First time RX8 owner: Mod list, Opinions welcome
 

Hey everyone, this is my first post in this forum so bear with me. I've tried to do alot of research so I can come in not sounding like a complete noob, but chances are it will happen anyway.

In a few days I'll be getting an 04 or 05 RX8 MT, not sure if it will be sport or GT yet. I have some money that I would like to put into the car and I have a progression of what I wanted to do.

I plan on auto-x'ing my car as well as taking it to a few track days if possible (summit point and Richmond) and definitely a lot of spirited weekend drives. I want the car to handle extremely well and I would like great throttle response but still be livable day to day.

I was hoping I could run it by everyone and get opinions on the parts I picked, or if I should add or remove anything, and things like that. Thanks a lot for the help to come.


1st mods:
AFE STS with voodoo piano black 6 speed engraved (I like the look)
RB sways front and rear with the zex bracket (is that right, I read about the grease issues)
A set of nice tires (Falkens or something)
steel braided brake lines (clutch lines worth it?)
RB, Borla or BB exhaust (feedback welcome) and also, would intake really be necessary or could I save it?
Carbotech pads (or Hawks)

2nd mods:
Tokico d spec shocks/struts with swift sport mach springs (or are koni's better?)
RB Rev Intake and duct
four point front strut tower brace (rear strut tower brace necessary)
Light weight pulleys
Lightweight flywheel (should I do this first)
Final mod (Cobb AP with mazdamaniac tune)

^^ nice mod list you got there. Welcome to the club scwchapman, glad to see people still remember how to search. :) (nycgps will be soooo proud)

If you're driving your car daily, I highly recommend the Racing Beat A/C & oil cooler screens. (or something similar; hymee, D.I.Y., etc) Would hate to see your car eat a rock and cost you hundreds of $$$ to fix

Sway bars are a good idea, talk to Charles R Hill though. I think he had a great price on some Progressive adjustable sways.

RB exhaust and Borla are quite different in sound; go with the one YOU like the sound of the best. tons of clips on youtube or you can check them out at a local meet if possible

Intakes aren't necessary but they can be a nice addition. AEM and Racing Beat are quite nice.

AFE short shifter RULES!! :rock:

i like this guy...welcome to the club.

definitely can see you did some research. welcome.

good research.

2 pointers.

an exhaust will still be constricted unless you byu a midpipe or high flow cat. should be a definate addition to any upgrade list.

accessport should not be the last mod, in fact i feel it should be the first performance mod, as it can take any bolt on and upgrade its effect.

Why would anyone want to modify the RX8?

:rolleyes:

Welcome to the club! As for the GT's sunroof that I have, I hardly ever drive with it open. If I do use it, it's the tilt feature that I use, so the GT adds money that you could save and apply to your mods if you don't see a need for it. I'm 6'1" and I touch the ceiling in places.

thanks for all the input so far. I'm a member of a couple exotic car forums (as my family is a collector and my job is to sell them) and I've seen the effects of flaming on new members and I was determined not to fall prey.

Winglebeast, I definitely would like to do AP first, except for a single part it's alot of money, and I'm more concerned about handling before power.

Also, I need my car to be smog-legal so what high flow cat do you all reccomend? (I would do research but I'm quick posting before class).

I will definitely buy the grills to protect my radior and oil cooler because you're right, that could lead to unwanted spent money.

Also, I know that for most cars, an exhaust really doesn't yield it's full performance if it does not have more air to suck in (more air in needs more air out and vice versa) but is that different for these cars? I mean from reading I've seen that the exhausts all yield very small horsepower gains and are for sound most of the time (I listened to clips and I think I'll go with the borla).

And a quick note about the sway bars, I have heard good things about the progressives, but I'm not the most technical savvy guy, and the least amount of adjusting I can do, the better, hence why I'm not opting for coil overs.

And no worries, I know that once I get my suspension mods that I need to get a proper alignment, and I've already bookmarked the alignment settings thread here.

Finally, do you all think that progression of mods (other than the Cobb AP) is good, or should I switch things around (like get pulleys and a flywheel first)

PS. Any input on good flywheels based on experience, I was leaning toward the ACT prolite or Fidanza.

Thanks again everyone, and keep the suggestions/comments coming!

I'm confused. Your mod list does not include an LS1, 20b, 2JZ, a park bench wing, a RHD conversion, under glow, side pipes, or cams. Are you sure you are new here?

As for the GT, I was a big fan of the leather and I drive with my sunroof open all the time. YMMV.

