Naomi: Can't keep a good bitch down!
 

Each time I work on something I think about starting a build thread, but it seems like such a daunting task to document how i got to this point. Nonetheless it will only become more difficult, so I might as well start now....

I purchased this Naomi bone stock with 101k plain as plain can be...
http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-...3281_796_n.jpg
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http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-...8291_495_n.jpg
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First Mod... (actually it was a Personal steering wheel, but no pics of that)
http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-...091_5208_n.jpg

Second Mod...
http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-...081_5469_n.jpg

sweet Jesus ... that thing is clean!

thanks.


Despite appearing 100% stock for some reason this car had a walbro 255 installed. While this sounds cool, it is not on an otherwise stock car, and tends to cause hot start problems, smoking on start up and excessive pump noise pretty much all the time. I removed the Walbro and installed an FD pump. Problem solved.

Unfortunately Naomi also came equipped with ABS, which even when working properly, leaves much to be desired. This particular unit however had some kind of malfunction and would groan and croak while stopped, and randomly loose pedal pressure...no bueno.

Since I was removing the ABS, I decided to remove emissions as well and install an S5 turbo and manifold while I was at it since the S4 had started smoking.

Got a chance to take her to the 1/8th mile which my brother (74' Chevy nova 350ci w/ a turbo 400) and friend (07' Honda Fit)

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Not particularly impressive, but I beat the V8 running heads up, so that made my night. Of course he swore (still does actually) that if he had a manual trans and a posi he would walk me.....still waiting to find out on that one.

Very clean find. Reminds me of the condition of mine when I found it. Luckily mine came with blue interior though. What's next for it?

Luckily? Was that a bargaining point for a lower price :lol:
Blue interior in a turbo is actually kinda cool because its rare and doesn't look bad when new, but it doesnt age as well as grey or black....then theres searching for replacement parts. Lets not even get started on that awful 70's red interior. I passed up a car that was in great shape because if I had to look at a red interior everyday I would want to drive it into a wall.

Whats next?...........

Is she running yet?

Haha good point. The red interior is absolutely awful, I've seen a mint fb around my area that has red interior and only 70k on the odm. Due to the age and cleanliness of the car its acceptable in that case. As far as the blue in mine goes, I just keep the car covered up. It's being stored in the garage at the shop I work for right now. Normally my dd but for now I've got a Pettit engine, coilovers, and a vmount to work into it.

I was driving a 99 camry before this so for the first couple months Naomi felt like a race car......then reality set in as I chased a friend through the twisties in his miata and I was forced to come to terms with the fact that I was riding around on this.....
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No worries, I found a great deal on a set of Ground Controls on Tociko Blues. Certainly not a raceworthy setup but damn sure better than what I had both in terms of performance and appearance.

My buddy and his "what do you mean I put on on upside down" face...
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-f...7/P1270194.JPG

Preventing additional rust to the top hats
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Massaging brake lines into place
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A little closer than I was counting on......whatever we'll see if it rubs
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-P...7/P1270221.JPG

and......DONE
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-J...6/IMG00236.jpg

Looks good!

I have the blue interior in my TII as well, and it's almost all trashed...it's gonna suck restoring it lol.

Shameless plug: I've got two blue door panels if you ever need them.

I've got a set of Tein Flex coilovers for mine. I'll be putting them on soon as my rear struts are ridiculous looking as well. Installed a few sets on customer's cars and they seem very good on the Subaru chassis I driven. Hopefully they'll work well on the FC. Also your buddy has the face of pure confusion lol I guess he thought the top hat would fit like a... top hat? Gotta keep the cars classy

Got tired of the transmission being louder than the exhaust, so I started looking for replacements. I like the idea of going single (less weight and all). I'd prefer right side exit, but that seems to be rather hard to find. Theres the Apexi N1 but the can just looks cheap, the gt spec is cool, but its on the wrong side.

Anyways the fc looks unbalanced w/o duals the bumper cutout looks lonely :lol: . Racing beat is quality, but expensive (and from ebay I've heard, heavy). Decisions decisions.

I recomend the Apexi N1 dual system. An old friend of mine had one on a 240sx he had with a turbo KA motor in it and it performed awesomly. It wasnt too loud and it had a good sound to it. As for quality I know he had the car for quite a few years and it always held up.

Have you considered the Borla dual catback? That's what I've been running since 2000, and I'm very happy with it. All SS construction, very similar in performance, sound & quality when compared to the RB catback. After about 12 years on it there is barely any surface rust on any of the pipes, and the muffler cans & tips still look brand new. It is heavy though, but probably just as heavy as the RB or any other dual system.

