My 6 year FC project

[WE3RX7]

With all the work I've been focusing towards other cars (not just my own) I lost track of my original project, but never gave up hope. I still wash it, keep it stored in the garage under a cover and slowly accumulate rare parts for it.

It's my 1988 SE. The car was mine when I was 16, back in 2001. It had 94K original miles, owned by an older woman who worked at a bank and always kept it garaged. I drove it for a little over a year, only put 112K on the clock when the original engine popped due to a rear rotor water jacket failure. So thats where this all started in 2002.



Car as of August 13th, 2001
I had Bonez race pipe, FPR, K&N Filter, Borbet 16x7.5 w/ Bridgestone Potenza 205s.

[WE3RX7]

The NA engine died October 2nd, 2001.

The car was limped home and moved into my parents garage to begin the transformation.

It was then I researched my options and decided I wanted to convert the car into a GTX.

[WE3RX7]

JDM Engine was ordered and delivered November 13th, 2001

I orderd the engine from Dave Gibson from FC3S.org (boy does that date this build!)

I also picked up a JDM transmission from him as well with 12,000 miles on a rebuild.

At this point, the car had already been towed to Rotary Performance in Manassas, VA to handle the swap. I was way to amature at this time to achieve this goal (especially considering I was still in highschool at the time and didn't have the time between work and class).


JDM Engine and trans installed into car December 9th, 2001

Had to purchase a new S5 T2 EFI harness, and other misc parts to fit the engine into the car. New AFM, MAP sensor, also bought a brand new TID from mazda.

[WE3RX7]

Being in highschool at the time working part time, it took me a while to save the money to get the parts. Things were tough to find.

This part of the build spanded December 2001 through April 2002

By this time the parts list included:

- RB 2.5" DP
- Centreforce DF clutch Stage 3
- Release bearing
- trans mounts
- silicone hose kit
- accelerator (throttle) cable
- clutch slave
- engine mounts
- OEM TID
- T2 rad hoses
- oil filter/oil
- all new gear oils
- T2 driveshaft
- S4 mechanical LSD
- GTX trans
- JDM engine
- complete chassis harness (S5, since my car was S4 I had to update everything to S5 for it all to work like OEM)
- brake master cylinder (original was busted and leaked)
- new belts
- fuel pump resistor
- T2 half shafts

All in all everything totalled about $6K right there. After misc shop fees, towing and other parts, I landed closer to $8K.

[WE3RX7]

Started JDM Engine and car runs for the first time in about 7 months.

After all that work and cash, the Jspec was dead.. no compression on the rear rotor. Unfortunately, it took too long to get to this point that the 90 day warranty was up. Dave was a very nice guy and was able to get me at least 15% back from the engine importer which covered the towing bill to bring my car home. I was fed up with how much time and money was wasted and was not all that pleased with the "professional" rotary shop.

Picked up a T2 hood and let the car sit in the driveway while I caught up on bills.


Started working on the car again late May - just cleaning up items and getting the car ready for yet another engine.

[P71]

Wow! Beautiful color choice!

[need RX7]

Looks really good. Hopefully third time's the charm :) Can't wait to see the rest of the build, sounds like an interesting setup.
off-topic, how did you like the Bonez Race Pipe? I'm thinking of getting one

[WE3RX7]

While paying bills and trying to source a new engine I cleaned up all the harnesses. Pulled everything back out and corrected some things that were bothering me (misc lights not working, etc).

As of June 30, 2002

- Dead JDM engine
- S5 tail lights
- S5 T2 hood
- S5 a/c vents and center console
- New used catback with generic mufflers
- Starion IC for custom FMIC project (later bailed on this)
- started taking apart JDM long block to ready for new keg
- polishing UIM/TB, etc

[one320fc]

I found a real old picture of your car that I took. There is also a pictures of your Protege and Justin's Eclit
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s163/one320fb/DSCN0649.jpg

[WE3RX7]

July 20, 2002 - JDM engine removal

After more bills and time go by, my long time friend came by with a 3pt engine hoist to yank the blown engine out! I have it all on tape somewhere. It was MY first engine pull. Luckily I had helped other rx friends pull theirs before.

Side note: I did drive the car around on one rotor for about two weeks. Wouldn't you if you didn't have your seven for almost 9 months!!

This is where the car would sit for a while so I could pay bills off. By this time I had graduated highschool and was getting ready for college. I figured I'd need an education if this hobby was to continue!

[WE3RX7]

August 2002 - New Engine

The Atkins engine is delivered on the 9th. Stats are:

- S5 13BT
- Extended Streetport
- Atkins 2pc 2mm seals w/ OEM FD internals and solid corners
- Install Kit

Cost was $3,400 minus a $500 core return.

With school already getting kicked into high gear, I began assembling the short block to get it ready to be put back in the car.

October 2002 - Engine is fully assembled and ready to be put back into car

I decided on removing the rest of the emissions for the car. It took longer than expected getting money and parts (doesn't it always).

[Nopis1O]

looks good man. im doing a ITB set up on my s4. so good luck with it glad to see someone else doing itb's too.

[WE3RX7]

Well - I seem to be missing my pics from 2003 and 2004.

So to recap those years:

Installed a GReddy FMIC
Tuned the Atkins some, but never had it running quite the way I wanted to
Accumulated aftermarket parts, sold a bunch of parts and finished college

School took a big chunk of my attention/time. I also bought an '03 protege which I proceeded to waste too much time and money on as well (turbo system, suspension, brakes, etc.).

Since I dont have any good pics from these years, here is a pic of my protege that side tracked me.

[Phoenix7]

good job, glad you're sticking with it.

[WE3RX7]

Flashing forward now

August 2005 - Remove engine and prepare for painting engine bay

Basically, I was never happy with the way the project was turning out. I always felt rushed or came across something that "i'd get to later" and really I was now at a point where the car didn't need to be a daily driver and I just really wanted a really nice purpose built track car that would still "appear" streetable for the quick runs down the road and back.

A few prior, my car was pushed off the road while driving to school by a blazer and even though I avoided the impact w/ the blazer, I took out a ditch causing very minor damage to the front bumper and brake duct area.

I also noticed that the engine bay, was, well - ugly. I decided now I would start the "REAL" project. Stripped out everything and was going to build this the way I wanted.

Luckily, my parents' neighbor had a nice shop and was a bodyshop/painter by profession - so I had him dolly the damage back into place, grind and weld misc studs and holes and prep/paint the front clip.

[Phoenix7]

i know your pain. Slow and steady wins the race.

[WE3RX7]

September 24, 2005 - Car gets rolled into paint booth

So, the car gets ready for paint and we bring it down to his shop with the downdraft booth for a better finish.

The color choice is IBM - '99 FD Innocent Blue Mica.

On the exterior, I'm going to use some gold pearl as well, but we voted against it in the engine bay as it doesn't do justice w/out sunlight.

I went with a base coat/clear coat combo and three coats of clear for added protection against oils/fuels/etc. All PPG products.

Did throw a little airbrush of 1320 on the firewall in gold pearl as thats the group of guys I used to/still do hang out with and this car is something that'll be around forever. Just one of those personal things I guess.


We also cut the Intercooler pipe holes larger, smoothed it all out, etc. Really anything I could think of to make this easier later on.

October 9th, 2005 - Car makes its way home after all the front end work and paint

[WE3RX7]

So this is where the story gets slow and boring.

Basically, I ended up moving around, changing jobs and getting held up in other projects (FBs, RX8s, etc) and really lost sight of this project. I knew I'd get back to it when I was more stable, but I did keep the car around and added parts when I could.

February and April 2006 - Start collecting suspension parts

I decided I'm basically working the car from the "front to back" restoring things as I go.

I picked up a new RB front sway and end links, along with a mazdaspeed lower control brace. My plan is to also refurbish the control arms, all the bushings, steering rack, struts/springs, etc as well.

[WE3RX7]

Its depressing, but I lost my job in 2006 and the project took a big back seat for a while.

This is basically where I am now with the car and I'm starting the project up again.

I got the garage all cleaned up and here is where I currently am with the car.

I'm working on customizing some black interior I got from my friends parts car as I do want to swap over to black interior completely including new carpet, etc. I just need to go back and get the dash out.

Basically, after I get the black interior cleaned up, I'm going to redye it in some areas, replace a lot of it with custom CF replacements and then get the cage installed. I am still holding off on the seats for now as I need to see how much funds I'll have left after all this but the interior thus far will be:

-S5 black dash, misc parts
-S5 carbon fiber door panels
-Carbon Fiber gauge center console / idiot lights gauge pod
-RE Amemiya boost gauge / misc defi monitoring gauges
-autopower 6pt cage welded in place and door bars added
-RE Amemiya steering wheel
-SPARCO quick detach steering wheel hub

Should be good. I'm just looking for clean and functional.

[vex]

Can't wait for you to be up and running. We'll have to head to Summit or Shelor or even that one track close by.

[WE3RX7]

I went back through and updated/edited all the past posts to bring this build thread up to date btw. So sorry if the comments seem out of order. From here forward it should all be current :)



I am expecting the new dye kits for the interior peices, my sparco hub and new fenders this week. Here's hoping they show up soon so I can keep moving. I want to get the fenders in place so I can start measuring everything up.

Also, I'm going to grab the steering rack from the parts car as my SE rack is 15.4:1, which sucks when not running the pump with it. I plan to depower the 17.4:1 rack from the GXL parts car and dropping that in along with new tie rods, bushings and steering angle adjusters.

[BLKTOPTRVL]

What did you mean when you said "cleaned up the wireing harness?" What did you do to it? Replace wires? Repair/Replace connectors?

[WE3RX7]

Ah - just that I removed it all so it could be ready for paint.

I still have the factory T2 harness for now. I'm replacing the entire dash harness (again) and the engine harness though when I put the new engine in. I'm using Painless interior harnesses built just for racing.

[BLKTOPTRVL]

Were you able to get the dash out without breaking any of the plastic mounts? I've been thinking about doing a ground up restore like you, but don't have the guts - so far. I'm afraid if I take mine apart I will never get it all back together.

[WE3RX7]

The dash actually isnt hard.

The black dash out of the parts car is broke on some of the tabs, but not from removal, looks like prior damage. The plastic grills on the top of the dash (both demister and front vents) will crack - they always do. Its not bad though, most of what might crack can be glued back and is never seen as its all under the dash.

You dont need to remove the dash though to do the rewire. I did the first rewire w/ the dash still in the car..

[WE3RX7]

September 8th, 2008 - New front fenders arrive

Low and behold, arrived home today from work and the new fenders are here.

SA - Foresight +30mm. Stock "looking" but give the car the needed width to fit the bigger meats up front this car will need when I'm done w/ it. Also, the arch is cut 20 degrees lower as well for a little extra style and coverage.

They weigh 3.8 pounds too!

Before I actually install them, I'm going to POR15 and clean the fender areas, get new hardware and paint the door jam area, etc.

For now, here's some shots.

Its been since November 2005 that this car has had fenders, so it was a big step in the right direction for me :) Made my month!

[one320fc]

Sweet!! Cant wait to see them in person

[djmtsu]

Now would be a great time to get some TII brakes and rear end. Toss that 4 lug setup in the trash!!!

[WE3RX7]

lol - Nope... believe it or not, I'm keeping the 4 lug.

I am swapping over to new brakes though, but you'll have to wait to see :)

Already have the T2 rear (my car was completely swapped to a GTX years ago, see the earlier pics in the thread).

[jonbro6956]

Now would be a great time to get some TII brakes and rear end. Toss that 4 lug setup in the trash!!!

I've been trying to talk him out of the 4-lugs ever since this project began... but he never listens. Since he lowered his power goal a bit it might work if he does the brake system that he is planning on.

Nice to see you finally starting to work on this thing again Bill.

