1987 Rx7 Turbo II - Engine Testing Mule
 

One of the reasons i love Colorado is that i can satisfy my desire for rally action. Between the CHCA, PPIHC and the numerous rally cross' and the CORE park up near Denver. I'd say this is a pretty good spot. And lets not mention the other back roads i can enjoy.

Since the engine in the Turbo II when down due to heavy amounts of carbon build up. I have decided to take the build of the car in the realm of dirt and gravel. A land where pavement is called Tarmac for really no good reason other than to sound elitist. A place where i can spray spectators will small rocks propelled by my spinning rear wheels.

So read along as i transform my Turbo II into a (hopefully) competent hill climb car.

So where do i start first?

This is the question that i have posed to myself. Its simple but the answer is somewhat complex. I'm 22, recently married, getting into an apartment to establish myself more in Colorado and trying to eventually buy a house in the next year or two. I am going to need a place to store this car, as well as my FB that is still in Ohio and probably another car or two. Additionally, i have tools and spare parts to consider.

So all of life's hassles aside. Here is my "current" plan of attack subject to change with out notice.

Phase 1: The engine.

Getting the car running and driving is my first goal. This will include tackling issues with keeping the car cool and maintaining a reliable state.

Phase 2: The suspension.

Once i can start to drive the car again, i can start figuring out what the suspension needs.

Phase 3: The chassis.

One of the single most expensive items is the roll cage. I want to go with an FIA hom. design so i wont have to worry about updating it every two or so years. Plus my confidence in the cage is paramount. I will be seam welding and reinforcing during this whole process.

Phase 1: The engine

After comparing cost of acquiring a "possibly" good, used engine to that of just rebuilding my engine. I am opting for the rebuild.

Additionally, i can rebuild the motor to make more power and be more reliable. So really its a better road to follow down.

So what is the outline of the build?

• NRS 2mm seals. (the big expense...)
• 9.4:1 rotors
• Street port (for simplicity and longevity)
• Various cooling tricks including a home brew coolant seal method.
• Misc. oiling mods.

the extras i will need will develop as i go. First things first, the motor will need to be pulled and broken down to see what is the status of the internals.

The reasoning for the named parts above is mostly due to my needs. I need low end power and more power everywhere. Between the altitude, the turns and the constant up hill climb, i need more power and sooner. The NRS seals should allow me to put out more power with less worry on engine failure. The 9.4:1 rotors should give me a quicker spool up and better off throttle response.

its seems the cage is going to run me just under 2000 dollars which is must better than another quote i had from another shop of about 3400 dollars (ouch) for the exact same thing but the welder im going to is superior.

Hoping to get the cage work underway starting in about two months. Mostly just finding a place i can get the stripped out so i can get it there way.

pictures of what your starting with??? and in works. sounds very interesting dont here too many rotaries going rally.
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ill get pictures of the how the car sits but i have not started the work as of yet. Trying to find a location to work on it. But this should develop fast.

these are the pictures of the car as she sits, right now.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...I/DSC02964.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...I/DSC02965.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...I/DSC02966.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...I/DSC02967.jpg

Looks like a nice clean base to start out with. I can't wait to see this thing get going, you don't see purpose-built race FCs very often. And I don't think I've ever seen a hill climb FC. Good luck. :icon_tup:


I like that Nova in the background of the first pic too:p

that it is. Its the neighbors. Actually there is quite a few "fun" cars in the area. Just off in the background there is a Corvair as well.

awesome! I love rally racing - keep us updated on the project.

Mine is going to become a group 2 class car when its done, but right now its in the developmental stages.


Michigan has some good roads, after all the Rally America season opens and ends in Michigan :)

I get to "rally" my awd a4 wagon through the snow come this time of year, waaaaay too much fun

here is some rotary rally history:
http://www.prorallypix.com/RX-7/rx11.html

Hill climbs are one of the events I plan to attend w/ my FC as well. They're put on by NASA and SCCA out here - I just have to drive to West VA, which isn't too bad.

Looking forward to the build - what part of CO are you in, looks like southwest??

I wish we had hills to climb here in IL, Michigan has more rolling hills. We only have a handful of rallycrosses for the Detroit region SCCA.

coloraod springs which is about centeral - eastern

Ha - I was off, oh well. Is the other FC (the black one) your daily or a donor?

the daily