The racing beat system is heavy for a reason. They use thicker wall tubing that piston engines don't need. Rotaries are not kind to their exhaust systems. My old REPU split the normal thin tubing muffler pipe when it backfired on lifting. Not to mention what it did to the muffler.:lol: I built a custom system on my 79, but it came out a lot louder than I was planning. For street use on a mild or stock engine the Racing Beat system is hard to top. I thought I could do it cheaper, I was wrong. The non-glass packed mufflers appropriate for rotaries all seem to be expensive. If you plan on large horsepower levels something else in the 3" or greater range would have to be custom built. That's even more expensive. My opinion only.

I don't doubt the quality or performance, I just don't like the design of the can from an asthetic standpoint, it just looks like a mass-produced stamped generic can.
I had not, but it sounds like another solid choice.

N/A's are probably tougher on exhaust than turbo, so I'd be more concerned about the quality of the downpipe than anything else. Even still, I've heard glasspacks on rotarys both n/a and turbo and they sound like ass, so there's plenty of heat to go around.

Found this advertised on Craigslist as "Greedy Rx7 mufflers" Needless to say I was skeptical...
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-z...reddy+PE+3.jpg

However, upon arrival I discovered an authentic Greddy Power Extreme Catback with Bonez midpipe for sale for $180!!!

To further sweeten the deal I sold my stock turbo exhaust for $50, and the midpipe (its for n/a) for $80.

I'd stick with duals. I have the Racing Beat RevII turbo back and I love the deep tone it has. It's not obnoxious and raspy but it is not a quiet exhasut at all. Also the quality is very good.

Edit: Somehow I missed the post you made with your Greddy exhaust... facepalm on my part and good job on flipping your stock stuff to lessen the blow. Is any of the piping rusted through?

Nope, only minor surface rust, a little sand paper, a little high temp engine paint and BAM! The stock downpipe has 2 cats in it :facepalm: and has angles which make it hard to gut. The main cat however got a nice hollowing out.

Replaced the stock turbo (s4) with an s5 unit. Equal sized twin scroll manifold versus unequal collected manifold w/ a switching actuator.

Also suspected the water pump was going bad

First Auto-X!
 

Moving right along.... decided to let the ole' girl run free and do what she was designed to do. Went to autocross with my brother (74' chevy nova) and friend (07' honda fit). Since it was my first time competing I was our first time competing we were placed in the novice class along with a C5 corvette, 00' prelude, na miata, crx and some other foolishness. This SR20'd coupe was NOT in the novice class....as a matter of fact it was trailer-ed in and running some pretty sticky tires.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5...7/IMG00301.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-U...7/IMG00305.jpg

And the results.....
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/--...7/IMG00302.jpg

Closest competition was actually the prelude, it had 2 drivers so I'm not sure which one put down the faster time, but it was almost a second back. Fun times.

Was that in Jacksonville this past weekend? If so youre right in my backyard.

Congrats on the results

Actually it was in Brooksville, a little while back. But I've been out to whitehouse before as a spectator (jax is buccaneer region scca btw). I plan to go back once I bake a few upgrades.

Thanks man, it was fun, but it wanted to run hot, so I messed to look into that.

Where are you located? I'm up here in ocala. Lmk of you ever need anything man!!

Im in Jacksonville most if the time. Im in Tampa fairly often though, with periodic trips to miami and occasional trips to tallahassee.

Actually, I'm looking to put together a hybrid turbo and I'd like to avoid paying shipping costs, so if you know of a turbo shop that can bore out the comp/exhaust housings that might be useful.

Evergreen turbos here in Ocala. Owners name is Charlie brown, he has rebuilt bunches of ht18's for us and does some sick hybrids with em.

Lol, awesome! I bought a t04b w/ a bad comp wheel for the propose of making a hybrid. I figure I'll have the comp housing bored for a 60-1 wheel and re-use the p- trim turbine wheel in a modified turbine housing. So I might have to drop off the parts next time I come through if the price its right.

How loud is the greddy?

Actually not that loud at all, granted I still have the stock downpipe and a gutted cat so take that for what its worth. But I still managed to shoot my first ever fireball leaving my friend's neighborhood.

IMO (and many others) the Greddy Power Extreme is the best sounding exhaust for an fc (turbo at least) out there. Yes, even better than racing beat. Its a shame they were so expensive/rare I wish there were more of these systems out there.

It was a great time , just enough to get me hooked. I'll definitely be back....unfortunately the same cannot be said for the stock waterpump which got progressively worse after all the high-rpm hijinx. Nor the stock oil cooler lines which let go after some sideways shenanigans...
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-j...7/IMG00234.jpg

A buddy of mine who is into photography decided we should do a mini photo-shoot in celebration of auto-x victory. A little clay bar goes a loonngg way...
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-7...Naomi+003b.jpg

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Next stop was the first ever Rotorfest in Kissimmee FL, The plan was to drive from Tallahassee to West Palm Beach to pick up a mountain bike I ordered on ebay, then head back up to Kissimmee and finally back , (roughly 1000 miles).

