Notices
RX-8 Racing Want to discuss autocrossing, road-racing and drag racing the RX-8? Bring it here. This is NOT a kills/street racing forum.

SCCA Street Modified RX-8

Thread Tools
 
Rate Thread
 
Old Jan 7, 2020 | 10:46 PM
  #201  
Brettus's Avatar
Boosted Kiwi
iTrader: (2)
 
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 20,839
Likes: 1,796
From: Y-cat-o NZ
I would contact the regulating authority and seek clarification on the calculation ....... that's way too harsh on a rotary at 3.108L !
Reply
Old Jan 7, 2020 | 11:08 PM
  #202  
TeamRX8's Avatar
Registered
iTrader: (25)
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 26,936
Likes: 2,140
No, those are the rules and have been since forever. I just had a total brainf@rt is all.
Reply
Old Jan 8, 2020 | 04:36 AM
  #203  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
Originally Posted by TeamRX8

0.9 + (654/2)*2 = 1.554L + 1.4L = 2.954L
I assume you're talking about a one rotor engine based on 13B parts? But the way you notated "(654/2)*2)" doesn't make sense. The weight formula for a one-rotor using 13B parts would be more accurately represented by:

0.9 + 0.654 + 1.4 = 2.954L.

I suppose you could do that, but I don't see it spooling an appropriately sized turbo in a way that is remotely usable for autocross. Also, I don't see a legal SM RX-8 getting below 2500lbs with an engine making enough power to be competitive. I could be wrong, but I don't think it's possible.

I think the weight formula for rotaries is reasonable in SM. IMO the rules should be written to encourage builds that don't require extreme costs to put together, so more exotic stuff should be penalized with more weight. In the grand scheme of things, a 13B turbo needing to weigh 120-ish lbs more than a 2.5L turbo 4 is not that big of a deal, especially when you consider the rotary should spool faster (much more exhaust heat) and should have a lower Cg and polar moment of inertia.

Where the weight formulas really fall apart is with big displacement (cheap) engines. An RX-8 with a naturally aspirated 5.3L LS should be able to make the same low RPM power as my car but it'll be harder to make the same power up top. And yet it has to weigh over 3,000lbs. Makes no sense.

Last edited by John V; Jan 8, 2020 at 06:30 AM.
Reply
Old Jan 8, 2020 | 09:29 AM
  #204  
TeamRX8's Avatar
Registered
iTrader: (25)
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 26,936
Likes: 2,140
A number divided by itself is always 1. You didn’t have to divide total 2-rotor displacement by 2 and then multiply by 2 in your formula, which made no sense to me either.

0.9 * 2 + (1308/2)*2 = 3.108L. Plus 1.4L for forced induction.
the turbo exists and is readily available. The output goal is no issue, even understated. As you noted, the target weight is the issue. In my estimation 2300 lbs might be possible. Lighter, less torque with more rpms, creates a situation where heavy HD components are not as necessary. Just a pipe dream though ...
Reply
Old Jan 8, 2020 | 10:37 AM
  #205  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
I called out the displacement per rotor as 1308 divided by two because most of us recognize the rated displacement of a 13B as 1308.

654/2 is meaningless.

I believe you can get enough power with one rotor to be competitive. I believe it will absolutely suck to drive.

Last edited by John V; Jan 8, 2020 at 10:53 AM.
Reply
Old Jan 8, 2020 | 12:43 PM
  #206  
TeamRX8's Avatar
Registered
iTrader: (25)
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 26,936
Likes: 2,140
you crack me up man, you still don’t recognize I copied your formula and just plugged the numbers in. I didn’t bother changing it because I know it’s .654L/rotor, but more importantly; *it doesn’t matter* and editing posts on my phone is a pain. I boffed up the formula previously though and can appreciate that you now think I’m that dumb. That’s on me, but how about we spare everyone else and not add a page or two nitpicking each other apart over pointless minutia up until there’s a blowout, ok?

I also won’t bog your thread down any further over the alternative engine scenarios. Thanks for assisting me with the original question.



Reply
Old Jan 8, 2020 | 01:49 PM
  #207  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
Sounds like you need a better phone

I don't think you're dumb. But I was really struggling trying to understand how you were creating a two rotor engine that was exactly half the displacement of a 13B. It's all good though.
Reply
Old Jan 8, 2020 | 02:05 PM
  #208  
Brettus's Avatar
Boosted Kiwi
iTrader: (2)
 
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 20,839
Likes: 1,796
From: Y-cat-o NZ
I saw what Team did in post #209 as well and was like ...wtf ?
That was 2 brain farts in quick succession Team !

Last edited by Brettus; Jan 8, 2020 at 02:11 PM.
Reply
Old Jan 8, 2020 | 02:23 PM
  #209  
TeamRX8's Avatar
Registered
iTrader: (25)
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 26,936
Likes: 2,140
Yes, because taking total displacement, dividing by 2, and then multiplying by 2 makes so much more sense.
Reply
Old Jan 28, 2020 | 06:53 PM
  #210  
Mike D's Avatar
Registered
 
Joined: Nov 2019
Posts: 145
Likes: 11
Enjoying the thread, really nice car .
​​​​​100% agree with your reasons for not doing a 13b.
​​​Love the engine, hate the cost. It's unfortunate the bang for the buck has faded so much.

