First rx8
08-10-2015, 12:36 PM
#1
Rotard420
Thread Starter
First rx8
Hey guy's im picking up my first rx8 next month. Not new to the rotary game. Have had an 88 rx7 for 2 years now.
List of what im going to do to it any suggestions would be great.
Bhr ignition kit
Coilovers& alignment
Lightweight flywheel
Stage 3 excedy clutch
AEM intakeported throttlebody
Aftermarket pulleys
Nitto invo, or toyo proxies tires
Drilled &slotted rotors,
Hawk hp pads
Axial flow short shifter
And that's all for now let me know what you guys think. Cheers!!
List of what im going to do to it any suggestions would be great.
Bhr ignition kit
Coilovers& alignment
Lightweight flywheel
Stage 3 excedy clutch
AEM intakeported throttlebody
Aftermarket pulleys
Nitto invo, or toyo proxies tires
Drilled &slotted rotors,
Hawk hp pads
Axial flow short shifter
And that's all for now let me know what you guys think. Cheers!!
08-10-2015, 03:20 PM
#3
Registered
Compression test first. before anything else. at all. period.
1. Yes bhr igniton
2. alignment yes, learn the car before destroying it with coilovers, also, go big or go home with those.
3. nope, sucks *** to drive.
4. nope, no car with ~120 FT lbs of torque needs a stage anything clutch. OEM or equivalent replacement
5. waste of money
6. bling, sure. not really needed
7. tires are always good and should be right after compression test and alignment
8. NO DRILLED ROTORS
9. HP+ squeal like hell, HPS are about as good as stock. not worth it IMO
10. Never used that one, might be nice, but unneeded as the throws arent THAT terrible.
11. Save all the money that you would waste on useless "mods" that work for other cars and put it towards a rebuild.
1. Yes bhr igniton
2. alignment yes, learn the car before destroying it with coilovers, also, go big or go home with those.
3. nope, sucks *** to drive.
4. nope, no car with ~120 FT lbs of torque needs a stage anything clutch. OEM or equivalent replacement
5. waste of money
6. bling, sure. not really needed
7. tires are always good and should be right after compression test and alignment
8. NO DRILLED ROTORS
9. HP+ squeal like hell, HPS are about as good as stock. not worth it IMO
10. Never used that one, might be nice, but unneeded as the throws arent THAT terrible.
11. Save all the money that you would waste on useless "mods" that work for other cars and put it towards a rebuild.
08-10-2015, 03:44 PM
#4
Rotard420
Thread Starter
Already driven a few rx8's one stock, one on coilovers so i know what want for that. Going with ksport, or stance.
Intake is for sound. Flywheel fo throttle response.
Short throw is probably last on my list
The 8 i drove with coils had the axial flow short throw. Only made for the rx8,mx5&s2k
Pulleys are just for bling.
And yes i will be doing a compression test first. And i want the clutch because i plan on either getting a jdm spec 13bmsp and porting it, or getting a 20b
Intake is for sound. Flywheel fo throttle response.
Short throw is probably last on my list
The 8 i drove with coils had the axial flow short throw. Only made for the rx8,mx5&s2k
Pulleys are just for bling.
And yes i will be doing a compression test first. And i want the clutch because i plan on either getting a jdm spec 13bmsp and porting it, or getting a 20b
08-10-2015, 04:00 PM
#5
Registered
I guess id rather spend ~$300 on anything other than intake sound is all.
I can see that, but ive driven ALOT of cars with a wide variety of aftermarket flywheels on them. Not a fan. Personal preference, but i can accept that. K sport arent terrible, im not sure what stance makes, KW V3's are very good, Cant go wrong with KONIs either, ive always been curious about the axial short throw.
Good to know that you know that. The speed source race set is the only one that really does anything, but you sacrifice drivablility. id wait then until you have either of those motors.
Word to the wise, knowing that your're from the RX7 community, the MSP engines are very different from the older 13Bs. They do not, and will not take porting like the old motors will. They are severely limited by the exhaust ports. A JDM spec short block is no different than any other one. They didnt recieve any special treatment or tweaking.
I can see that, but ive driven ALOT of cars with a wide variety of aftermarket flywheels on them. Not a fan. Personal preference, but i can accept that. K sport arent terrible, im not sure what stance makes, KW V3's are very good, Cant go wrong with KONIs either, ive always been curious about the axial short throw.
Good to know that you know that. The speed source race set is the only one that really does anything, but you sacrifice drivablility. id wait then until you have either of those motors.
Word to the wise, knowing that your're from the RX7 community, the MSP engines are very different from the older 13Bs. They do not, and will not take porting like the old motors will. They are severely limited by the exhaust ports. A JDM spec short block is no different than any other one. They didnt recieve any special treatment or tweaking.
Last edited by DAT2RTR; 08-10-2015 at 04:04 PM.
08-10-2015, 04:06 PM
#6
Rotard420
Thread Starter
The jdm spec msp was 250hp instead of 231. Thats the only difference that im aware of. But i am leaning towards the 20b because you can pick up just the engine for 4500-5000 and the msp is 3500-4500. Mind you that is with a trans as well
Im gonna try the flywheel and if i dont like it then i can always put the old one back in.
Im gonna try the flywheel and if i dont like it then i can always put the old one back in.
08-10-2015, 04:19 PM
#11
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I think you have some incorrect information, and some mistaken perspectives.
The "JDM" engines are the same engines as the "USDM" engines. Same thing. The power difference is literally just a difference in how they were measured. Zero hardware changes at all, only some emissions related software changes, none of which have anything to do with power (like different sensor checks, looking for which version of coil you are using, etc...).