[WE3RX7]

September 14, 2008 - New steering wheel hub

I bought an RE Amemiya used steering wheel a while back and never got around to getting it on. However, in the attempt to keep working at the car, I stopped by our local speed shop which stocks SPARCO equip and they had an MX-5 hub that worked just fine for the FC :)

Later this week I should have my POR so I can undercoat the fenders and get them actually "installed". They'll probably be removed again to paint, but final paint won't be for another year I'm sure.

[TehMonkay]

Aaron i think(on the evil forum) still has left over spacers so you can drill 4 lug pattern into the turbo rotors, and use the 4 piston calipers.

[Phoenix7]

Looking great!! I have been wanting those fenders for ages! How much do they cost right now?

[vex]

:squint: I'm on to you. Just a few more days before I start my project... Just a few more...

[WE3RX7]

I dont want stock T2 brakes though, lol. Trust me, the brake system will work just fine w/ the 4 lug hubs I have now.

The fenders are running about $475 depending on where you have them shipped. I shipped them to my house, so it was a bit more, you can save $25 or so if you ship them to a warehouse/business.

[Phoenix7]

damn, that's pricey. Maybe in a few months. Can't wait to see your finished car!

[WE3RX7]

To be honest, they really are worth the cost. Foresight fenders didn't align correctly supposedly, so SA solved that issue.

Also, its the only "wider" front fender on the market w/out a vent other than an E-prod fender, or the street fender from Mariah (which I was originally going to get) but they are about $570 shipped. I want to keep the car somewhat "original" body but with the needed enhancements for the purpose of the car when i'm done.

I will should have them mounted up better towards the end of the month. I need to start measuring for my brakes, which will rely on the fender width, wheel choice and suspension, lots to do.... I want to have the front clip done around the first of the year and have the interior together w/ the cage. Engine and body work (paint, fender rolling, etc) will have to wait til summer of '09 or fall... I'll be moving again in May.

[TehMonkay]

I've got the bmagic vented ones, alignment is not very good, at all.

[Phoenix7]

that's Shineautoproject, right? I might have to look into them, I believe they're the only ones without the vents (i don't like them either).

[WE3RX7]

Sorry - it is shineautoproject, I get in the habit of abbreviations, lol.

Very stand up group, great product and fast turn around.

[WE3RX7]

Yea - I heard bad things on B magic and Raceonusa as well. I typically ONLY do authentic products, but to be honest, I didn't hear one bad thing about SA and they have done a lot of research and it shows.

[vex]

Well crap, I was planning on going with a BMagic body kit because it's the only one I've found that's S4 in mold style. Let me see if I can't find a link to show. Link ('http://www.aitracing.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=202_35_77') I was given them as a good product from a body shop that handled them. Unfortunately the shop closed down because of bad locations and I can't get the deal I was going to get on it. However this leaves a huge gap in the market for S4 parts. AS needs to get their site up so I can peruse it.

[WE3RX7]

I've only "heard" about bmagic, but personally have not used them.

I plan to use S5 molding anyway... you could do the same if you wanted.

[vex]

I could, but that would mean I need to pick up new moldings but that's money I don't really need to spend since I have a full set of S4 moldings right here.

[WE3RX7]

Quickie update.

I went off on a tangent for a little bit working on a few T2s and another FB the last few weeks (not mine) but I've been gathering parts to keep moving w/ completing my front end.

As of right now, I've got the front suspension completely stripped off. Tomorrow I'm pulling the old steering rack and cross member.

Plans are:
-Paint upper inner fender area IBM (I have some paint left over from the engine bay) to help prevent rust.
-POR15 the lower inner fender and cross member. It'll provide a harder adhesion and not chip off from flying rocks, etc while still maintaining good protection against rust. I plan to POR15 the entire under body
-Send control arms off to have needle bearing installed
-install new tow hooks
-install MS lower c-arm brace
-install new ball joints, tie rod ends
-install angle spacer kit and adjustable bump stops
-install roll center blocks


This should all be done in the next month. Next month I plan to get the rest of the suspension in place (camber/caster plates, coilovers, etc).

Not a very exciting update, but it all needs to be done so I can start measuring for the new brake calipers and wheels.

I also picked up a set of FD rear brake calipers that I'll rebuild and swap on later.

Not much for pics this go around.

[vex]

You make me sooooo jealous! I haven't even sourced all my parts yet (cash flow is halted until probably next semester).

[WE3RX7]

Well - I did hit a snag. The needle bearing c-arms dont work with my MS under brace. The brackets used on the MS bar interchange w/ the stock ones, but the needle bearing setup uses a special "cap" for the bearing and replaces the stock one. This put me in a bad mood for a while.

I have now discovered though, SuperNow makes a similar bearing setup that'll still replace the bushing on the c-arm, but uses the stock cap, so it "should" interchange w/ the MS bar. Nice thing is, the price of the SuperNow setup is about $350 for BOTH sides, where the needle bearing c-arm is $350 for one side...

Pics to come...

[WE3RX7]

Just a quickie update so it doesnt sound like this one has fallen off again.

I ordered new URAS inner tie rods and SuperNow tie rod ends w/ adjustable toe and bumpstop.

I also got the rebuild kit for the rear FD brake calipers.

Next week I have to travel for business, but when I get back I'm ordering up the bushings for the control arms, new ball joints and wheel bearings. That'll be all I need to get the suspension back in place so i can start measuring for brakes and picking my coilover setup.

I also need to get the new steering rack off my buddy's parts car (has a better ratio than the PS S4 rack I have now).



While waiting on a few things though, I'm polishing the control arms and removing old bushings. New bushings will be pressed in at 2gslse's garage :)

[WE3RX7]

BTW - I'm bailing on needle bearings. My concern is damage and repair - if something happens to the control arm, its a costly replacement and hard to find parts to replace. For now I'm just going to use Mazdaspeed bushings. Maybe someday I'll spring for the needle bearings...

[TehMonkay]

Why not some delrin/uhmhw bushings?

[WE3RX7]

I thought about those. I somewhat like the idea of using the Mazdaspeed bushings since they are still 40% stiffer than stock but they wont transfer as much vibration through to the chassis. I have a mazdaspeed lower control arm brace as well to help keep things stiff. I guess the main thing is I dont see the benefit from delrin over the MS for the cost, but I'd be glad to hear any input on the subject.

[TehMonkay]

I dunno', that's what i'm going with, it doesn' bind like poly does and it lasts longer than rubber.

Don't have mine ordered yet, i want the car to move on it's own power, than do the rest, kinda half assed.

[WE3RX7]

I agree about poly binding.. I had a complete poly set but ended up selling it after doing more research. Thats why I originally wanted to go w/ the needlebearing setup to avoid binding. I think the MS is a good compromise. They're stiffer, but not solid. I know they'll wear out some day, but this is a track car only, so I doubt it'll get enough mileage to really cause any grief. If they do at some point wear out, I'll go the needle bearing route...

I hope to have all the bushings in place by the end of this month, damn work has to get in the way of my fun!

[vex]

I agree about poly binding.. I had a complete poly set but ended up selling it after doing more research. Thats why I originally wanted to go w/ the needlebearing setup to avoid binding. I think the MS is a good compromise. They're stiffer, but not solid. I know they'll wear out some day, but this is a track car only, so I doubt it'll get enough mileage to really cause any grief. If they do at some point wear out, I'll go the needle bearing route...

I hope to have all the bushings in place by the end of this month, damn work has to get in the way of my fun!

I've got a full poly on my car and I don't have any binding. You may also be able to secure the graphite impregnated poly if you're really concerned about that.

[WE3RX7]

The binding usually occurs in poly when you lower dramatically. Have you looked at the bushings since install - see any stretch marks so to speak the look like scratches? Not saying it always happens, but poly does have a higher risk for binding, but is stronger than rubber, lol... its a give and take.

[vex]

The binding usually occurs in poly when you lower dramatically. Have you looked at the bushings since install - see any stretch marks so to speak the look like scratches? Not saying it always happens, but poly does have a higher risk for binding, but is stronger than rubber, lol... its a give and take.

I haven't had an opprotunity to lower the car anymore than stock level. I'd need spacers before I drop it anywhere near where the binding may occur.

[rx7 FC TII]

wow...im jealous. i wish i had the time and money and patience for all of that. my car has been giving me problems for a while now and im only driving it when it rains or is too cold. during the summer im gonna park it and do some more work

good luck with the rest of the build. ill keep an eye on this. it looks promising.

[WE3RX7]

Slow updates, but I hope to have more by the end of December. I got around to painting more of the wheel wells. I'm learning more about paint as I go, especially about thinning and application. I'm using high density foam rollers for this. It doesnt need to be perfect, just covered to prevent any rust in the future and to continue w/ the "color" change. I still need another coat on the driver's side. When this is done, I'll throw the POR15 on the rest and that'll be that.

More parts are slowly coming in to put the car back on the ground. Still need to press in new bushings when my buddy gets back from CA after Dec 5 and then its onto interior work, steering rack, brakes and wheels.

I plan to detar the rest of the car in December/January when its colder outside so I dont need as much dry ice!

Almost done polishing the control arms too, lol... taking my time I guess...

[rotorhead87]

Your project is coming along real nicely :icon_tup:. I like your color choice of blue and that polish job on that control arm is really shining. Keep up the great work!!!

[Whitney]

Oooooo - Shiny!! Girls love shiny things!

[WE3RX7]

These updates are coming slowly. With holidays and side work I havent had much time for the seven (as usual with this project, lol).

Here are some current pics... I'm waiting for everything to settle down and I still need a few more parts to come in before I can put the car back on the ground for now. Its looking like it'll be after X-mas though....

Sometime in January it'll be wrapped up though, which will be nice. Then I'm going to move inside the car for a bit to put in the new carpet set, dash and seats.


Pictured below are the control arms. I ended up burning the rest of the D bushing out. It is far easier than any other method, lol. I havent finished polishing either arm yet, but you can see what a big difference it can make. This is all done by hand, it would go faster if I had my own work bench w/ a buffer... that'll have to wait though!

Before:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=181

After/During Polishing:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=182


Side by Side:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=185

New MS bushings:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=183
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=184

This is the first time I've used MS bushings. They say 40% stiffer and I'll admit I was nervous they'd be more "rubbery" - but I was way wrong. HUGE difference compared to the stock ones. You cant even put your finger nail into these suckers. A drawback is they do weigh a good bit more. But oh well.

[WE3RX7]

Finally, some minor progress.

I got the subframe out, steering rack out and finished coating both upper inner fenders.

Plans for next week are to undercoat lower inner fenders and finish polishing the control arms. My new wheel bearings should be in by that time as well so I will install those and clean/repaint the hubs while they're out.

Also, I plan to modify the front subframe after christmas. I noticed there were areas that lacked reinforcement that would be easily added in without altering any mounting points, etc. I'll get pics up of the modifications.

Here are some pics:

Driver's side upper inner fender:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=196

Passenger side (lil blurry):
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=197

Subframe out:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=198

All the parts ready to be stripped, cleaned and re-used if needed. Only things going back on are the hubs and parts of the steering rack:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=199

Oh, and a little early XMas gift that I couldn't pass up, my 13B-RE engine mount adapters courtesy of RPM Motorsports:
http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/picture.php?albumid=37&pictureid=200

probably wont have much to update until after Xmas.... but it'll be a good update next time...

[WE3RX7]

So its been pretty busy for me, just not on the FC project unfortunately. I'm in the process of buying a new home and getting things sold off / cleaned up.

I'm SLOWLY accumulating the parts for the FC though. Even with a heater in the garage, my doors dont seal 100% and its been below freezing for about a month now at night, so no POR for now. Hopefully in the next few weeks.

On the upside about the new home, is a new garage and a new garage means more toys :)


Project Update: I've got all brand new parts ready before I start to put the car together. New inner/outer wheel bearings for the hubs w/ new seals, new hardware (almost all of it for the front suspension) and new ball joints. I should have the MS bushings pressed on this month as well.

A quick note on the ball joints. A friend of mine who works for a general auto parts company ordered a set for me from Beck Arnley as his company is owned by them and the rumor I heard that Beck Arnley is producing Mazda genuine parts now was true... the new ball joints came FROM Beck Arnley in MAZDA bagging just like dealership parts, lol...

