TommoBedhair

Hi All,

Been looking at doing an R3 S2 Rear light and bumper conversion on my 2004 S1 RX since August last year, and just a few weeks ago I finally found a crashed R3! I made a start on the conversion today, took some pictures and I plan on doing a daily post on here as I could never find a DIY thread on here that notes the pitfalls and brick walls the conversion brings. Found a thread that an Australian chap posted that was really helpful, but the aim is for this to be a proper DIY. It seems that there is a myth going around that the fit isn't great on a conversion - but that really doesn't seem to be the case if you also fit an R3 bumper.

I need to get the rear bumper slightly repaired and sprayed, but before I do that I wanted to get the bumper alignment right which I did today. For the best fit I bought a pair of R3 S2 rear bumper brackets to ensure that the surface between the quarter panel and bumper was even - you can actually choose to use the original brackets but you will have a very slight raise from the quarter panel as the clips don't quite match up.

The next issue I ran into today was that the Exhaust is a lot higher on the S1 RX8, as you can see in the pictures. Because I have a Stainless Steel catback exhaust the process of getting a simple couple of bends put in the pipes is unfortunately out of the question - but apparantly you can successfully bend a stock exhaust into the correct place. With my Stainless exhaust they will have to cut the pipes, and re-weld them onto the box...and due to it being Stainless I will also have to take it to a welder that has the kit to weld stainless. Nightmare, but I know it will be worth it!

Tomorrow I should have the lights fitted and it should look like it's coming together more! Ignore my stock alloys also - I won some R3 alloys today and they'll be fitted by the time the rear end's finished.

Any questions, feel free to ask! Once the rear end conversion is complete I'll be working on getting front end parts to do a full R3 conversion.

RXeligion

I guess my question is: Why? Does an R3 just look better to you? It seems like a lot of work for???

TommoBedhair

It's a mixture of reasons really. When I saw an R3 at a local RX meet I was in love with the rear lights - in comparison to the S1 especially. But I also like a challenge, and the overall goal is to convert the car to an R3...I know one chap in Australia did a full R3 conversion, so it's definitely possible!

I know it may seem crazy to a lot of people, but I just really like the R3 rear!

Twisties

Im interested, i do bodywork and this seems like a good winter project next year

EricB

iTrader: (7)

theres nothing different between the 09-11 rear on all trims.. even the spirit r looks the same.

the R3 designation only changed the spoiler/sideskirts/front bumper.

and fyi, there is a thread already exactly like this where the guy bought a s2 rear bumper and fitted the rear lights. It fit great. It was a BB as well.

https://www.rx8club.com/exterior-app...hts-s1-234143/

TommoBedhair

Just finished the conversion, and here's a pic of the finished item. Had a nightmare with the exhaust, as the Aussie chap mentioned, but I'd say it's about there.

Will post full DIY soon!

Also wanted to say - it fits perfectly, and lines up exactly as it would with an R3. The other conversions you see that are sticking out too far were either rushed or bodged.

ShawnMua

So, its just a swap and go? Or need to modify somethings?

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

Was there really a myth? It's a bolt on swap. Personally I don't like the S2 rear bumper or lights.

But I do have an 09' trunk and lip spoiler on my 04'

http://www.flickr.com/photos/9krpmrx8/8472997784/

EricB

iTrader: (7)

did you read what i wrote?

did you read what i wrote either?????

EricB

iTrader: (7)

its not bolt on.

personally i love the tails, but i would never buy that bumper, i would get the mazdatrix bumper that was made to fit 09 tails and it looks very similar to the mazdaspeed rear.

if a set of 09 tails falls on my lap i am doing this in a heartbeat.

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

It's not bolt on? Please enlighten me,

or do you mean it's not bolt on due to the holes for the tail lights? I guess so but that is not really an issue.

TommoBedhair

I think saying that it's 'bolt on' is slightly exaggerating the simplicity of the job.

With the bumper, to do a respectable job, you need the bumper brackets from an R3 - and to get them to fit snugly for the best fit you need to modify the quarter panel. You also need to modify the holes on the wheel arch trim as they don't match up - or you could buy an R3 arch trim.

