MmSadda's Non-Turbo (read: Supercharged) RX7 build

[MmSadda]

I suppose I should start this off with a little backstory. I first picked up this car in Fall '06, for $950; I'd taken it to a small local mechanic and gotten a good compression test, but the car would buck like crazy below about 2500 rpm, and I figured it had some major fuel pressure issues at least. Here's what she looked like when I got her:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30314337_504.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30314338_654.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30314340_935.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30314341_1072.jpg

[MmSadda]

Well, after getting the car to a Mazda dealership, and to Ken Carswell of Rotary Connection here in central Ohio, I found out the engine had shot an apex seal, in addition to needing an entirely new fuel system. I was disheartened, and thought about scrapping or selling the car. After a lot of deliberation, though, I ended up having Rotary Connection build a new, bone stock engine for me. I was completely broke at that point, so the car was spray painted in the interest of getting it to look a bit less junky.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/garage.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30314351_451.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30314357_3175.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30335279_5653.jpg

[MmSadda]

Well, by late '07, I'd saved up more funds to dump into the car, so she got some S5 tails, a proper coat of paint, and some decent if inexpensive wheels and tires. I also picked up a few little accessories, like a Racing Beat strut tower brace, and a cone air filter.

The car saw a few pulls on the drag strip, and ran mid-17s at best. (FYI, I don't particularly care about drag times, but at least it's something of a measuring stick of straight-line performance, for a car that's not built for that.)

 

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30335280_5888.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30392406_580.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30542424_7146.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30571443_1021.jpg

[MmSadda]

Well, around Summer '08, someone right turned on red right into the front passenger-side fender of the car. The car went back to the same body shop that did the first paint job. After completing the body work, they realized they couldn't match to the paint they had put on just a year ago. As a result, I ended up with a new (slightly darker and less brown) paint job, which I was REALLY pleased with I'd been toying with the idea of throwing on a spoiler, and had picked up a stock one and a Supra-style one (which I could never identify the brand of,) and with the car getting painted again, it was a perfect time to have a spoiler painted.

 

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30584884_9488.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30584886_135.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30588251_3801.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30641212_4146.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/n82000840_30641214_4999.jpg

[MmSadda]

Over the course of late '08, up 'til about '10, the car experienced intermittent severe driveability issues, because of piss-poor wiring to the O2 sensor and TPS, and possibly a bad ECU. I also dealt with some 3800rpm hesitation issues, though those were much less bothersome. At that point, though, I was considering selling/trading the car in the interest of getting a TurboII, MkIII Supra Turbo, or possibly even a Starion/Conquest or Mustang SVO. Basically, I had given up on making this the car I wanted it to be.

 

Early this year, though, I started getting the idea of a turbo swap, or a supercharger, back in my head. I'd actually convinced myself that I wanted to swap to a turbo engine and sell off this one, but figured I'd give it one last ditch effort to find a reasonably-priced supercharger; this had popped up for sale less than a week before: (and yes, that's a Paxton/Nelson SN-89 supercharger kit, including the optional goodies such as oil cooler and blow off valve, with all of 20k miles on it.)

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/SC_compressor_01.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/SC_cooler_pump_02.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/SC_parts_02.jpg

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/SC_Installed_01.jpg

[MmSadda]

Well, I'd initially planned to run a SAFC-2, and do a pretty cheap build. I contacted Ken Carswell for his recommendations, and he referred me to his son, Logan, who runs Defined Autoworks. Logan strongly suggested using a Haltech ECU, and over the course of a few conversations with him and some other rotary-knowledgeable people (Glenn Price of Illicit Performance, out in California; Brian T / TitaniumTT of varoius rotary forums,) I'd concluded I needed to upgrade my fuel system substantially, and get at least a boost gauge and wideband in the car, to run safely. Having planned out all of the supporting mods (which ended up making things MUCH more expensive than originally planned,) I began the s/c install, which took all of two evenings with the help of a few friends.

 

Engine bay before pic:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/photobucket-2940-1321200423996.jpg

 

All the supercharger kit parts on the garage floor:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/photobucket-3378-1321200394143.jpg

 

A lot of stuff removed from the engine bay:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/photobucket-3218-1321200453790.jpg

 

Me and my buddy (I think she's on here as PrettyPrix) with the supercharger:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/photobucket-2701-1321200514537.jpg

 

After:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/photobucket-3300-1321200482732.jpg

[MmSadda]

I initially picked the car up with a street tune the day before Thanksgiving.