Anyways, I'll get a better update sometime this month for you all. I did manage to clean and prep the under-inner fender for the POR15 coatings though....

Inner fender (exposed small rust areas around bolt holes, etc):
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/fc_innerfender.jpg

Cleaned up, just used a high concentrate of Simple Green:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/fc_innerfender2.jpg

All the new OE & MS parts:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/oe_parts.jpg

New "Mazda" Beck Arnley Ball joints:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/ball_joints1.jpg

[WE3RX7]

Got an extended weekend coming up with decent weather for February so I'm going to tackle a few things to get this phase of the project nearing completion.

I finished polishing both control arms. In a bit of hurry, but they turned out good enough for me for now. After I get the bushings pressed in I'm going to run it through a buffer and that should finish them up.

Bushings should be in on Sunday.

Subframe will be welded, reinforced, painted on Saturday.

POR15 undercoating should be done Monday and subframe will be back under the car!

After that, I'll hang the control arms and hopefully sometime next week I'll get the new wheel bearings put in and can put the hubs back on.

I will not be reinstalling the brakes though as I'm just trying to get the car back on the ground so I can make it roll onto a trailer and into its new home after we move :)

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/control_arms_polished.jpg

[WE3RX7]

Finally, a "good" update.

I made use of the crazy nice feb weather and the extra day off today to start putting things back ON the car!


I started yesterday actually. Took the control arms to a friend's house and he was able to get the new MS bushings in place with ease. It took longer to talk about doing it, than actually doing it.

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/mscarm_bushings_installed3.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/mscarm_bushings_installed2.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/mscarm_bushings_installed.jpg




Then today, I took some simple green, concrete cleaner and a sanding block to the subframe to clean it up and paint it. Its had years of engines in and out and it just needed to be "fresh" for its new powerplant :)
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/subframe_preppaint1.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/subframe_painted.jpg


While letting the subframe dry in between cleaning/coats of paint, I started to lay some coats of POR15 in the inner fenders. Overall, I'm ok with the end results, but it was a bit more PIA to apply than expected. I think it has to do w/ the weather and lack of consistent temps in my garage right now, but oh well.

Masked tons of little holes and applied a first "light" coat:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/POR_prep1.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/POR_1stcoat.jpg

This is their "semi-gloss" black which came out MUCH glossier than I wanted. But oh well.
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/POR_finalcoat.jpg

I coated all the way into the shock tower, and underside of the frame rail which showed rust from brake fluid getting trapped there between the subframe and body. Its all good to go now :)


Once all that had dried, I reinstalled the subframe:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/subframe_reinstalled1.jpg

Then the control arms:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/ps_carm_installed.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/ds_carm_installed.jpg

Replaced all the lock washers and installed the new "fresh" hardware which was basically just cleaned and coated old hardware.


Finally, I was able to install my MS Lower Control Arm Brace that I've had for about 3 years now!! I know... i know....

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/mslowerbrace_installed1.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/mslowerbrace_installed3.jpg

It took the better half of 6 hours to do all this for the dry times, etc. I'm very happy now though and cant wait to get the rest of the suspension on.


Later this week, I hope to install the ball joints, wheel bearings, reinstall the spindle and hub.. and await the new brake kit and coilovers :)

I'm still up in the air about getting gachiri braces for the fenders... Either way, once this is done, its getting put on the ground and towed to the body shop for the rest of the paint and body work. That should be around April/May :)

[Whizbang]

great progress!

[rotorhead87]

That's looking great, I wish I would have dropped my front subframe and repainted the whole thing like you did. Your definitely gonna appreciate your work dedication in the end. I can already imagine what your gonna do that 13BRE, its probably going to be one bad SOB.

[WE3RX7]

Thanks guys - I havent decided if I'm going to bling the RE motor out or go w/ a more "flat" appearance...

Small update: I looked at the car today before heading off to work. The POR15 once fully cured, "dulled" just enough now so it is a true semi-gloss. It looks really good and its seems tough as nails when I tried to scratch it!

[vex]

very nice

[MaczPayne]

Looking good! Love your attention to detail.

[rotorhead87]

Right back at ya with the 5 stars...I love how all your progress is coming out so nicely. BTW I want your MS brace!!!!!!!!

[WE3RX7]

Its funny, I really cant find the part number. I have receipts for it, but no part number, just says "MS Lower A-Arm Brace FC3S, $175".... I believe I actually ordered it from Corksport. I think if you contact them, they could probably give you more details.


Here's another shot of it from the underside, kinda dirty though, need to wipe it off!

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/mslowerbrace_installed2.jpg

[WE3RX7]

The agony of not working on this project!!

I am sitting on funds for my new home - but as soon as thats over with after the weekend, I'm shopping around for body shops to complete my project's paint! I'm hoping by the end of April to have the new coilovers installed and hang the "refreshed" hubs on it. I wont be adding brakes until after the body shop is done though!

In the mean time, I'm shopping around for a good block to begin the engine build and collecting some misc interior parts, etc.

Should be fun...

[WE3RX7]

I bought my home on March 28th. April has been a wash (as far as the project goes) as I attended DGRR and the Bosch 250! I did get the coilovers but haven't installed them as of yet. I hope to have updates within the next two weeks though as the car needs to get on the ground to be towed to its new home :)

Still plan to get it off to the body shop in the next few weeks though and I've got some goodies on the way to share (in the form of photos... dont touch :) )

[vex]

You should totally delay it going to the body shop so I don't look as bad as I actually do.

[WE3RX7]

Well I'm up in the air on who to have do the body work, so it may wait until June, etc. I'm also still waiting on a few exterior items that I'll need before it goes to paint.

I'm a long way from having my car on the road, so you'll have some time to bask in the glory for a while :)

You should come out sometime when you get the car done, my new place is off Ira Hoffman. You can come check out my car and we can pick apart should haves and could haves about our rides, lol...

[vex]

for sure! This summer is going to be hectic as poop though. We should definitely meet up on a weekend or something and I can drag along my fiancee. :lol:

[WE3RX7]

When are you all getting hitched?

We'll get Jon over with his 8 and wife and the women can all hang out inside and talk about kitchens or something, lol....

[vex]

we're getting hitched aug 7th.

[WE3RX7]

Ok - so it's been a while since I've had an update.

Unfortunately, amongst moving, wedding plans, and other commitments - I'm not where I'd like to be on the body shop situation. Mainly, I can't figure out which hood I want to go with.

While dwelling on these aero decisions, I've decided I should wrap up the rest of the undercarriage of the car.

In the next few weeks I plan to strip the under belly, remove rear end, rear suspension, etc and install all new bushings, coat the under belly and trans tunnel with lizard skin's ceramic coating (over top of POR15).

I will use this time to drop the gas tank, refinish it and add a sump setup.

This will also be a good time to look at installing a new LSD and cooler. When all of this is completed, the entire underside of the car will be done, so when the car goes to the body shop and comes back, I HOPEFULLY won't have to have it lifted so much and the rest of the work can be done w/ the car on the ground (mostly).



Here are some shots of the most recent work to include the new coilovers up front, my new homemade workbench will should save me lots of headache, and of course a little idea of what RX8 styled wheels would look like on an FC. (Actually, I used these for measuring to order my new wheels/tires - I can go 255 up front on +45 w/out rubbing so it would seem - more on this once the suspension and steering is buttoned up)

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/stance_1.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/stance_2.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/stance_3.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/new_garage4.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/workbench_hub.jpg

Also - it would appear that to get the MAX adjustment on the camber plates, a little grinding will be in order. I wont do this until the car is close to done and ready for an alignment. I'm hoping my setup will not need me to go to those extremes...

[vex]

I don't think you need to grind it. You can move closer cap screws to a hole closer to the other one. That should give you full adjustability and range on the Coilovers.

Edit: I just realized that made no sense at all. Move the screws a few holes over. You shouldn't have any interference problems from the looks of the pictures.

[WE3RX7]

I see what you mean... I wasn't thinking about it that way, lol... so simple.

[MaczPayne]

Yup, that's how I have mine. I have full range of adjustability from that.

[TitaniumTT]

Yup. Easy -2.5* doing it that way. Unless you're running Rcomps you dom't really need more than that. What kind of racing are you planning, Bill?

[WE3RX7]

Its for time attack open class with NASA Mid atlantic.

I was so tired when I was putting them on it didn't even dawn on me to move the screws as vex mentioned - although, in reality, as you said w/ the R comps I wouldnt really need it and i wasnt going to grind until finish everything else, so I'd like to think I would have caught that before hacking into my towers...



A small update, I got the hubs cleaned up and ready for the new bearings, got side tracked stripping my jeep down today :) no more top and doors til labor day!

[TitaniumTT]

With the R-comps, I have no experience. From what I've read though they like more negative camber than the streets. Some say as much as 3.5*. I have a set, but I was going to save them until a track day. Depending on which class they stick me in next week will determine whether or not I bolt them on. We'll see. Right now I'm running about -2.5* with my Azenis. I think I can put a little more in on the track, but for the street they seem about right.

Kudo for real racing

[WE3RX7]

Yup - I'm in NASA-X right now w/ my 8 refining my skills since I haven't really race in a few years and I'd like to get the feel back for it. My goal is to complete six NASA-X events this year, at least HPDE1 and then do HPDE2,3,4 next year and apply it towards getting my competition license for TT events. This way, when the FC is ready to go, I can do some test/tune days at auto-x and jump right into the TT events at my own pace... should be fun.

[WE3RX7]

I feel like time is going by entirely too fast these days! Getting married in just over a molnth, keeping up with the auto-x schedule in the 8 and absolutely slammed by work (day and moonlight job)... but even still, I have some updates.

I was hoping by now to have a much better update, but with the delays at Shine on body parts and getting parts surfaced shipped from RHDJapan I'm still not as far along as I'd hoped.

What I have done though, is completed the rebuild of the front suspension, steering knuckle, ball joints and rebuilt the hub.


Very pleased with how its coming together though and my OCD isn't getting in the way too bad - I only double checked the torque settings on every nut/bolt twice, lol..

I'm expecting the RHDJapan order to be in next week, so I can finish off my steering and some misc items... who knows when the rest of the body parts will be here... I'm hoping by end of September, but we'll see.

[WE3RX7]

Here are some shots of the hubs. New hubs are entirely too expensive and finding 4 lug versions is even more difficult. SuperNow makes a nice set, but only in 5 lug and I'm keeping to my plan and staying 4 lug.

Original hub once I pulled the bearings:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_a.jpg

The original bearings and races were actually in good shape, but I replaced them anyway. I followed the write up on Mazdatrix, but they leave some details out. Long story short, get a good strong bit - a dremel and sharp punch. You need the sharp punch to get the large race out as its difficult to get behind it. I didnt take pics of my notches that I cut, but its best to make the large. I used a normal grinding bit to clean them up. VERY IMPORTANT for the new races to sit down flush as possible.

Hub before removing races/cleaning:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_c.jpg

Another shot of the outer race... these have 112K miles on them and are damn near perfect... but I pulled them anyway and replaced with new:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_d.jpg

Original spindle:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_e.jpg

I cleaned the spindle up (soaked in gasoline, wirebrushed and then coated w/ three coats of rust proof gloss black). You can see the cleaned hub underneath it with new races installed. I am getting another set of spindles from a friend of mine to modify (more steering angle still) and will powdercoat those set:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_b.jpg

Installed the refinished spindle:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_f.jpg

Installed the new ball joints:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_g.jpg

Installed the new repacked hub and dust cover. I didnt snap any pics of packing the bearings.. at this point the SLR went inside and my old digi cam came out - that grease is nasty shit to have around expensive electronics! Side note... I ended up packing the bearings by hand instead of a bearing packer, hand worked better:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_h.jpg


The drivers side is the same deal... no need for pics on that one.

