When this project started had 9 FD's to tend to in various levels of need, been whittling that down by finding proper homes for them. Functionally this one was by far the runt of the litter, but I liked its potential so I decided to make it my daily and work on it slowly over time. My son is now 14, he has been getting interested in cars, and is a GranTurismo addict. So I decided to teach him the real thing. It kind of got out of control... and over the last 2.5 years we have put 27 rotary vehicles back on the road, that were likely headed in the wrong direction. Try to rescue them when possible, and one way or another find a better situation for the vehicle. Okinawa now has a fairly healthy rotary community now, like to think we helped that along. We have not been losing money on it(if labor is free lol), but sadly it would be very profitable to part them 90% of the time. Rotaries are getting very sparse here in Japan in comparison to what it was.
I sold the previous owner an engine with 29,000km's which he had installed a year before I bought it from him. He was never able to get it to run right, wouldn’t listen to advise… so he sold the car to me, so that I could fix it up. He gave me a break on the price because he knew I would make a real attempt to fix it, appreciated that.
The positve potential that I saw:
Strait frame with minimal rust (for an island car)
Rare Glass sunroof
126 psi on all 6 rotor faces
Brand new OEM 16 bit sequential control black box(rats nest)
RE Amemiya Mirrors
Good working A/C (mandatory when you live on a sub-tropical island)
The symptoms of the bad:
*Bellowed black smoke 50ft. into the air at idle
*Everything on the suspension was OEM orginal with 200,000km's of use
*Worn out 3.9 OEM dif still in from its automatic days made is annoying to drive
*Transmission first, and reverse grinding bad
*Thrust bearing noise
*Door windows did not work
*Sunroof did not work
*Radio did not work
*Drivers side door lock and handle was inop from the outside, so you had to open from the inside every time
*Meter assembly was intermittant
*Still had high mileage OEM AT radiator and single oil cooler so it struggled with temp with A/C on
*Both door panels were trashed beyond hope, along with several other interior bits
*Extremely loud due to fart can exhaust
*Crappy wheels with bald tires
*Paint was ok on outside but did not do the inside of the doors or hatch. Black original white repaint
Pic of the first day I got it:
Bad Clutch, Bushings, and Motor Mounts:
Lazy much?
Parts and repair specifics by item:
*Replaced OEM AT computer with Power FC, still black smoke, replaced tar covered OEM air filter with a set of Apexís, still black smoke, replace the spark plugs, coils and wires, still black smoke, replaced the MAP sensor with its year model appropriate version, still black smoke, replaced the 200,000km OEM cat and fart can with RE Amemiya air pumpless cat, and OOP dual tip Knightsports muffler(just as quiet as stock), now only black smoke when the engine is warm, reshuffled the 4 crossed wires under the intake to the various temp sensors and solenoids, FINNALY no black smoke. Then it was a matter of a few pulls before all the carbon flew out of the turbos, then it has been perfect ever since.
*Replaced OEM AT high mileage Radiator with 3 core copper Koyorad and new hoses
*Replaced OEM single oil cooler with OEM dual oil coolers
*Replaced 3.9 OEM diff with 1.5 Way KAZZ 4.1 diff, banzai brace, and poly bushings, now I don't stall if I stop on a hill
*Replaced bad 5 speed transmission with recently rebuild OEM one, and banzai brace with bushing
*Replaced OEM motor mounts with IRP street
*Replaced OEM clutch with bad bearings and super abrupt 3 puck with an EXEDY super single full kit and new bearings.
*Replaced ultra blown OEM 200,000km suspension with 1000km HKS HIPERMAX PRO set.
*Replaced every single A-arm, rod, and bushing under the car with a set from a MY2000 with 12,000kms
*Replaced OEM tow bars with RACINGBEAT version
*Replaced Both door panels, floor mats, and several other interior bits so that it is presentable
*Replaced OEM suede worn out drivers seat with OEM carbon kevlar type RZ tilt recline bucket
*Replaced bad OEM intake temp sensor with fast acting, calmed my floating idle when temp was mid range
*Replaced bad driver and passenger window switches and the flasher relay to get the window working
*Replaced bad sunroof switch, now it is good to go
*Replaced the bad radio with a functional one and replaced the speakers
*Replaced driver’s door latch assembly, so you can enter the car from the outside.
*Replaced fugly wheels and bad tires with AVS Model5's with Hannok tires 8J +45 235/45/17 front, and 10J +45 275/40/17 rear
*Replaced torn up 200,000km brake system, 17” OEM rotors front and rear, overhauled lower mileage rear calipers, new rear Project mu pads and brake lines, MAZDASPEED copy front brakes. Don’t usually like copies but they use the exact same caliper, and pads as the real deal.
*Replaced broken meter assembly with a hybrid collection I created. The lights on the automatic HVAC controls and switch are green, and aftermarket meters in green are very rare so I was very happy to find this KNIGHTSPORTS 300km/hr speedometer, the tach is from a 1999 RB with 2,9XX km’s while still keeping the oil pressure meter.
*Replaced the front bumper with an OEM 1999
Runs great, sequential turbos working, handles better than any FD I have had before, very happy with how it turned out.
Still working on the cosmetics, have some FEED side steps, RE Amemiya rear diffuser, bumper lip, and less dramatic early model MAZDASPEED spoiler that will get installed when I get it painted.
Seven of Nine
Linear Mode