It was a great event, lots of nice cars and even got a chance to hit the dyno. With ambient temps well above 90* she made 177whp. Not bad for just a cat back I suppose.

There she is in the background...
http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/n...k/DSC02080.jpg
Full thread:
http://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=776699

So I was on my way back from Rotorfest wrapping up 1000 mile, 2 day road trip when my journey is cut short....

I was heading up a 3 lane interstate in the center lane. I decide I want to move into the fast (left) lane so I put on my blinker and look into my rear view mirror....

I see nothing, so I begin to move slowly across my lane to the left. As I approach the dotted white line (I can still see it out my driver's side window) I look into my side mirror and notice an SUV comming up pretty fast in the left lane.

No big deal, I turned the wheel back to the right so I stayed in the center lane instead of crossing into the left lane. As I did this I continued looking in my side mirror and noticed the SUV dart to the left (seemingly under control) . At this point I returned my attention to the road ahead of me.

As soon as I do I hear squealing tires.....I glance at my side mirror to see the grill of the SUV pointing sharply to the right (remember its int he far left lane..) I slammed on brakes .....but it was too late.

It hit the rear quarter panel, drove right down my door and hit me again on the driver side front quarter/bumper causing me to spin as it took us both off the right side of the road @ 70+ mph.

I ended up going backwards into a concrete drainage ditch and into a small retention pond.

The SUV continued across the ditch, up an embankment, into a fence, into a tree and turning on its side.

I helped a guy out of the passenger window (now the roof) and some passers by helped get 2 kids out. The woman driver (...like it would be anyone else ) had trouble getting out (due partly to the fact that the Explorer was on the edge of a hill) so they had to cut the roof off to get her out.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Q...7/IMG00359.jpg
RX-7: 1 Ford Explorer: 0
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It gets better... So after useless FHP gets done writing their "report" (which consists of names and vehicle info) I am allowed to leave. At which point I drive 50ft out of the concrete drainage ditch, up the side of the embankment and get within 4 feet of the road before the wet grass decides that's as far as I go. I then had to pay some jackass towtruck driver $50 to tow me the 4ft onto the road surface.

After that I DROVE another 30 miles to the next real exit and inspected the damage further.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Q...7/IMG00365.jpg

Unbelievable luck. Both the good in not being hurt and the bad in being the one she had to hit. Bad karma from your thread title? Hope the insurance company doesn't jack you around and things work out.

HA!

Not hurt....ok I'll give you that one.

Insurance was of NO help. Not only did they not pay me (no full coverage) they attempted to pay HER due to the way the laws work in FL.

Title Karma....not a chance. This incident is actually the reason FOR the thread title (This happened a little while ago, I'm catching the build thread up to current )

Took some pictures the morning after
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After driving another 100 miles back home it was apparent that something was awry in the suspension department; the steering wheel had to be about 45* for the car to drive straight, the slightest steering input made it want to jump across 2 lanes, and there was a slight vibration that I didn't remember from before. Suppose it could've been worse....I could've been paralyzed w/ a drop top explorer.....

Oh I remember seeing pics of the car like this before, I didn't realize it was the same one though. What is it with stupid ass people that can't drive for shit?? And I'd be moving to a new state that doesn't have stupid laws that don't pay the person that deserves to be paid.

So she was paralyzed by this?

FL, Insurance Companies, and dumb bitches who can't drive!
 

I was trying to avoid getting sidetracked with insurance details but alas it is unavoidable:

I don't have full coverage, so my insurance isn't going to pay me. She has insurance so I wouldn't even be covered by uninsured motorist protection.

Florida in addition to be a no fault state, is also a percentage liability state. This means that if this went to trial the jury would be tasked with determining who was responsible for what percentage of the outcome. For example they could decide it was 99% her fault and 1% my fault. Sounds pretty good right?....wrong.

#1 The dumbass Florida Highway patrol officer didn't cite her for the accident, they didn't even walk the scene and write a real report, and with no non-involved witnesses it becoms my word vs. the dumb bitch in a wheel chair who can't drive.

#2 Because she is apparently paralyzed, the estimate the lifetime value of her claim to be somewhere around $5M. So...
$5M - cost to fix FC = more than my policy.

Thus their solution is to offer to pay her the normal payout under my policy in exchange for her providing a written release of all liability. Which sucks, but what other option is there?