As with the entire project, every bit of hardware was inspected, cleaned and recoated as needed. I also modified the stock brake dust shield as you can see in the last pic. The new brake rotors will measure almost 12" and the stock cover is for 10.2" rotors... Once the new brakes come in, I'll have to find a handy tig welder to make my new dust covers. I want to integrate a cooling duct into it as well...

[WE3RX7]

Those nasty stock tie rods and steering crap is what I'm waiting on from RHDJapan.. That'll come in the next update.

I have collected another part of the project... my dual oil coolers! These are from the old '04 RX8 I had which is now a parts car. Honestly, you can buy new oil coolers and rig something up, but I've found these coolers worked well on the '04 8 (which was boosted as well) and through my autox days with my 8 now they seem to do well too. Tried and true is good enough for me. And they make fan kits for these now. I got the brackets, lines, etc as I'm not sure just yet what parts I'll need to make it all work. I love how Brian did his on his FC, but I'll have to see if I can route mine similarly or not due to charge pipes...

A little cleaning and these should do great:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/090822_i.jpg

[vex]

Can't wait to see it!

As soon as my wife gets a job I'll be able to pick up some new parts to finish up the engine bay/get it where I want.

[TitaniumTT]

As with the entire project, every bit of hardware was inspected, cleaned and recoated as needed. I also modified the stock brake dust shield as you can see in the last pic. The new brake rotors will measure almost 12" and the stock cover is for 10.2" rotors... Once the new brakes come in, I'll have to find a handy tig welder to make my new dust covers. I want to integrate a cooling duct into it as well...


What the hell man! Did I tell you my plan for the brakes over the winter? :suspect:

[WE3RX7]

What the hell man! Did I tell you my plan for the brakes over the winter? :suspect:

I dont believe so, lol. Let me guess - wilwood 4 pot?

I actually spoke to Wilwood about 5 months ago about designing a kit for my car, then fastbrakes.com released their kit but in 5 lug. I contacted them and they said as long as wilwood makes the rotor hat in the 4 lug, they can supply the kit to me and it was a few hundred less than wilwood wanted direct, so yea.. it'll be good.

I am going to run FD rear brake calipers and custom wilwood rear brake rotor... that will probably all happen over the winter...

[WE3RX7]

Can't wait to see it!

As soon as my wife gets a job I'll be able to pick up some new parts to finish up the engine bay/get it where I want.

I thought your wedding was later this month! Cool man - we'll definitely have to catch up again and see how the cars are coming along...

[WE3RX7]

Its been a month and no update - wow. With guys like Brian (and his buddy's T2) and Sean building sick FCs, I feel like a huge slacker now, lol.

With my wedding a week away, I knew I wouldnt have time to get any large projects started on the car until late October, so thats where I am. In preparation though, I've been collecting parts and they are slowly trickling in.

My steering parts from URAS and SuperNow are in so I can complete the front end rebuild (the steering rack was the final step), some odds and ends here and there (tow hook, mirror plates, etc). I've got lizard skin ready to be laid down, my buddy is checking out a car in GA for me that will hopefully have the clean black interior I'm looking for and deposits have been paid for the new hood and bumper, etc.

IF this car makes it to DGRR 2010, this is how its going to happen. If any part of this timeline should fail, I will not make the deadline.

End of October - steering rack rebuilt, installed with new Supernow & URAS parts

End of November - completed undercoating of the entire car and lizard skin on the interior

End of December - car bodywork completed and painted

End of January - new interior from donor car installed, along with new roll cage

End of February - engine torn down and rebuild begins

End of March - engine assembled and in the car, accessories installed and EMS wired


Realistically, I'm doubtful this project goes so smoothly... its been almost 7 years now and every time I build the car, the engine rebuild drags on due to bad parts or something goes wrong with the bodywork! It should be ready for DGRR 2011 though :)

[WE3RX7]

Just some shots of the parts, nothing too exciting... I'm just glad they showed up now versus while I was away on vacation since they MUST be signed for.

URAS inner tie rods with built in spacers. These guys are BEEFY! I'll compare them to stock ones when I pull the stockers out.
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/URAS_innertierods.jpg

Another shot of the spacer... very well built IMHO.
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/URAS_innertierods2.jpg

SuperNow adjustable outer rods
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/supernow_tierods.jpg

SuperNow titanium tow hook. It was hard to find one that I liked and wouldnt involve much interference with the front end for the FC chassis. The pics dont do it justice either, its actually a really nice part - just doesnt come with hardware which would have been an added bonus!
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/supernow_towhook.jpg

Finally, in this box at least, some mirror mounts from SuperNow. I love the F1 style mirrors and these brackets should do the trick to get some mounted to the body for me :)
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/supernow_mirrors.jpg

The of the stock pile is just supplies (por, lizard skin, etc) no glorious shots for ya!

Cant wait for the wedding and honeymoon but the fact that I get to work on the car again in October makes me happy!!

[TitaniumTT]

:lol:

Lay down the car law EARLY. As soon as you get back from the honeymoon, drop the bags in the front hallway and say, "Hun, I need a sammich and some time alone with my mistriss." And just walk away. Maybe let her catch you in the garage with your pants around your ankles :rofl:

Congrats Bill.... on the upcoming nuptuals mostly. The pile of parts looks pretty badass too. Digging that towhook

[FC3S Murray]

Yeah Congrats man!! I wish you two the best.

Your timeline makes me smile. That looks like what I had one paper when I got back from Iraq. Those damn hic-ups slow you down but also seem to educate. I hope you get it all done bro.

MAN those Supernow parts are sweet ass sweet.

[TitaniumTT]

So Bill......... you gonna cut the honeymoon short?

J/K - congrats man.

[WE3RX7]

Ah - I'm back already... and hating every minute! Water was 84.9 degrees in St. Thomas!

I spent a bit too much on those damned duty free islands, but I should still be able to make my October goal, I'll get back into the swing of it this weekend and post some updates :)

[FC3S Murray]

Now get to work!!!!

[WE3RX7]

I'm really due for an update.

First off. The honeymoon was good, minus the flu I caught on the way down. After recovering from that, I came home to a shit storm at work (hate being the only one who knows how to do anything!) - once I caught up on that I had minor surgery and then of course, holidays.

Putting it kindly - I'm behind. There were some issues during the work being performed that have put me a back a bit too.

I'm roughly one month off from the timeline I set in the earlier threads.

For my update though, I have accomplished October's tasks and SOME of novembers, not done undercoating yet and havent started the lizard skin interior.



For starters... I've rebuilt my steering rack following mostly what I got from flyin miata's writeup and Brian's thread in the FC section (http://rotarycarclub.com/rotary_forum/showthread.php?t=7900&page=3).

Some snags along the way would be the c-clip holding the quil cover down broke... had to order one since they dont stock a 44mm c-clip anywhere!

Secondly, dont have a TIG welder. Needed some m12x1.25 set screws to block off the holes left in the quil housing. Again - they dont stock those, they had to be ordered.

Other than that - it went smoothly. Here are some shots (sorry not as many - but the work was fast and messy). Busted out my old digi cam for these, so the pics arent great.

Here's the URAS inner tod rod comparison to stock:

I pulled the old ones off w/ outer rods in place (later removed but kept old inners for "extras" just in case)
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/steering_rack1.jpg

Here is the big different between the URAS and stockers. Note the extra height in the URAS version on the left (adds additional steering angle) and the material is much stronger.
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/steering_rack2.jpg

Just another angle (sorry, I know they are terrible pics)
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/steering_rack3.jpg

Steering rack ripped open, bushings removed, line connections cut off and welded shut.
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/steering_rack4.jpg

Rack during painting/cleaning. Still hadnt received the set screws yet:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/steering_rack5.jpg

New steering dust boots:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/steering_rack6.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/steering_rack7.jpg

Putting it back in the car (still hadnt received new c-clip yet, so this pic isnt a "finished" shot).
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/steering_rack8.jpg

It was around that time I smashed my hand in the steering linkage and stopped taking pics... lol.

I'll get some extra shots tomorrow. Hope to have interior completely out next weekend for lizard skinning and the rest of the rear out to finish the undercoating...

[TitaniumTT]

Nice progress Bill. Timelines are lame, even though I always impose them on myself and pull all nighters on a monthly basis when I'm elbow deep in a pj. Glad the write up helped.

How are you doing the undercoating and what product are you using? I need an undercoating.... for a roof rack of all things... and the Herculiner is pretty aggressive and has more of a gloss than I would like for my rack. I'm thinking I remember the Rhinoliner being less aggressive in grit and the finish more of a flat black. So, which are you using and how are you applying? Rotisserie and a shutz gun I hope ;)

[2gslse]

LOL... Hey Bill looks like good progress BTW I'm looking into the cabins for DGRRX this weekend

[WE3RX7]

I'm undercoating the Herculiner w/ a foam roller (2") from Lowes :)

I'm havent started the lizard skin yet but plan on using a gun for that one... I dont have enough room under the car unfortunately to get accurate/clean sprays using a gun so I'm going at it nice and slow :(


I'll have some better updates soon. Work gave us a week off between xmas and new years so I plan to get some things knocked out. Unfortunately, I have some garage things I need to do - like get a better/larger heater and clean up some old boxes that I dont need any longer. I would like to have the rear section undercoated and done by then and start cleaning on the rear suspension in preparation for new bushings/paint, etc.

Looks like the bodywork wont happen until late january going into february now! Ah well. I'm just siked to be two months from getting an engine in the garage! That alone will be a long awaited step!

[TitaniumTT]

Hey Bill, I just used the Herculiner on the plastic molding on my XJ and found some interesting shit out about it. The supplied brush leaves the most amount of texture. Too much for my fender flares. A standard short nap paint roller leaves much less. An Epoxy roller - something that you'd find at a hardware store if you're lucky or a marine store for sure will give you the least amount of texture. You can actually roll out most of the texture with that type of brush. A shutz gun gives alot of texture but the coverage isn't as good as with the roller.

The Lizard skin doesn't really suffer from the covereage problem as much as the Herculiner. It seems to want to run and pool more so be careful with that.

After all that's been said I plan on rolling both on my FC and spraying both on the FD. Reason being is that the paint onthe FC is done and if it strays, I'll have to kill someone.

[WE3RX7]

I guess since my car is in the January ROTM contest, it calls for an update. I still have not fixed my good digi cam's lens, but I dug out the old school one for some quick pics.

These are some teasers, but sorry Brian - you'll have to wait for the "good" ones, lol. Got really side tracked the last few weeks.... lots of back and forth and waiting and research some things.


No further adue...

Single handily, the largest package ever received for my FC:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood_bumper1.jpg

It has all finally arrived, the new bumper:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/bumper2.jpg

Quickie hood shot... more on this in a second:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood2.jpg

[need RX7]

Yessssssss :icon_tup:

I don't know how I missed this thread before. I read through the whole thing last night, I love it. Very impressed so far, and it looks like it's about to get even awesomer :001_005:. if I could travel 3 or 4 days back in time, I'd vote for you instead of myself in ROTM :rofl:.

[2gslse]

Do you think the radiator will cool the car? I don't think that is enough airflow :)

[WE3RX7]

I want to preface this next bit really quick with a disclaimer...

I am in NO way trying to create a flame war or cause Shine Auto any harm, Ken has been easy to work with and given the nature of our community and in general, most shops, his customer service is still good.


Now, as most of you know I was early on the list for their CF Panspeed hood and have been waiting for quite a while on it. When making my full payment, I was notified that they had my package all ready to go and it would ship immediately - no receipt and no tracking number within 24 hours so I was a little concerned as Ken is usually really great at getting me these things (had no trouble getting my fenders from him). He notified me the next day that their billing system was down and that I needed to replace the order. Done. 7-10 days for delivery, cool... a week goes by, nothing, another week and I email looking for a tracking number since I was having it delivered to a warehouse and wanted to give the guys some sort of heads up.