Last edited by Mike D; Jan 28, 2020 at 06:56 PM.
Reply
Old Jan 30, 2020 | 09:51 PM
  #211  
TeamRX8's Avatar
Registered
iTrader: (25)
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 26,936
Likes: 2,140
Originally Posted by SportRotary
Here's what I did just to give you some ideas. I tossed the whole OEM fuel pump assembly and made my own fuel pump hanger. I needed to make a return-style fuel system and couldn't find a clean way to hack the OEM assembly, so I decided to start with a clean sheet design. It's really simple and was fairly easy to make. It's just a big steel circle with a couple of posts welded to the bottom and some holes at the top. I used a DW300 fuel pump, Radium siphon jet pump attached to the OEM siphon hose, a Radium bulkhead electrical connector, and some ebay bulkhead AN-6 fittings.

It's not pictured, but I used a 3x15 hydramat on the bottom of the pump (attaches directly to the DW300 pump). It sits nicely diagonally in the bottom of the tank. I also routed the return/siphon line so it dumps directly on top of the hydramat, which should help to keep it fed with fuel.

It has worked well, but so far I have only tested it on track down to 1/2 a tank.





.


Or just do the same thing with this slightly modified and bolted to a top plate instead






Reply
Old Apr 14, 2020 | 10:35 AM
  #212  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
Guess I never updated this. Oops

I had to redesign the transmission crossmember to accommodate a GM-style gearbox mount which is used on the G-force. Yay fun



Fits like a glove.



ABS now lives behind the driver's seat and all lines were removed and remade using PTFE AN fittings.



The G Force gearbox swap created a ripple effect of changes. I needed to stand the engine straight up to accommodate it, and that meant the ABS pump needed to move since it was where the inlet plenum's path. The easiest spot was behind the driver's seat. I also relocated the remote oil filter and cleaned up some of the crankcase ventilation and catch cans. This gave me room to move the ECU and make some brackets to hold the shock canisters. It's a lot easier to work under the hood now. Next up is deleting the stupid prop rod, and I guess I should continue gutting the underside of the hood to get the last pound of weight out of it.

Reply
Old Apr 14, 2020 | 01:22 PM
  #213  
trackjunkie's Avatar
Registered
 
Joined: Oct 2017
Posts: 612
Likes: 61
From: South Central PA
nice work. looks like you the sumitomo abs unit. that's the prefer abs over the bosch one from what i'm told by a veteran scca road course racer.
Reply
Old Apr 15, 2020 | 10:18 AM
  #214  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
Originally Posted by trackjunkie
nice work. looks like you the sumitomo abs unit. that's the prefer abs over the bosch one from what i'm told by a veteran scca road course racer.
It came with the car, since it's a non-DSC base model from '05. I can confirm it works extremely well.
Reply
Old May 18, 2020 | 10:06 AM
  #215  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
First time driving the car with the new gearbox. Seems like it's running great, and it's going back on the dyno on Saturday to run in the motor and update the tune for speed/density.

Reply
Old May 18, 2020 | 06:10 PM
  #216  
TeamRX8's Avatar
Registered
iTrader: (25)
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 26,936
Likes: 2,140
better take it to the dealer for that CEL
Reply
Old May 18, 2020 | 06:44 PM
  #217  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
Originally Posted by TeamRX8
better take it to the dealer for that CEL
lol

Look again though, no CEL.
Reply
Old May 18, 2020 | 07:10 PM
  #218  
TeamRX8's Avatar
Registered
iTrader: (25)
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 26,936
Likes: 2,140
steering?
Reply
Old May 19, 2020 | 05:53 AM
  #219  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
Originally Posted by TeamRX8
steering?
Yep
Reply
Old Sep 14, 2020 | 02:51 PM
  #220  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
Back on the dyno, with fun dog box noises. The car ran flawlessly for the 30 or so runs we did dialing in the cams, transient throttle, and various levels of boost.

Reply
Old Sep 14, 2020 | 03:04 PM
  #221  
wannawankel's Avatar
///// Upscale Zoom-Zoom
 
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 1,593
Likes: 190
From: Massachusetts
Great progress!
Reply
Old Sep 14, 2020 | 11:56 PM
  #222  
billyboy's Avatar
New Member
 
Joined: May 2016
Posts: 9
Likes: 0
Stock belt tensioner or a manual one?
Reply
Old Sep 15, 2020 | 05:57 AM
  #223  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
Stock sprung tensioner
Reply
Old Sep 15, 2020 | 06:53 AM
  #224  
TeamRX8's Avatar
Registered
iTrader: (25)
 
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 26,936
Likes: 2,140
what tension? lol
Reply
Old Sep 15, 2020 | 07:44 AM
  #225  
John V's Avatar
Thread Starter
Not ******
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 994
Likes: 80
It's actually very tight. But it's a long gap between the tensioner (on the cylinder head) and the crank pulley.
Reply


You have already rated this thread Rating: Thread Rating: 0 votes,  average.


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:24 PM.