As you said, you do need to cut the holes - which as I've found out now does cause some issues. The R3 has a slightly different shape seal around the boot - so if you live in a rainy country like I do, the UK, you need to make sure you re-build the lip that you have to cut off to create the right holes to ensure the seal is watertight. Ideally if you're buying the parts from a crashed R3 you could cut out the light panels and weld them onto the body if you want to do a really good job...seeing as I woke up with water in my lights this morning Im considering doing this myself.

Will post full DIY with pics

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

Yeah I mean of course you would want to buy all the necessary S2 parts. Sealing the tail lights is simple and heck even with a stock S1 you have to do that

EricB

iTrader: (7)

my tails have never gotten condensation in them

but yeah to above, its basically all bolt on, except for cutting the hole for the tail light.

so 93% bolt on job.

Linxx

I know this was many moons ago now, and you probably know longer have the car, but for years I ave sat on this project because life got in the way so never got around to doing it myself.

This year (2020) I finally started to do it and then COVID struck.

With things getting semi back to "normal" here in the UK I think I will finally try and finish this myself but I have one or two questions.

Was welding new exhaust brackets / hangers not an option?

I like you have a stainless steal exhaust. I have the R3 Rear bumper and R3 mounting brackets but really really don't want to cut and re-weld my exhaust so I have been thinking will not attaching lowering hanging exhaust mounts work?

Also in your image not only is the number higher up prior to the work but the bumper eclipses part of your exhaust was the because you hadn't properly fitted the bumper properly yet?

If not how did you draw the exhaust forward?

Sorry for bringing this post back to life but I have searched Youtube and the internet for years and cannot find anymore information on the process other than this post.

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

he hadn’t logged back in since July, 2014 so you’ll likely not hear back anything

there’s a link posted above for someone else who did it with a write up

if you lower the muffler that way the exhaust pipe and all will lower with it. Not sure if the pipe to the muffler will stick down too far and be exposed to rubbing or being hit by some would be my only concern.

as someone else stated, it only requires S2 parts to do this as the are no R3 specific parts for this conversion. Seems like he has R3 on the brain or something.

so I bought a bumper and taillights to do this on my S1 competition car to get rid of those stupid S1 exhaust shrouds that either melt or get torn up and cost too much to replace. I didn't realize, because of the bolt-on comments, that you have to modify the sheet metal to get the S2 taillights to fit, which I’m not permitted to do (thanks 9k ). I still intend to put the bumper on with the S1 lights and let it look goofy (if it does, the jury is still out on that point), but haven’t gotten to it yet. My race exhaust is fully adjustable though and I can just angle the end pipe tips down some. You might be able to get an exhaust shop to cut and reposition or replace the end pipes/tips from the muffler to fit them that way instead.
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TommoBedhair

Hey! Sorry for the delay - had to reset my password. It's been quite a while since I did this and I believe the person who bought the car ended up scrapping it (He was the RX8 chap on the CarThrottle RX8 Series - Dan Shipman or something). Or at least, it's been SORN for a while now. Really miss the car.

I can't remember specifically what stage each photo shows, but I remember the exhaust being a colossal headache. We never had to modify the brackets or any type of mountings. I remember what we did was cut the tips off an inch or so away from the box and change them over, we were then apple to get the correct angle / draw to look correct. We then got some slightly wider stainless pipe, and used that to join them back on / get them to the correct position. We then clamped them and took the backbox off to a chap that could weld stainless (We didn't have the tools for stainless welding). Bingo bango - back on, job done.

I hope that helps, being back on here makes me wish I had one again!

Good luck,

Tom.

Linxx

@TeamRX8 Yeah I already have installed the R3 tail lights on my S1 and I have a Mazdaspeed rear bumper but the R3 lights do not sit flush with the rear bumper as we all know.

My exhaust did exactly what you mentioned to my OEM bumper and melted it. My current bumper has taken some damage so now I am like time to finish this project.

An adjustable exhaust sounds like the way to go although I really dont want to get a new system if I can avoid it. I will update you all though as to how I get on and maybe try record it, even though I will not be doing the bulk of the work now I will also scroll back through the thread for that link. Thank you for your help.