No response to email, so I call on a Friday to see whats up. Ken answers, very polite and eager to help - said he'd check on it and get back to me in 5 minutes or so... no call back. Following Monday I email again following up only to find out that there was some "miscommunication" and they didnt have the twill weave hood but in fact the plain weave and that they went ahead and made a new hood for me and got it shipped right out... very fast turn around, all was well... only that I did request plain weave and not sure where the "twill" weave conversation started. No big deal, as I actually like the twill better now seeing it in person....

Long story short, I get the hood and its got this:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood_defect.jpg

Need some thoughts on this as it stood out to be a pretty big defect to me right smack in the middle of the hood (in front of the scoop between the headlights).

Now, again -I think Shine is wonderful for offering these hard to find parts and would still recommend them to anyone. The hood had no damage in shipping and was quick to get here once it was shipped. Considering some things I've seen from other vendors, Shine is still a good group of guys.

I will be bringing this to Ken's attention to see what we can work out though as I feel that I've been more than flexible and patient and expected better from them...

What do you all think, I'll try to get some better pics of it (hard to do w/ the clear coat)? I'm limited experience with large CF parts as this is only my second CF hood and most other CF products have been fairly small....

[WE3RX7]

Yessssssss :icon_tup:

I don't know how I missed this thread before. I read through the whole thing last night, I love it. Very impressed so far, and it looks like it's about to get even awesomer :001_005:. if I could travel 3 or 4 days back in time, I'd vote for you instead of myself in ROTM :rofl:.


Lol - Thanks man.. this thread gets burried easily since I'm a slacker at updates :)

So many little things go on that dont really justify an update and then sometimes weeks go by that I dont get time to work on it at all. I did however manage to build an addition to my workbench and get my new benchgrinder/buffer installed :)

[WE3RX7]

Another angle of the hood.
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood1.jpg

I'll take some more pics shortly. I need to weigh the individual parts too (an OCD thing I do with all parts). The hood/bumper/light covers/packaging only weighed 40#s though, so I'm already really happy!


Also, need to make new brackets to replace these:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/bumper1.jpg


I will probably integrate a new brace/mounting bracket for the FMOC system that ducks under the headlight buckets. Still working on hashing out the intercooler and getting the rear pulled apart (been really procrastinating on that one, it was a PIA the last time I did it, but practice is perfect I guess)

[TitaniumTT]

I want to preface this next bit ... with ... given the nature of our community

What, you mean tightwads???!?!!??? :smilielol5:

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood_defect.jpg

Need some thoughts on this as it stood out to be a pretty big defect to me right smack in the middle of the hood (in front of the scoop between the headlights).

What do you all think, I'll try to get some better pics of it (hard to do w/ the clear coat)? I'm limited experience with large CF parts as this is only my second CF hood and most other CF products have been fairly small....

Impossible to repair. They rushed and when the layed the CF didn't roll it out enough. Now, having never built a carbon fiber piece in my life I could be wrong, BUT I do have DECADES of experience working with fiberglass, I'd imagine the process is the same.

Here's how you build from a mold

Wax the EVER LIVING SHIT out of the mold. Spray your gelcoat. They probably didn't spray the gel, I wouldn't, I would go strait to the next step. Roll on a coat of of epoxy, wait for it to start to kick then roll on another coat, once that starts to kick you lay down the matte, or in this case, CF, then roll on another coat of epoxy. Repeat as necessary to get the strength that you want. Once it's fully kicked, break it free from the mold and you have your part. Hoods and other pieces need to be done in two different sections and epoxied together. Once that's kicked is when I would clear coat it. HOWEVER, it may not be an automotive clear coat, it could be just strait epoxy. I would've done the clear though for UV protection.

I'm curious as to what the backside looks like though.

So, I'm sorry to say, there is no repairing that. Now, I would go through the list and talk to a few other guys that have this hood in the CF and see if they have anydefects in that area. Two things could have happened. The hood was moved and the CF sagged, OR, the material didn't stretch and move enough in that area becuase of the contours. I'm inclined to say they rushed and didn't see it, or saw it after it was too late.

Sorry Bill, other than that, the hood looks MUCH better than I would've expected.:icon_tup:

Also, need to make new brackets to replace these:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/bumper1.jpg


I will probably integrate a new brace/mounting bracket for the FMOC system that ducks under the headlight buckets. Still working on hashing out the intercooler and getting the rear pulled apart (been really procrastinating on that one, it was a PIA the last time I did it, but practice is perfect I guess)

I'd be VERY curious as to how you're going to do that, I want pics and designs, like now.

[WE3RX7]

I didnt think they would be able to repair that one at all, lol.. I just wanted another set of eyes to say "yup.. that aint right" lol. I'll talk to Ken shortly and see what we can work out though since I do plan to order more stuff from him. Unfortunately, I believe I may be only one of two or three people who have this hood in CF. It goes back to the "tightwads" comment.

I do love the hood though overall... its PERFECT for a custom part with only that little exception. The hood will get recleared with the rest of the car, so I'm not too concerned just yet with their clear.

[WE3RX7]

Do you think the radiator will cool the car? I don't think that is enough airflow :)

Nope - need a bigger hole :)

Actually the design is pretty tasteful, and it should be functional compared to the other reverse vent hoods I've seen.

Now the question is... do I stick with my FMIC plans and try to wedge the FMIC, FMOC, ducts and all in the front end, or go VMIC?

I really wanted the reverse hood for the radiator moreso than the intercooler, but now its got me thinking....

[TitaniumTT]

Reverse VMIC. Mount the rad and duct it to take advantage of the hood and use the bumper for the intercooler.

Only problem would be potential coolant flow. People who know how WP's work will understand. might be a cool experiment though.

[WE3RX7]

I'm not sure I'll want to play guinea pig on that one... Although I still may end up running an electric WP setup, who knows. I havent fully hashed out all the engine details just yet... All I know is I'm using an RE half bridge single turbo :)

[WE3RX7]

Got in the garage tonight to button up some items on the steering system, get the car on the ground, etc so I could work on the interior easier.

Long story short I snapped some extra pics of the car....


First thing, the second vent over the exhaust: not a real vent (for now).

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood_scoop2.jpg

This will be modified to be functional when the rest of the body work is done.


The main vent:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood_vent.jpg

The underside (sorry its not a great shot):
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood_underside.jpg

All together back on the ground:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/hood_bumper2.jpg

[WE3RX7]

Additional details on the parts:

Hood weighs 17lbs
Front bumper weighs 10.5lbs

My total front end body parts (hood, bumper, fenders) now weigh 34lbs. The stock steel hood the SE came equipped with is 57lbs alone. I'm on the right track to my goal of under 2600lbs total!

[MaczPayne]

Nice, keep up the good work :)

[WE3RX7]

Without getting into TOO much detail about my status of the project, I need some wheels :)

My original plan was to run the Gram Light 57C Pro, but they no longer offer the gold centers in the width/offset I wanted in my 4x4.5 bolt pattern... so I moved on to my second choice which were the Work Meister S1 - issue here being they dont regularly sell the gold centers, but I contacted them and they said they can still do the gold, but the turn around is much greater.. and I need them quicker.

So, I'm shifting priorities a bit. My plan has always been to have both a set of 18" street wheels and a 17" set of track wheels. So I'm going to go for the street wheels now since I need them and they are cheaper :)

My current options are:
Rota D2 18x8 +25 up front, 18x9 +30 out back
http://www.rotawheels.com/images/products/d2_2.jpg

Rota P45R 17x9 + 25 up front, 17x9.5 +30 out back
http://www.rotawheels.com/images/products/p45r_2.jpg

5Zigen FN01RC Hot version 17x9 +20 all around
(no pic)


A few things I'm hung up on is that only the D2 is available in the 18" size in gold (yes, gold) that I want to run. It will most resemble the Work Meisters when I get them (almost identical in appearance) - but I'm not sure that I want to have two sets of wheels be the same basically (I know the difference in quality, weight, etc which is why I want the works for the track setup but I dont care about that when driving on the street).

The other two wheels are more "bronze" and a different design so they would allow me to have different looks on the car at different times.

All wheels will let me run a decent tire for the street compared to the power I'll be putting out. I'm also not planning on running spacers for the street, but will if needed.

Thoughts? I'll need to get these within the next month as well to move forward with the current phase of my project...

[FC3S Murray]

I say if you want the "chrome dish" look go for the D2's. I honestley would have went this route if they would have offered a 17'' rim wider then 8''.

HOWEVER the 5zigen hot version in Bronze look bad-ass on blue, just less bling.

Either two would be sick, I am a fan of chrome lip though soooo......:)

[WE3RX7]

The chrome dish is my preference, but I still plan to use the meister s1s for the track in the gold/chrome finish so I wouldnt mind the FNs, they were actually my favorite wheel for a long time and I tried getting them for my rx8 last year but they were almost always out of stock (so I ended up with Enkeis which I love now).

I will need to place some phone calls next week to vendors as its difficult to find the Rotas in the size/offset I want online other than on Rota's website... The FNs are currently "simple" to find although we'll see when I go to order if I decide on them. I could always get the Rota D2 as the reg wheel and use the FN 17s as the track wheel, they are fairly light and strong....

[WE3RX7]

Moving servers, so the pics may disappear briefly :)


Maybe being locked down for this blizzard will allow me to get a few updates done to the car. Right now its just been a bunch of cleaning, preparing and stripping. I did manage to get the RB front sway back on. I'm going to have so much suspension tuning to do when this car is done!

Currently working on:
- Removal of rear sub frame
- Cleaning of fuel tank / prep for exterior restoration (no rust currently so I'm NOT coating the inside of the tank, just going to thoroughly clean it)
- *cough* custom brakes *cough*


I've also made up the list of new bushings, links, etc that I need to order up soon so that can get under way. IF all goes to plan, the underside of the car will be completely coated and done by end of Feb... bunch of misc things as well that I will keep under cover for now :)

More to come...

[rotaryextreme]

Go with the ROTA's.

I love this car so much. Outcast says it best "so fresh so clean"

If I didnt have my heart set on a 10AE I would make my car like yours.

Can wait to see the finished photos.

P.S. I am making a VMIC kit for the FC. Will be done around April. I'll open it for sale with a GB.
You will be able to see it installed on an RX7club forum members 10AE. I'm sure he will give his honest input.

What ever you decide, it will be awsome when it's done.

[WE3RX7]

Another VMIC system for the FC huh? I'll definitely be interested to see what you come up with... per my PM, I'm still up in the air as to which way to go. It really is going to come down to room and ducting capability.

Is there a thread somewhere talking about your kit?

[rotaryextreme]

I have an FC vmount interest in the RX7club forum.

but per the PM we just exchanged, I really like your set-up, that can work just as well. From what Ive seen a FMIC works great with the radiator sitting under the vent in the vented hood, also I have seen best results using a pusher fan on the bottom of the rad. Explained in PM...lol.

The Vmount for the FC can be used with and without a vented hood, but it works better with a vented hood. A top mount radiator MUST have a vented hood. Thats the main difference in the two.

Ben

[FC3S Murray]

You ever decide on your wheels yet?

[Max777]

18x8 +30 offset?

Isn't that a little too high? I know for a fact that people can easily fit +15 offset wheels on the back with a mild pull and roll. Or are you trying to go for a set of same size wheels all around?

[WE3RX7]

I havent decided fully... the +30 will need spacers to be flush and not rub probably. I can make them work...



On the downside of things, i broke my left forearm on saturday and will be in a hard cast for 6-8 weeks. This blows my next few races and may change how DGRR goes too... kind of sucks....

[2gslse]

Bummer! at least its the left not right. This year you won't get a sunburn on it in the window

[WE3RX7]

I might if Im riding instead of driving....

[WE3RX7]

A shot of the damage..

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/wv12.jpg

hard cast tomorrow... if all goes well, the cast SHOULD be off by april 15th... dgrr is my reward, lol.

Anybody want lend the hand I lost, lol? I have a crap ton planned for march and april on both the rx7 and rx8....

[vex]

...So... What happened?

