Originally posted by 9-K Rever
Tell him to hurry up and finish!!

Originally posted by Josepi_RX-7
I'll stop...I'm getting ricier with every post! :o

Originally posted by Hanzo
Yes you are. :D

Originally posted by MadDog
I think so. Here it is in order. whaddaya think:

1) Mazdaspeed springs - I'm going for handling before engine performance. I like the fact that the MS springs are only a 1" drop. I don't want to look too ghetto.

2) Racing Beat swaybars - more handling upgrades at a reasonable price.

3) JIC front shock tower brace - 2 pt, like the US Mazdaspeed version, but the engine cover still fits.

4) Mazdaspeed flywheel - After a little research, the flywheel seems like a good idea. A modest performance enhancement that won't screw-up anything. I want to give the tuners a little more time to wrap their heads around the 8. If after 3 years or so, there isn't a rash of engine blow-outs, I'll get a chip.

I though about an exhaust, but I don't want more noise, just more HP! I'm wary of the claims of 10-12HP. A more realistic number is 3-4 HP gain. Since I don't want the sound all that much, I 'm holding off on the catback.

So....comments? Joseppi_Rx7?

MD

Originally posted by Hanzo
BTW 9K-Rever, Amemiya san redid their site now (but still ugly and slow) but know with "English email order".

http://www.re-amemiya.co.jp/

Originally posted by 9-K Rever
The Borla has a warrenty and he can exchange it easier. Thats why.

The following is an update from the desk of Jim Mederer as he shares his thoughts on the progress of his testing:

"Racing Beat is about to come out with a number of products for the new RX-8. Others have already brought products to the market with what we have found to be some rather exaggerated claims. Rather than echo these claims we prefer to report exactly and honestly the results we see. In the long run, the customer will appreciate dealing with reality, not a wish. In the past it was common to see improvements in the exhaust and intake systems of rotary engines in the 12-20 HP bracket, depending on the product. Headers in particular were a great source of power- this is no longer true. Although we are still working on a final header design, we have yet to observe more than a slight horsepower gain. Space is a limiting factor to becoming creative with a header design, and besides, the port configuration is fairly restrictive on the Renesis engine. We have found that Mazda’s exhaust manifold design is actually pretty good. Mazda has already wrung almost nearly everything they can from the engine. The are small improvements possible, but the days of the early rotaries when 10-20 horsepower gains could be realized fairly easily, those days appear to be over."

The following table lists the measured power gains from various aftermarket components. Testing has been conducted on the Racing Beat engine dyno with both pre-production and production Renesis engines.

1. Intake – enlarging the oval inlet to the factory air box - +2 HP (this modification eliminates the VFAD intake duct.) Developmental work is still being undertaken.
2. Headers – approximately 4 HP peak power gain.
3. Mufflers – muffler & connecting pipe - 2-3 HP.
4. Removing the muffler from the car (engine) – about 4 HP.
5. Remove catalytic converter and resonator from the engine completely, and replacing with "cat" replacement tube – max benefit 8 HP – regardless of what muffler is used (or even no muffler).

"The muffler "off" will yield about 4 HP, with a very loud exhaust note. With it "off" the car, the noise is unbelievable! We find 2-3 HP peak RPM maximum improvement from our exhaust, or any competitive system that we have tested. So someone can see from these numbers, it is quite difficult to get a lot more HP from this engine. The max potential with a header and race exhaust would be around 10HP."

Follow-up Notes

During the prototyping of our RX-8 exhaust, we kept hearing claims of rather large HP gains from other aftermarket exhaust systems. Since we were not observing gains anywhere near some of these claims, we decided to obtain two of these systems for our own reference. One of the systems performed as expected and produced around 3 HP, as did the RB prototype unit. However, the other system did not fare as well and actually produced less power than stock!

Since it is our policy not to "bash" or downplay competitors products, nor do wish to embroil ourselves in a controversy over HP claims, we will keep the brand names of these other systems confidential. Aftermarket manufacturers test products using various methods, and as you can see the results can vary!

It has been our recent experience with normally-aspirated Mazda applications that significant HP gains from an aftermarket exhaust system are hard to obtain. Mazda is simply doing a very good job with their exhaust systems! In today's horsepower hungry marketplace, it is unlikely that a significant amount of horsepower would be left behind in an ineffective OEM exhaust design. But hey, that's just our opinion!

More information will be sent to the RX-8 list members in coming weeks, stay tuned for more updates! As we undertake more testing, more information will be sent to the list members and then posted to the site. List members will always be the FIRST to have access to this information!

Originally posted by livitup
Aaah I miss my 8!

I've been stuck in ATL all frigging week. I've got an AT Chevy Cavalier with crank windows as a rental.

WAAHHHAH!

I'll miss short pump tomorrow, too... I don't get back until late.

Blah.

---A

Originally posted by 9-K Rever
Very very good read! Yah Jo..when you do the clutch replacement call me, I want to watch.

Originally posted by 9-K Rever
What are you doing in ATL?? You should have driven your 8.

9-K Rever