 

Here's a pic of the engine bay from then

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a169/collinfoust/Cars/RX7/photobucket-1334-1322237392515.jpg

[MmSadda]

So, here's where I stand now:

 

My car went to the dyno this past Monday for tuning by Logan Carswell of Defined Autoworks. It was supposed to be tuned to 8 lbs of boost. I was told to expect around 220-230whp.

 

I got a call from Logan shortly before I was supposed to pick the car up, saying that the tune went really well, but the car was only making 4 lbs of boost, instead of the 8 it was supposed to.

 

After some drama, he agreed to give me a discount on a re-tune. I since discovered that I had some oddball 5" pulley on the thing, instead of the 3.75" pulley that's required to run 8 lbs of boost. With that, I made 175hp, well short of the expected 220. Since then, I was able to contact Craig Conley of Paradise Wheels (the company that supports the supercharger) and was able to score the last one of the original 3.75" pulley that he had in stock! I've now got that in hand, and will be ready to slap that on in a couple days.... before that, though, Logan and I need to sort out an issue with AFT (which is used to lubricate the supercharger) escaping/spraying out into the engine bay.

 

 

 

I'll end this post on the most positive note I have on the project so far: After picking up the car on Monday, and having to wait for two days for a dry enough day to take the car out, I managed to barely avoid getting pulled over my first time hitting boost getting on the freeway. I also managed to get in a few drives with my housemate (with him in his STi.) Even at 4 lbs, the car feels good. At 8 lbs, it should be a whole lot better. I should know for sure this Wednesday

[Rally Pat]

Woah, neat.

[Yasser-Hanbali]

its always nice to see a rotary build on here. Good job and good luck with the tune, should be a blast to drive when done.

[Smokey]

Cool to see you stick with the rotary. Fix the oil/spray issue, put it at 8lbs, and drive the crap out of it. That'll be a fun car with 220-ish whp. Nice writeup.

[SRTurbo04]

Holy ugly ricer wing batman!!!!

 

 

 

Other than that cool story.

[mjrsplat]

Holy ugly ricer wing batman!!!!

 

 

 

Other than that cool story.

 

For once I agree with paul. Lose the wing and you're golden.

[2 Sweet]

Lose the wing, and lose the junk boat anchor rotary, and you'll be good

 

Nice car! Maybe I missed it, but is it an auto or manual?

[MmSadda]

Woah, neat.

Thanks!

 

its always nice to see a rotary build on here. Good job and good luck with the tune, should be a blast to drive when done.

Thanks! I'm just pleased to have a rotary setup that's different from most. The only timeslips I've seen for a Paxton supercharger (on a car that used a piggyback instead of standalone) were around mid 13s. This obviously isn't a drag car, but I'm hoping to be somewhere near that as well.

 

Cool to see you stick with the rotary. Fix the oil/spray issue, put it at 8lbs, and drive the crap out of it. That'll be a fun car with 220-ish whp. Nice writeup.

Thanks! I just love the feeling of the rotary's powerband. The supercharger accents that nicely, too. It won't be the fastest setup out there, but i'll be plenty of fun for the next few years; I've got bigger plans for it a couple years down the line.

 

 

 

Holy ugly ricer wing batman!!!!

 

Other than that cool story.

The car looked too generic 80s car-ish. It needed something absolutely vulgar. I think I accomplished that :gabe:

 

Lose the wing, and lose the junk boat anchor rotary, and you'll be good

 

Nice car! Maybe I missed it, but is it an auto or manual?

Yeah, it'd be a good car for an LS swap; I can't wait to see someone do one with an LS9.

 

It's a 5-speed manual; I didn't think to mention it because it seems about 95% of the second-generation RX7s are manual.

[MmSadda]

Cool to see you stick with the rotary. Fix the oil/spray issue, put it at 8lbs, and drive the crap out of it. That'll be a fun car with 220-ish whp. Nice writeup.

 

By the way, the FD in your sig looks great! Do you have build threads for that and your M3?

[Smokey]

By the way, the FD in your sig looks great! Do you have build threads for that and your M3?

 

No build threads per-se. I'm usually busy cursing and throwing wrenches when working on them and don't really take pictures. There's a thread on here somewhere for the photoshoot of the FD that my sig is from.

[Mensan]

Nice project. I hope you can finish it without breaking the bank.

 

Please do not start sentences with 'Well,'.

[AngryBMW]

Nice project. I hope you can finish it without breaking the bank.

 

Please do not start sentences with 'Well,'.

 

Well, I once had an advanced English literature professor in college tell me it was ok to begin sentences with 'well'.

 

But, I remember my old AP high school English teachers remark on how that was bad, mmk?