[2gslse]

He was talkin smack to his wife and the last thing he remembered was "Talk S*it get hit" :) She prob told him its OK if you tell your buddies you fell down lol... I'll call you billy.

[WE3RX7]

He was talkin smack to his wife and the last thing he remembered was "Talk S*it get hit" :) She prob told him its OK if you tell your buddies you fell down lol... I'll call you billy.

I couldnt hit her back... she's preggers, lol.



I got rocked at the terrain park snowboarding at snowshoe on saturday...

[vex]

Psh, wimp. You could have totally just walked that off.

Snow boarding, HAHAHA.


Crap back to compressible homework I go.

[WE3RX7]

When are you back in culpeper tyler? You should come by sometime...

I'm thinking about doing some kind of local mazda meet...

[WE3RX7]

Just a quick observation, but it looks like the rx8 fmoc will not work. The bungs are simply in the wrong place! The cost of making them work isnt worth it over buying different coolers...

[WE3RX7]

Wow - March 4th was my last update??? I really am a slacker.

I cut back on the amount of work I put into the project the last several months for sure, but no worries, this is the project that never ends :)

I spent a good portion of time working on my rx8 getting it ready for some events that ended up getting canceled due to lack of attendance :( I'm pretty bummed out by that one... it sucks seeing the motorsports in our area take a dive. I'll toss up some updates in my rx8 thread though highlighted that work... now onto the FC again.


I am still toying around with a few different parts of this project. Right now focusing on trying to get the interior squared away. I actually picked up another FC for parts in hopes that it'll finally put an end to my search for good interior parts. The rest of the FC will be parted out most likely to fund a new daily driver project (FB).

I will get some pics up shortly of some of the progress on this car. With the slowing race schedule this year, I should have more time to devote to the cars themselves! Things will move slow through the next few weeks as I'm on vacation and building a new nursery and deck/patio.. so with all good luck, I should still have the interior 75% there by August and the car to paint sometime shortly thereafter. We're expecting our baby girl in October so after that I will begin building the engine.

I completely blew away my original timeline for this year (dont I always??) but am still hopeful that DGRRXI will be possible for the FC.

Time will tell, lol.. pics to come...

[WE3RX7]

As mentioned, I did get another FC with the mindset of having a complete black interior to swap over to mine. I have searched high and low for a REALLY clean and COMPLETE black interior. Its a lot harder than some may think, so others looking to go this route, if you find a deal... TAKE IT!!!

I bought this '90 Coupe with the intent of swapping interior since the pics looked great and the price was right. Now that the car is in my possession, I'm a little weary. The interior is in great shape for 184K on the clock, but it is worthy of my project??? It has no cracks, tears, etc.. even the grills are in good shape (for now, we'll see if they'll survive the removal) BUT its a bit dry and has very minor MINOR blisters on the top of the hood. Still the best I've seen thus far and rumor has it there is a compound that can refresh it a good bit...

So, here is my issue. Do I swap this interior in, use it as is (minus the seats and carpet, those will be new) and then keep an eye out on better parts in the future? The interior is somewhat holding me up right now, so I need to move on it I guess. Then, I could part the rest of the car out, and scrap the body (or sell).

Or....

I could simply rebuild the NA engine for cheap, get a door and fender (already have a source for them), slap a DIY cheapo spray job on her and daily drive it for a while... commuting in the RX8 is brutal (105miles a day) and this would be a good beater and get better MPG... I just don't know. I really want an FB my buddy has instead since I'd like to have each generation...

Thoughts? We'll see how it plays out over the next few days. I plan to have a FS thread on the entire car, part out thread and a WTB thread on a used NA engine. Whichever happens first I guess is what I'll do.

Here are some pics.

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/driversside.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/rear.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/interior3.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/interior2.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/interior1.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/engine_bay.jpg


Here's the damage, completely repairable though (replaceable):
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/passenger_side.jpg

[2gslse]

Hell Bill the car actually looks better than what I thought it would. I say cheap DD with forsale sign untill FB is roadworthy

[vex]

hmmm, I may take you up on the engine depending on the price...

[WE3RX7]

I did put a FS thread up on the "other" forum to sell the car as a whole... we'll see. I'm giving it two weeks. If somebody takes the car off my hands all together, great... if not, no sweat... I'll keep on truck'n.

[WE3RX7]

Hell Bill the car actually looks better than what I thought it would. I say cheap DD with forsale sign untill FB is roadworthy

Only catch with that is where do I build the FB, lol. I suppose I do have an empty spot in the garage, but I like to keep one bay open for maintenance on the cars that actually run :)

Sell me your original 12A from the other car and I'll drop it in at your place and its all set ;)

What do you want with a pidly 'ol 12A when you got that monster RE to drop in!!?

[2gslse]

I still don't know what I'll do with it. it will prob be the best thing to do with it otherwise it may become an industrial strength paperweight.

[WE3RX7]

See, now we're thinking, lol....

It doesn't really matter to me either way - I thought maybe you'd drop it in the Repu or something? If you do decide to sell it, I could use the original 12A as a core/rebuildable unit later.

We'll figure something out, no big deal...

[2gslse]

If I ever get to the REPU it will be a proper 13b in the hole it has been shamed once before in its life with a piston engine and then back to the rotary.

[WE3RX7]

Yet another non-entertaining update. My main project hasn't been touched in about two months now. Baby stuff took over and its been hectic ever since, in a good way. With about 65% of the home projects (building a nursery, fence, etc) I'm looking forward to more time with my main FC in the fall.

I've given it some thought and it looks like the body parts will go into the basement for the winter and I'll hold off on the bodywork until yet another year (spring '11).

My quest for the perfect interior has turned a full 180 back to my original plan of not installing interior at all. I like the "idea" of interior but the "function" loses me for a track car. All this car will have is the dash, seats, center console and custom door cards. The rest of the interior will be soaked up by a cage and fuel equipment, coolers, etc. IF I decide to do interior later down the road, I can add it in around the safety equipment, etc.


So... why do ask do I keep saying my "main FC" :)

Behold the new beater...
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/87rx7.jpg
1987 Bone stock sport model. I put some vert wheels on it today with newer rubber and its all set. Plan is to just drive this until its dead with no real modifications. I want to park the RX8 for the winter and focus on my main FC, lol.

The nice touch here is that this car is also fairly straight w/ little rust so when I complete my main FC, SHOULD I put it in a wall or otherwise total it, I'll have a nice transferable path to this one.


And yes, I still have the 1990 coupe, please... somebody take it away, lol!!!

[vex]

I'll take the ENGINE.... and Maybe the Right tail light. But I'm poor and in college, and I still need to put my 7 into the shop to get some actual exhaust welded up.... speaking of which.... CRAPAPPAPPPPPP! I forgot to grab my exhaust ticket to pay it today.

[WE3RX7]

Nice... Well, I'm pulling the engine out and probably selling the body separate. If I don't have cash in hand so to speak by the time the engine is out, I'm just pulling all the S5 stuff off, the engine, etc and getting the body towed out of here....

I'm just going to tear the engine down to see what's good and whats not and probably rebuild it for the S4 someday. I need the rebuild practice anyway since its been a few years....

[RotorDad]

Don't send it to the grave yard!

[vex]

Lol, I may have to swing by once I get my car together and tuned. I need to pick some parts from the car...even if you are taking the engine.

[WE3RX7]

Looks like a guy in MD will save the car from destruction. He's coming on Saturday morning to pick the car up. Sorry T - no parts for you! You should still bring the car by once you get it tuned though, lol...

[vex]

NOooooOoOOOoOOOOOOOoooooo... well at least it's all going to a good home. How's your 'other' projects coming? I'll have to update mine when I drop my car off to get my new exhaust welded up...or just right now.

Honestly though, let me know if you come across another FC you're going to part out, I need a few odds and ends that the dealership no longer sells.

[WE3RX7]

I will have a new update on the real project soon enough. Been busy with the nursery setup, etc but they has been some progress and I hope to have even more in a few weeks. Right now its another phase of parts gathering, not a lot of installs, etc.

You should come by at some point, let me know what parts you need and I'll be sure to source them. I know of at least two parts cars right now not at my place, but easy enough to get to.

[Sharingan 19]

Nursery....FC....I see no reason why this has to be two seperate projects ;)

[WE3RX7]

Teaser exhaust pic for the SE. Can't wait to get the undercarriage done and all back together to start putting the shiny parts on!!

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/88s_n1duals.jpg

Plan right now is to get the fuel tank situated, finish getting all the tar out of the car and finding a good upholstery guy... once that is done, I'll pick up my engine and start the engine build. That should be more exciting then looking at undercarriage pictures of a 22 year old car!

[vex]

Teaser exhaust pic for the SE. Can't wait to get the undercarriage done and all back together to start putting the shiny parts on!!

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/88s_n1duals.jpg

Plan right now is to get the fuel tank situated, finish getting all the tar out of the car and finding a good upholstery guy... once that is done, I'll pick up my engine and start the engine build. That should be more exciting then looking at undercarriage pictures of a 22 year old car!

Those look ear bleedingly loud.

[WE3RX7]

Yea.. on an NA car, I would never use them, but they are fine w/ a boosted application. I loved this exhaust when I first saw it years ago and always wanted to run it. Something "dark" about dual angled mufflers spitting bright yellow flames....mmmmmm..

[2gslse]

Hey Bill, time for some progress on the beast.I expect to see some updates now that you have 2 extra hands to help out.

[WE3RX7]

Lol - yup. Wheels are spinning as you know... I need to come up with my game plan now that the FC (First Child) has made her debut.

If I do end up going the "new route" I will probably just post a single pic and leave it at that, it would spell out the plans nicely :)


As of right now, I'm planning to install new rear bushings (everywhere) and get the rear suspension on the car by the end of November. Depending on if I shift gears on the powerplant I may snag my wheels for now too... lots to do, but I've got the time for now.

[TitaniumTT]

Lol - yup. Wheels are spinning as you know... I need to come up with my game plan now that the FC (First Child) has made her debut.

Congrats on that Bill! Does the new rotorhead in training have a name?

If I do end up going the "new route" I will probably just post a single pic and leave it at that, it would spell out the plans nicely :)


As of right now, I'm planning to install new rear bushings (everywhere) and get the rear suspension on the car by the end of November. Depending on if I shift gears on the powerplant I may snag my wheels for now too... lots to do, but I've got the time for now.

ummmmmmmmmmmmm wut?

[WE3RX7]

Time will tell... dont wanna say anything unless it happens :)


Her name is Avery... my buddies at work have dubbed me "The Labelmaker"

[WE3RX7]

One bit of detail I have decided on is the turbo. I'm going to be using a slightly tweaked S362 Borg Warner from Tims Turbo. Its nice that the guy is localish :)

[WE3RX7]

A post worth posting finally.

It would seem like I might have a good powerplant for the FC now. Unfortunately, its not the RE I was planning on.

I've actually returned to the original swap plan, and I'm going REW. I have my reasons and both RE and REW have pros and cons. What I'm looking at now though is that this engine might mean I'll have a running car again within the next 12 months, lol.

Pros are - couldn't pass up the deal on the REW block, no issues with sleeving housings (looking at you B :) ), more support, more parts OTS and ultimately a quicker build. Cons of course being a little less power and response, but hey... REW still makes great HP and leaps and bounds over the 13BT in the earlier cars.




I got the engine from a guy who is going LS in his FD (from the "other" forum), so I feel as I'm balancing things out to the car gods.

The car had only 46k on it in 2006 which "unknown" mileage until now but most likely had around 60-70k on it. The motor was running when pulled from the car but I did have to drive a total of 9 hours to acquire it.

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/rew1.jpg

It was filthy, but just a quick spin feels like the engine's healthy. I can only go on what the previous owner stated which was before they pulled it, it was boosting and was "as fast as his evo" so I don't believe the engine to be weak.

Started the tear down process to get it on the stand and came across a little "gem".

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/rew4.jpg

If my research proves correct, this was an early reman engine. Most likely in late '93. That being true, this engine "should" have less than 60k or so miles on it and hopefully good/reusable internals.