@TommoBedhair Thank you for responding I know it had been years so I was really just trying my luck due to lack of info on the internet. It's a shame the car is now gone and yeah I watched the CarThrottle RX8 series so I know of Dan. In regards to the exhaust that all sounded like a lot of time which we all know equals money. If that's the only way to do it then I will have to do it that way but a part of me just thought could I not just weld on R3 exhaust hangers?

I am currently researching to see if the S1 and S2 have the same ride height and same ground clearance because as TeamRX8 mentioned I am very aware that lowering the exhaust in this way could lead it to scraping on the ground or get hit (as when travelling over the speed bumps we have here in London).

I will keep looking but so far it seems possible options are:
1. Cut and re-weld stainless steel exhaust.
2. Purchase an adjustable exhaust.
3. Weld new exhaust hangers on (if possible).

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

nobody makes an off-the-shelf adjustable exhaust, my race exhaust is 100% custom

Brandon Bennett

I recently bought an S2 and I want to do an S1 full conversion(front and rear) and I am struggling to figure out exactly what I need for the rear. I know that I will need the tail lights and bumper brackets but what can I do about my exhaust? I have a Greddy exhaust and I dont want to screw it up at all so what could I take from an S1 and put on my S2 in order to raise the exhaust up to get the proper fitment? I dont want to buy a full on donor car if I dont need to cause I dont have the room for it; I wish I did have the room cause it would be infinitely easier that way.

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

you’ll need to cut out some sheetmetal where the bulb holders for the S2 rear taillights protrude, they’re different than the S1 in this regard. Also will need the bolt-on S2 attachment clips where the upper forward part of the rear bumper (the pointy part) attaches to them at the backside of rear wheel well.

Brandon Bennett

What would I need to do if I were to just keep the S2 tail lights? Would I need to do any cutting of the bumper where it goes around the tail lights? I do prefer the look of the S2 tail lights over the S1 but the S1 rear bumper looks far better in my opinion. Just trying to do this so that I can drive the car even while doing the project

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

I guess it doesn’t matter now since you bought an S2 and want to put S1 parts on it instead per the other thread. It’s not really that big of a deal to trim out some of the sheetmetal for the taillights to fit. The exception might be if you were doing this on a competition car and the rule allowances don’t permit making that modification. On a street/play car it’s no big deal and is detailed on this forum in a past thread or two. The other thing to be aware of is that the exhaust tips of the rear muffler assembly are positioned differently and you most likely will need that from the other model too for it to look decent or even fit.

I actually prefer the S2 TL and rear bumper cover (it’s not the actual bumper, but the cover over the bumper that’s underneath it) over the S1. Because the exhaust shrouds around the rear muffler tips are open underneath the tips on the S2, but fully enclosed on the S1. The S1 shrouds are more easily damaged due to this and the S2 looks cleaner due to it for same reason. Replacing those dang S1 exhaust shrouds has cost me a pretty penny over the years.

The S1 shrouds are easily damaged for various reasons, but mostly because that underside enclosure piece is either hit by something that takes it off or pushes it into the hot exhaust tip and melts it and/or also because it’s absorbing and transferring exhaust heat to the rest of the shroud and the clips that hold the shroud in place end up fatiguing and failing. That was one S2 change that made sense in most regards.
.

Brandon Bennett

I also prefer the looks of the S2 tail lights over the S1 but the S1 rear bumper just looks more appealing to me personally and if it comes down to it, I would find someone who could make the shrouds around the exhaust for me out of metal. Probably my biggest thing is that I want to still be able to drive the car while doing the project so modifying the bumper is the best solution for me if it's required. I have a pair of tail lights that came with my car that are made for an S1 but look like the S2 tail lights cause the guy didnt do his research before he bought them. I am willing to do the body work needed to the bumper to make it work and it would be a learning experience for me which I want. There are also some kits out there such as the Rocket Bunny kit where if I were to do that in the future, I would need to do the conversion anyways. Would there be any body work that would need to be done to the bumper to fit with the S2 tail lights?

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

your 15 minutes is up good luck to you.