opening on the manifold's flange. The included allen bolts will also easily fit. Tomorrow I will be assembling a stainless steel 4AN wastegate line for this wastegate so there is no chance of it ever blowing off. When you get this deep into a project you can't halfass anything I've learned. The wastegate has a 10psi spring so I will be running just on wastegate pressure for a while as I tune it. at 10psi It should do at least 300whp in a 2800lb car, whereas on my stock turbo I did 250 and it only held 6 to redline.I'll probably skip class today (which is technically Thursday) and ruin my perfect attendance to get this thing running, and if for some odd reason all goes well I will drive it to Henry's with an open downpipe to get them to build me a custom midpipe. They will have to order prebent mandrel sections. Then it will go to Phantasm for intercooler piping, and then it will be road tuning.I may get zxappeal to fabricate me a flange for my wastegate dump pipe. As of now I don't plan on recirculating the wastegate because I have read of noticeable power losses resulting.[Edited on November 29, 2007 at 2:58 AM. Reason : .]
11/29/2007 2:50:51 AM
^ yeah...noticeable power losses are for the birds.
11/29/2007 3:09:19 AM
there is a red rx-7 FDon glenwood.runs, paint is decent. have no idea of it's condition other than that.i'd buy it, if i wanted to 3-rotor it.
11/29/2007 9:26:47 AM
11/29/2007 12:05:58 PM
He just doesn't keep them long enough for them to wear
11/29/2007 12:07:11 PM
^^ I have a friend that has a separate 2-stroke oil tank on his FD set up just for that reason. I thought it was strange when he showed it to me, but makes sense I guess.
11/29/2007 12:25:00 PM