I haven't torn it down yet, but plan to after xmas.

For now, it sits just like this:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/rew2.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/rew3.jpg


The best part is, if I decide to sell off the stock twins, aftermarket dp, dual oil coolers and other misc parts from the engine I will literally have an almost free REW running engine. Can't beat that!




This is the first time in almost 3 years I've had an engine worthy of putting in the FC.

[WE3RX7]

As a friend just pointed out... the numbers above the RK93 could be a date 9/29/08. So I'm a bit confused and really have no way of confirming. Anybody want to try and shed some light?

Maybe it was remaned in '08 with used '93 housings?

[WE3RX7]

Uhg, wheels wheels wheels.... after talking to B again today my mind got jumpstarted back at looking into the track set of wheels for the FC project. I'm still needing to wrap up the rear suspension and undercoating before I dive into rebuilding the engine, etc but I hope to have the car set around DGRRXI as far as underneath goes. Looks like the summer I'll spend rebuilding the engine, getting the cage in and probably paying off bills, lol :)

Anybody deal much with CCW for wheels? I'm looking at these right now:

http://www.ccwheel.com/img/wheel%20profiles/display/wheels/Classic4/photo_full_1.jpg

They look like a great wheel company and they offer any size, offset, and multiple color combinations, so thats a win in my book. I've emailed them for specs on the wheels and am just waiting to here back...

Need to get pricing on a panasport C8-17 as well...

[2gslse]

Ccw!!!

[one320fc]

I hate you.... I love those wheels!!!

[diabolical1]

quite the impressive build you have there. i'm not sure how i missed it. i am particularly impressed with your work on the undercarriage. you have introduced me to a few parts (the tie rod stuff and LCA brace) that interest me for my own project (whenever i get to actually start working on it :)). not to mention the amount of time you have waited ... that, in itself, deserves special props. i wish you the best for your project and congrats on your marriage and child. good luck.

[WE3RX7]

Thanks Diabolical1... I will be happier once the car is back on the road. I'm cool with however long it takes though.

The LCA brace from Mazdaspeed may be hard to acquire now, but I'm pretty sure other manufacturers still offer a similar bar. You can also look into finding a convertible subframe, it has the extra brace already built in.

[TitaniumTT]

or or OR.... you could weld in a crossmember to mount the REW and then sell the MS bar ;)

I've seen this car in person and the care that went into the floor of the garage is more than some people put into their entire builds. She'll be a beaut when done.

[WE3RX7]

I've seen this car in person and the care that went into the floor of the garage is more than some people put into their entire builds. She'll be a beaut when done.

You actually remember the floor!!?? I swear I thought you were in zombie mode by that time.


Yea, I need to kick my own ass into gear. Maybe I should unload the black FC and just use that to get my wheels, lol... hmmm that means RX8 returns to daily duty :uhh:

[TitaniumTT]

I was :rofl: But I put one of those 2 part muscle gloss floors down in my garage I remember the PITA that it was....

And you still need to show me the stash of parts in teh basement too don't forget.

What color did you paint her? IBM from the FD's?

Speaking of wheels.... I gotta call ya tomorrow to talk about your wheels and more importantly... what goes behind them :suspect:

[WE3RX7]

Yea, give me a ring.. .I'll be painting an FB engine bay so I should be around..

Its hard... wheels are so much $$ but so are what goes behind them!

[WE3RX7]

Ok.. a little update. Now that winter is through and I'm making headway on the RX8 I can turn my attention back into this car. I've made it through the christmas holiday, having a baby and all the taxes so I'm free and clear :)

I hope to update this thread more frequently in the coming months and things will hopefully move faster now.


I didn't go with the CCW classic for now. Those funds are being held towards, um... "other" parts that go under the fenders ;)

BUT... that being said, I still needed to get some wheels so I can move forward with getting the other parts and get the car on the ground. These wheels will be the track wheel, thus keeping the CCW's in mint shape for photo ops :)

This has been an all time favorite wheel of mine, even tried getting them for the rx8 a few years ago but they were sold out then.

So here it is. The track setup.

17x9 +20 5Zigen FN01RC Hot in Titanium. Same on all four corners. I'm still debating on tires, but it looks like with the right adjustment a 255 should clear fine up front.

In the rear, a 275.

Here are some shots for you...

Simple, yet sexy:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/fn0r1c_hot.JPG

From inside, as you can see, I've actually got a decent amount of room. I have to cycle the suspension some more, but I should be clear (I'll be stoked to get a 255 up there):
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/179_20fr.JPG

A shot from the top. Again, the suspension is hanging right now, but still, its flush with my wider fenders:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/179_20fr2.JPG

Mmmm... can't wait to get the rest of the car done. Its funny how a simple wheel can excite a man:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/179_20fr3.JPG


As for other updates... The rear end is currently under construction, suspension, gas tank restoration, etc.. that should hopefully be all wrapped up around end of April, then the car goes back on the ground, gets interior attention, then off to the welders for the cage, then home again for a while.

I have started the teardown of the block and will get some pics up shortly (sorry none now, I have a present in the garage I'm trying to keep hidden for a few more weeks but it keeps popping up in my pics). I'll get pics up shortly...


Oh, finally - Brian, you'll hate me, but I'm using the engine adapters for the REW. Talked briefly with Ryan at Shook and he states it will take 500ftlbs tq to deflect .030" at the mount. I'm good with that.... If they brake or ungodly rigid, I'll change it up...

[TitaniumTT]

Ok.. a little update. Now that winter is through and I'm making headway on the RX8 I can turn my attention back into this car. I've made it through the christmas holiday, having a baby and all the taxes so I'm free and clear :)

WTF you talking about Homer? Winter ain't through! I'm getting more snow tonight damnitalltohell!!!

I hope to update this thread more frequently in the coming months and things will hopefully move faster now.

Uh huh... I've heard that before ;)


I didn't go with the CCW classic for now. Those funds are being held towards, um... "other" parts that go under the fenders ;)

:rofl: That being said, we're on schedule for that little bit of hardware. Brian should have the upright in his possesion right now. I spoke with him yesterday and his sched is clear so hopefully we'll see movement on it real soon.

BUT... that being said, I still needed to get some wheels so I can move forward with getting the other parts and get the car on the ground. These wheels will be the track wheel, thus keeping the CCW's in mint shape for photo ops :)

This has been an all time favorite wheel of mine, even tried getting them for the rx8 a few years ago but they were sold out then.

So here it is. The track setup.

17x9 +20 5Zigen FN01RC Hot in Titanium. Same on all four corners. I'm still debating on tires, but it looks like with the right adjustment a 255 should clear fine up front.

In the rear, a 275.

Here are some shots for you...

Simple, yet sexy:
findtuners.com/FCProject/fn0r1c_hot.JPG

From inside, as you can see, I've actually got a decent amount of room. I have to cycle the suspension some more, but I should be clear (I'll be stoked to get a 255 up there):
.com/FCProject/179_20fr.JPG

A shot from the top. Again, the suspension is hanging right now, but still, its flush with my wider fenders:
\findtuners.com/FCProject/179_20fr2.JPG

Mmmm... can't wait to get the rest of the car done. Its funny how a simple wheel can excite a man:
FCProject/179_20fr3.JPG

Sexy indeed! I likey, love the CCW's though but good choice putting those off for ummmmmm other things.

Fitting a 255 up front won't be a problem at all with that setup. I run a 17x8+35 and can clear with a 235 just fine. Add in the extra clearance you've got and you should be good to go. I'm thinking about putting a 255 in the front of my car, but I would need a small spacer I'm afraid. And at that point I might be touching the fender. Not a big deal in the front, but a big deal in the rear

Are you running stock bodied rear? You MAY have a problem with the 275 in the rear. Again, if this is before bodywork, I'd bolt the thing on, cycle the suspension and adjust the sheetmetal accordingly. Should be aight though. I'm hoping, as I want to do the same thing.

As for other updates... The rear end is currently under construction, suspension, gas tank restoration, etc.. that should hopefully be all wrapped up around end of April, then the car goes back on the ground, gets interior attention, then off to the welders for the cage, then home again for a while.

I have started the teardown of the block and will get some pics up shortly (sorry none now, I have a present in the garage I'm trying to keep hidden for a few more weeks but it keeps popping up in my pics). I'll get pics up shortly...

hmmmmm, pics of secret things... was this there when I was?


Oh, finally - Brian, you'll hate me, but I'm using the engine adapters for the REW. Talked briefly with Ryan at Shook and he states it will take 500ftlbs tq to deflect .030" at the mount. I'm good with that.... If they brake or ungodly rigid, I'll change it up...

It's not the deflection of the steel mount adapter that's a problem, it's the deflection of the rubber mount being loaded in a way that it was never designed to be that concerns me. And if you run with a solid brick of Al, hockey pucks, or even 2x4's, all the stress if now on the mounting stud. You've basically created a lever using the weight of the engine, trans and all the torque and vibrations that come with it. As I see it in my head, it's a bad idea and you should by me a bottle of vodka to come down there and weld up a subframe for you.

[TitaniumTT]

Oh, new year.... should I alter the thread title? :rofl:

[WE3RX7]

Lol.. the secret part is a garage warming "gift" for a buddy of mine.. it was there when you were here, but wasn't ready and I didn't really point it out,lol.

For the mounts, I'm using Mazdacomp parts... bit stiffer than stock rubber, but not solid. If for no other reason then being the guinea pig, I'd like to try the mounts. This REW will not put out the overall power I was originally aiming for and god knows its not a torque monster, so we'll see. Half the crazy shit I've seen on mounting engines, I feel like this will be ok, lol.

If not... you can have the first "told ya so" and I'll buy you a shot... :)



Glad to hear on those "other" parts too... I'm ready to roll...

[WE3RX7]

Oh, new year.... should I alter the thread title? :rofl:

Lol... actually, yea.. its been like two years since the thread began! I actually started this build in 2002, so its technically now 9 years overall that I've been working on the car. Completed it first in 2004, then started the build up again in 2005.. so its 6 years on THIS build...

I told Whit, I HAVE to finish the car by DGRR 2012. It'll be the official 10th year of actively building the car, pretty sad really... but oh well, its better than a lot of other addictions, lol.

[TitaniumTT]

Lol.. the secret part is a garage warming "gift" for a buddy of mine.. it was there when you were here, but wasn't ready and I didn't really point it out,lol.

For the mounts, I'm using Mazdacomp parts... bit stiffer than stock rubber, but not solid. If for no other reason then being the guinea pig, I'd like to try the mounts. This REW will not put out the overall power I was originally aiming for and god knows its not a torque monster, so we'll see. Half the crazy shit I've seen on mounting engines, I feel like this will be ok, lol.

If not... you can have the first "told ya so" and I'll buy you a shot... :)



Glad to hear on those "other" parts too... I'm ready to roll...

Yeah... I've been staring at my phone waiting for a call so I can send him lots of monies :D

I've got the MC mounts as well and they're good pieces.... but.... even mine are deformed from years of siting crooked on the Banzia mounts.... (maybe I should add build new mounts to my ever growing list of shit to do? Or maybe just buy them from RPM and save a day) I'm worried that the torque created by the weight of the engine pushing down on the mount and twisting it is going to pull the bolt up and out of the mount. Will it happen? Dunno... can it happen? As long as the car is shiny side up, yeah, I think it has the potential.

I like me some Kamikazies or Baby Guinesses ;)

[TitaniumTT]

Oh and fuck this winters over BS... I'm going outside right now to WINTERIZE the FC :rofl:

Lol... actually, yea.. its been like two years since the thread began! I actually started this build in 2002, so its technically now 9 years overall that I've been working on the car. Completed it first in 2004, then started the build up again in 2005.. so its 6 years on THIS build...

I told Whit, I HAVE to finish the car by DGRR 2012. It'll be the official 10th year of actively building the car, pretty sad really... but oh well, its better than a lot of other addictions, lol.

Soooooo I'm changing it to WE3RX7's NINE year build?