And while we all love 20bs, you can swap in a 13b-MSP for $3,300+ shippng, a 20b is going to run you north of $20,000. Sure, the engine itself is only a couple grand more, but since none of the RX-8 stuff can stay... you need all of that, plus ECU plus fabrication, etc etc etc. There was a guy on here that did a 20b swap that said that his build is driveable, but he still isn't remotely "complete", and he is north of $50,000 into it.
Be wary of not doing your complete homework.
The "JDM" engines are the same engines as the "USDM" engines. Same thing. The power difference is literally just a difference in how they were measured. Zero hardware changes at all, only some emissions related software changes, none of which have anything to do with power (like different sensor checks, looking for which version of coil you are using, etc...).
And while we all love 20bs, you can swap in a 13b-MSP for $3,300+ shippng, a 20b is going to run you north of $20,000. Sure, the engine itself is only a couple grand more, but since none of the RX-8 stuff can stay... you need all of that, plus ECU plus fabrication, etc etc etc. There was a guy on here that did a 20b swap that said that his build is driveable, but he still isn't remotely "complete", and he is north of $50,000 into it.
Be wary of not doing your complete homework.
08-10-2015, 04:37 PM
#12
Rotard420
Thread Starter
Im not going to even attempt the 20b. For awhile. For now i want to see what i can pull out of the msp. Thanks guys. Also does anyone know if there is anywhere to get forged rotors for it? Just curious because i might boost it but i dont wanna run stock rotors for that. Thanks again
08-10-2015, 04:41 PM
#13
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Sigh.
Do you know why "forged" is a thing in the piston world?
Like forged pistons because cast pistons can break at lower stress levels. Forged rods because cast rods can break at lower stress levels.
The rotors don't break in a rotary. The part that breaks from boost problems are the apex seals, and there aren't any "forged" apex seals, and the strongest seals you can get still won't save you from anything that would break a factory OEM seal.
Do you know why "forged" is a thing in the piston world?
Like forged pistons because cast pistons can break at lower stress levels. Forged rods because cast rods can break at lower stress levels.
The rotors don't break in a rotary. The part that breaks from boost problems are the apex seals, and there aren't any "forged" apex seals, and the strongest seals you can get still won't save you from anything that would break a factory OEM seal.
08-10-2015, 04:44 PM
#14
Rotard420
Thread Starter
Thats odd because ive been told that the rx8 rotors are softer than any of the rotors in previous rotary engines. If that's not the case then thanks for the tip
08-10-2015, 04:45 PM
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"Softer" 
They are all aluminum. Slightly different shapes, but whomever told you that is blowing smoke your way. Probably an RX-7 guy that doesn't really understand what is or is not different about the RX-8. Or you misinterpreted the comment. The RX-7 engines could certainly hold boost better than the RX-8 engines, but it has nothing to do with "Being soft" on any part. Everything to do with the location of the exhaust ports.
They are all aluminum. Slightly different shapes, but whomever told you that is blowing smoke your way. Probably an RX-7 guy that doesn't really understand what is or is not different about the RX-8. Or you misinterpreted the comment. The RX-7 engines could certainly hold boost better than the RX-8 engines, but it has nothing to do with "Being soft" on any part. Everything to do with the location of the exhaust ports.
08-11-2015, 04:26 AM
#17
Former Sponsor
Welcome to the forum! Good luck getting your perfect RX8! Sounds like you have your plans all laid out for you! Looking forward to seeing the pics with the first mods. Keep us updated!
08-11-2015, 11:53 AM
#18
Welcome aboard.
It sounds like you have some reading to do, but I can appreciate the enthusiasm. It's your money, you can do what you want, but you don't need half the stuff on that list, not even if you were racing the car. And there is another list of stuff you might want for reliability that's not in yours.
Don't think it terms of what part/brand you want, think in terms of what problem you need to solve.
It sounds like you have some reading to do, but I can appreciate the enthusiasm. It's your money, you can do what you want, but you don't need half the stuff on that list, not even if you were racing the car. And there is another list of stuff you might want for reliability that's not in yours.
Don't think it terms of what part/brand you want, think in terms of what problem you need to solve.
08-12-2015, 07:43 AM
#19
Registered
Just to be clear, when we say "get a compression test" we mean before you buy the car. Done with a proper rotary compression tester, normalized for atmospheric pressure and RPM.
08-27-2017, 06:00 PM
#20
Rotard420
Thread Starter
T
08-27-2017, 06:35 PM
#21
No bueno, if those numbers are psi at 250rpm. It's going to need a new engine. However! That's a good negotiating point if you're willing to buy a low compression car with a good body, and then swap in a known good motor. It'll cost you more, obviously, but you're getting known good everything.
08-27-2017, 07:11 PM
#22
Rotard420
Thread Starter
No bueno, if those numbers are psi at 250rpm. It's going to need a new engine. However! That's a good negotiating point if you're willing to buy a low compression car with a good body, and then swap in a known good motor. It'll cost you more, obviously, but you're getting known good everything.
09-08-2017, 09:15 AM
#24
Rotard420
Thread Starter
09-09-2017, 08:29 PM
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Help
Hi, I am a first time 2004 rx8 owner... recently there were recalls so I set up a tow to pick it up. Next, I'm getting a call saying the it was turning but not starting (which I told the tow driver when he picked it up). They told me they couldn't do the recalls without fixing the problem. I gave them conformation to figure out what's wrong and they said something about The pcm and only the leading coils were working... right now im looking at 1618.99 and possibly another 437.00! I was told to let them fix it. I'm wondering if they have payment options or anything to get my car out sooner
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