 

So, I decided that sometimes it is ok, and sometimes it is not.

 

But I still like you, Eli.

 

Well, this about concludes this post. Thanks for reading.

 

PS - nice build up.

-Marc

 

 

 

[WrxRcr]

I agree, i don't like the wing, otherwise very cool car. If you really want something on the trunk try one of those lip spoilers.

[mustang302]

Saw this car today in dublin when I was on my lunch break, looked pretty clean!

[FourString]

Not a fan of the wing, but if you like it then cool. Stick with the rotary man! Ignore the ignorant people who bash them. I like that you set a goal for your car and went with it. Well done.

[MmSadda]

I got the car back from the final tune earlier this evening, and have been out driving it! I'm thrilled with how it turned out, and it made a bit more power than I was hoping for (my goal was 200-205, though my mechanic was saying around 220 may be attainable.) In a 2700 lb car, that's plenty for me, for the time being at least.

 

I'll post the 4lb dyno soon, and I should have the 8lb dyno tomorrow.

 

Nice project. I hope you can finish it without breaking the bank.

 

Please do not start sentences with 'Well,'.

Thanks! The engine is actually finished at this point, and I'm happy with how it turned out! The numbers aren't mind-blowing by any means, but it's right around what I was aiming for. It got more expensive than anticipated, but that's how this stuff always goes.

 

 

Well, I once had an advanced English literature professor in college tell me it was ok to begin sentences with 'well'.

 

But, I remember my old AP high school English teachers remark on how that was bad, mmk?

 

So, I decided that sometimes it is ok, and sometimes it is not.

 

But I still like you, Eli.

 

Well, this about concludes this post. Thanks for reading.

 

PS - nice build up.

-Marc

HAH!

 

Thanks, Marc! I'm happy with it.

I agree, i don't like the wing, otherwise very cool car. If you really want something on the trunk try one of those lip spoilers.

Thank you! I actually don't like the stock duckbill/lip spoiler at all. I debated between the stock turbo spoiler and the one I have for a while, and wanted something that provided a little bit of downforce, and something that just didn't look too ordinary. I hate most all but about three of the aftermarket spoilers available for the 2nd generation RX7; the only other ones I would've considered are the RE-Amemiya wing, and one other that mounts similar to how mine does but sits lower and flatter.

 

Saw this car today in dublin when I was on my lunch break, looked pretty clean!

Awesome! Glad you like it! It definitely needs some cosmetic touch-up, but it looks good from 10 feet away. I work right around there.

Not a fan of the wing, but if you like it then cool. Stick with the rotary man! Ignore the ignorant people who bash them. I like that you set a goal for your car and went with it. Well done.

Thank you! I wouldn't dream of putting anything other than a rotary in the car, ever. I'd entertained the idea of a 20B, but I just couldn't afford to do that at this point. A turbo swap would've been to easy/normal. I'm proud to say I met the goal that I set for the car, and then some. Now if we can just get some decent weather...

[blurtoyou]

So, here's where I stand now:

 

My car went to the dyno this past Monday for tuning by Logan Carswell of Defined Autoworks. It was supposed to be tuned to 8 lbs of boost. I was told to expect around 220-230whp.

 

I got a call from Logan shortly before I was supposed to pick the car up, saying that the tune went really well, but the car was only making 4 lbs of boost, instead of the 8 it was supposed to.

 

After some drama, he agreed to give me a discount on a re-tune. I since discovered that I had some oddball 5" pulley on the thing, instead of the 3.75" pulley that's required to run 8 lbs of boost. With that, I made 175hp, well short of the expected 220. Since then, I was able to contact Craig Conley of Paradise Wheels (the company that supports the supercharger) and was able to score the last one of the original 3.75" pulley that he had in stock! I've now got that in hand, and will be ready to slap that on in a couple days.... before that, though, Logan and I need to sort out an issue with AFT (which is used to lubricate the supercharger) escaping/spraying out into the engine bay.

 

 

 

I'll end this post on the most positive note I have on the project so far: After picking up the car on Monday, and having to wait for two days for a dry enough day to take the car out, I managed to barely avoid getting pulled over my first time hitting boost getting on the freeway. I also managed to get in a few drives with my housemate (with him in his STi.) Even at 4 lbs, the car feels good. At 8 lbs, it should be a whole lot better. I should know for sure this Wednesday

 

That blower might need rebuilt. http://www.cundnracing.com/

[MmSadda]

That blower might need rebuilt. http://www.cundnracing.com/

 

Oh, no, the supercharger is fine. The pulley was just obviously wrong.