[one320fc]

Lol.. the secret part is a garage warming "gift" for a buddy of mine.. it was there when you were here, but wasn't ready and I didn't really point it out,lol.

For the mounts, I'm using Mazdacomp parts... bit stiffer than stock rubber, but not solid. If for no other reason then being the guinea pig, I'd like to try the mounts. This REW will not put out the overall power I was originally aiming for and god knows its not a torque monster, so we'll see. Half the crazy shit I've seen on mounting engines, I feel like this will be ok, lol.

If not... you can have the first "told ya so" and I'll buy you a shot... :)



Glad to hear on those "other" parts too... I'm ready to roll...


Dude your such an ass!!! :7: I bet you put that in there just so I would waste hours of time looking through all your post and pictures, I have now offically memorized your FC build and I can't figure out what it is:banghead:

[WE3RX7]

Ha... yea, its not in any pics on purpose, lol...

[WE3RX7]

Yea, so.... is it just me, or did front hub eccentric bolts get tighter in the last 5 or so years. This is now the 3rd motor in a row that the "normal" tools wont remove it. Time for some upgrades in the toolset I suppose...

[project86]

hooray for more tools!

[vex]

I have a nice impact gun (I think it's 140 ft-lbs)... as well as a breaker bar... and a chain wrench... if you can wait until I come up in may I can always let you borrow them ;)

[2gslse]

Bill, if you need any help I can break it or the iron :)

[WE3RX7]

Yea... I think my impact gun is officially worthless now. It didnt even break chris' FB flywheel nut loose and its never had that problem before either.

I need a good impact anyways...


T - chain wrench is cool, but I lock the flywheel down to the engine stand (the patented 2gsl-se "lets just break an iron" method).... I was hanging on the damn breaker bar and my 160lbs ass didn't budge it!

[2gslse]

Bill, you need to get the old lady and baby to hang on the breaker bar with you 160lb ain't gonna "get er done"

[WE3RX7]

Funny thing is... went to Chris' place... put a breaker bar on the flywheel and tried holding the front with another bar, his hub bolt came loose, lol.. It seems like the older the motor, the more willing that nut is to come loose...

Oh well, no more engine work til after DGRR anyway...

[one320fc]

Yea go figure my fat ass on the front pulley and him on the flywheel and my side came loose. :banghead:

[WE3RX7]

Size matters:
http://www.findtuners.com/forsale/500RonREW.jpg

[hades]

:biggthumpup:

[TitaniumTT]

Making up for something I see ;)

[WE3RX7]

Making up for something I see ;)

Sure am - your lack of single turbo. I figured I'd need a REALLY big one to balance out the rotary gods...

[2gslse]

I think it will work but you may want to hook up the anti-lag feature.
it will win our little dyno day HP challenge though but I will already have boost and be in 3rd gear before you get spooled-up

[TitaniumTT]

This is true.... next time you talk to Dave ask him about the time he and Jordan went toe to toe on I78. Dave in a stockish twin turbo and Jordan in his monster single FD. I :lol: everytime and know that I made the right decision.

[one320fc]

I think it will work but you may want to hook up the anti-lag feature.
it will win our little dyno day HP challenge though but I will already have boost and be in 3rd gear before you get spooled-up

That sounds like the biggest sexual disappointment ever!! :willy_nilly:

[WE3RX7]

Why aren't you at work! lol....

[one320fc]

You need updates now!!! My thread has been above yours for to long now.. gets to crackin and leave all those other cars alone. No FB for you till this is done!!!

[WE3RX7]

Ha... work is progressing, I'm just keeping my forum mouth shut for now, lol. Too many secrets flying around and people to mess with!

As soon as we get through July/August, I'll post some updates...

[TitaniumTT]

Lies..... you're just trying to buy some time so you can MAYBE bolt a few parts on............... slacker :icon_no2:

[Boosted FC]

Wow, outstanding build so far.

[2gslse]

OK the REW is cracked open. no more excuses.

[WE3RX7]

Did you even sleep when you got home??

[TitaniumTT]

Goooooood, gooooooooood....... I see my habits are wearing off on others around the rotary community. I myself was up till after 6 this morning and back @ work by 10

[2gslse]

Not much sleep I crashed about 3 and the clock went off at 3:53 after that it was off and on till 7:30 when I rolled out. have you inspected the parts anymore? they looked perfect to me last night but still need a good cleaning to tell for sure. Did Vex make it home OK?




Goooooood, gooooooooood....... I see my habits are wearing off on others around the rotary community. I myself was up till after 6 this morning and back @ work by 10

your habits haven't wore off yet we were up all night and not a singe can of redbull in sight. how have you been lately? must be insanely busy at work since you have been quiet here lately.

[WE3RX7]

I haven't actually gone into the garage today, lol. Got tied up with family drama pretty much all morning, but it's ok.

Vex made it home, I heard from him around noon or so today. We may try to hook up next weekend before he heads back south to measure some parts and work on his transition some more in the tune.

I'll work on getting the parts cleaned up this week.... primary focus is to get the rear end apart and the new stuff in there.



Still waiting on the brakes ;)

[TitaniumTT]

Not much sleep I crashed about 3 and the clock went off at 3:53 after that it was off and on till 7:30 when I rolled out. have you inspected the parts anymore? they looked perfect to me last night but still need a good cleaning to tell for sure. Did Vex make it home OK?

:rofl: up till 6, no redbulls either there newbie kitten ;)

your habits haven't wore off yet we were up all night and not a singe can of redbull in sight. how have you been lately? must be insanely busy at work since you have been quiet here lately.

Yeah pretty much, been working 13-14 hr days and going out till 2 am 6-7 days a week, wash rinsd repeat for the last 2 weeks. Starting to slow down slightly. Can't complain on the other side of it though.

I haven't actually gone into the garage today, lol. Got tied up with family drama pretty much all morning, but it's ok.

Vex made it home, I heard from him around noon or so today. We may try to hook up next weekend before he heads back south to measure some parts and work on his transition some more in the tune.

I'll work on getting the parts cleaned up this week.... primary focus is to get the rear end apart and the new stuff in there.



Still waiting on the brakes ;)

Har har ..... I'll see what cages I can rattle this week in terms of prices. All the part numbers went to wilwood, they probably got swallowed up somewhere.

[2gslse]

No updates??? how bout some pics of wheels? or porting pics?

[TitaniumTT]

I KNOW he's got new parts in :suspect:

[WE3RX7]

I may get some pics up this weekend.. Brian you will love my port job. Its almost done.

As for the other parts.. I'm still waiting on a few more pieces before throwing pics up. Lot of work left to do on the other parts of the project too. I'm going for the wow factor on the amount of pics lol... Keeping up the element of surprise.

[WE3RX7]

I KNOW he's got new parts in :suspect:

You mean THHHEEEEESSSSEEEE parts???

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/ww_caliper1.JPG
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/ww_caliper2.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/ww_caliper3.JPG

Teaser :) More to come... on vacation for a bit though, so I'll hold out on you all...

[TitaniumTT]

I may get some pics up this weekend.. Brian you will love my port job. Its almost done.

Uh huh.... we've been waiting for a while now..... tap tap tap

I'm going for the wow factor on the amount of pics lol... Keeping up the element of surprise.

How many sexual references can I make before someone gets in trouble? :willy_nilly:

[mazda244]

im a noob whats a jspec

[WE3RX7]

im a noob whats a jspec

Jspec or JDM commonly refers to the engines imported from Japan. So if you have Jspec motor, its just a used motor that came from a car in japan, shipped here and installed in your car. If you're like most jspec or JDM engine users, you'll also know that a jspec really means junk. A hard lesson many have learned.

[WE3RX7]

Uh huh.... we've been waiting for a while now..... tap tap tap



How many sexual references can I make before someone gets in trouble? :willy_nilly:


Lol... well your going to keep waiting!

Oh and I got no swag to show off with those calipers... but I will definitely note the shop that hooked me up once I get them installed and have better pics.

[blackedoutFC3S]

What's the reason for the different piston diameters in the caliper?

Great build, I love to see people do everything and do it correctly. This is going to be an amazing car when it's done.

[WE3RX7]

What's the reason for the different piston diameters in the caliper?

Basically the pistons are tapered in size from front to rear (they get larger towards the rear). This is to compensate for incandescent material buildup on the pad that typically gets pushed to the rear - the larger rear piston will be able to compress better to overcome this. It gets more unified braking and pad wear.

The only real downside to this setup is the lug mount (which is factory as well) since it doesn't allow an easy change in rotor size since you'll have to create an entire new bracket every time you want to go up or down a rotor size.

Still though - these should prove to be great at bringing my best to a hault in a hurry.


Great build, I love to see people do everything and do it correctly. This is going to be an amazing car when it's done.

Thanks... its a very very slow process, lol. Right now i'm spending more time buying parts and working in the garage than online, which is probably a good thing, lol.

[TitaniumTT]

Still though - these should prove to be great at bringing my best to a hault in a hurry.


Just get some good pads on 'em. The rotor's and cali's are incredible. Repeated 130-60 braking for 20 minute sessions and zero fade. I should be able to overpower the dragon this year.

[WE3RX7]

I'm probably going to try the pads on the rx8 first.. Let it be my test dummy..

[WE3RX7]

So much progress I can't even take pics!!!

I got most of the motor prepped and painted and ready to be stacked. Should be together soon. Here's a teaser Brian....

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/12A_FullBridged.JPG

[2gslse]

Looking good!!! I expect to see a short block by the end of the week.

[TitaniumTT]

:smilielol5:

[WE3RX7]

What? Don't like my color choices?

[WE3RX7]

You laugh, but that rust is no big deal. Some wire wheels, elbow grease and owl urine is all it takes. Then, cover it up with some good paint and stack it.

I think it turned out pretty good regardless:
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/MCFB_REengine.JPG

[one320fc]

You didnt tell me you were that far along with the re-build you ass!! looks good, why the blue on the housings??

[BrettLinton7]

Great build thread, I just wasted half an hour at work to read it. Keep up the good work!

[WankelsRevenge]

Great build thread, I just wasted half an hour at work to read it. Keep up the good work!

A: Time spent reading this is far from wasted.
B: At least you got paid to read up on it.
Ryan

[WE3RX7]

Lol - thanks guys! It's been really slow going the last couple months, but there is actually some good progress all over I just haven't been big on taking the pics/etc in the process. I'll have a bigger update in the next few weeks...

[WE3RX7]

Teaser for TTT and for all those who slammed on the 4 lug for so many years. 5 lug FCs are for wimpy twin turbos or BNR upgrades :)

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/bigbrakes_rotors2.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/bigbrakes_rotors3.jpg
http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/bigbrakes_rotors1.jpg




These are some of the parts holding me up from moving forward in a big way and they finally arrived. I'll have some better updates later, but things should move quicker now :)

[WankelsRevenge]

These are some of the parts holding me up from moving forward in a big way and they finally arrived. I'll have some better updates later, but things should move quicker now :)

Thats better then me, I havent even gotten my FC yet and I allready have a huge list of plans for the project. O well leves me plenty of time for research and whatnot.
Ryan

[WE3RX7]

Nothing wrong with planning before you have the car, just dont buy parts for it until you have it, lol.. I've seen people do that before and never understood it...

I've had a lot of progress on the car, but without the brakes I wasn't able to check the wheel clearances, get them painted and get tires on it to put it on the ground, lol. This is a big relief now that the parts are here and I can move forward with the fuel system and the rest of the bodywork....

[WE3RX7]

Since I already posted this pic up elsewhere, I'll toss it up here. Still mocking up the brakes, but so far, I'd say I'm about 98% there...

I hope to have "far away" pics of all the work done before DGRR, but we'll see... too much going on (maybe not as much as some...TTT)...

http://www.findtuners.com/FCProject/ww_mockedup1.jpg

There is a TON of clearance on the wheels too, so the narrow caliper was the right choice. I don't think I'll have much to worry about with swapping out wheel/tires packages...