Good set of mods to start with :)

I do not see a set of wheels on your list. Not sure you need the rear brace or even the 4 point front brace. The rx-8 chassis is already very stiff (more than the FD). Since you plan to add shocks/springs after the sway bars, be sure the combo is a good match.

I use my sunroof all the time :)

I prefer to keep the car as stock looking as possible because I love the look of it. I know some people enjoy their body kits and what not, and to each his own, but I'm a bit of a purist for looks.

I like the stock rims and would only upgrade for larger tires. I was sort of hoping to do the sways and the swift spring and tokico strut combo at the same time as the RB sways, and it seemed like such a popular combination among forum members I figured I wouldn't have issues.

I just did a bit more research and I think I am going for the Agency Power or Unorthodox pulleys.

I'll be posting pictures as all the work gets done.

Oh, and yea, the leather and sunroof would be nice, but I like the cloth because a) it doesn't get as hot as leather and b) you don't slide around as much in it (I may switch to some corbeau or recaro seats for a bit more lateral support but something that still looks good.

If anyone knows of places where I can get some good prices on some of these parts that would greatly be appreciated. Hope I'm not hasseling everyone too much.

Yeah I agree that the cobb should be the first performance mod.

I have the AFE Short throw shifter (love it)
Progressive adjustable sway bars (love it and cheap)
Falken 912's ( haven't squealed yet)
Steel braided clutch and brake lines (worth if it you are changing everything anyways)
RB catback exhaust ( I love the tone, not too aggressive or ricish)
Hawk pads (research the different pads)

I also have the ACT prolite flywheel and IMO, I wouldn't change it until you needed to change the clutch. Pulleys don't do to much, you might notice it revs quicker.

Thanks for researching and not asking dumb questions like where is the dipstick.

Thats what I get for living 30 minutes from the Ocean I guess - the Olympic Rain Forest is 45 minutes hour North of me also.

:lol:

90 days of sunshine per year in Portland so I use it when ever I get the chance!

I actually JUST read that conversation with the guy who asked where the dipstick was and then got banned. XD completely priceless. Okay, I may hold off on the flywheel, I just want it to rev quicker and be more responsive and I figure if I do a lot of this at once, why not just get it done?

So how would you compare the progressive adjustables to the RB's? Like I said, I don't really trust myself adjusting things (too much)

Good list scwchapman!

I'd skip the pulleys and move the AP/MM up to the front!

S

Thanks. I did a lot of research before even attempting to post (flaming is no fun).

I wanted to edit my list, and say that I want to add a RP Super-Cat with the RB exhaust.

Question for all: Should I forgo the pulleys and flywheel for later and instead do the AP/MM?

Thanks again

I have an MM/AP and I did not buy it as a power adder. I bought it for the increased oil from the OMP, the smoother idle and the smoother overall powerband. More oil from OMP = happier engine. Now if I decide one day to go FI it can handle that as well, if I stay NA then I'm still covered.

Yea, that's a good point. Time to re-organize my list :)

the clutch is on the same resoviour. do it!

like this guy---welcome.
my 2 cents worth.
Handling-- the shocks are the weak point on the track--konis or Toks are ok your call most hard core trackers would choose the Koni's. remember to balance the suspension. springs and sways need to be match if you will. i personally like the rb bars with their end links and the tein h springs and koni shocks. I too, do not like too much adjustability.
brakes-- the rx8 has awesome brakes. very front bias. i run the carbotech xp 8 on the front and the panthers in the back. that way i only have to change out the fronts on track day they last a long time and are rotor friendly. dont forget speed bleeders so you can bleed your brakesby yourself and dont forget good brake fluid. get high temp lube in the calipers(ceramic based). the stainless lines are a personnel choice--i couldnt tell the differance myself. also do not forget to have a mastercyinder brace like on the mazdaspeed front tower brace. the firewall is weak.
engine etc-- stock intake in fine--just get a k&n filter for it.,
keep good coils and plugs,
premix good for the track,
run at least a 10w40 oil on the track
keep 1/2 tank of gas in it
light flywheel not needed but it does help with rev matching.,
stock clutch is fine,
swap out the trans oil and diff oil for synthetics.
short shifter!!! you will like that!
real gauges is a must oil/water temps have to be monitored
dedicated wheels and tires for the track
you may want the cobb unit so the fans can be turned on sooner and the omp can be adjusted (not absolutely required but good to have)
you may want the upgraded water pump.
ground the coils/ignitors better
enough for now
olddragger

heh thats what i moved the AP to the top. if i put the expensive things last, i always seem to find some sort of excuse to get somthing cheeper in front of it.

example = next mod is a turbo, unfortunetly i have to wait 6 months, which will kill me. however if i get somthing elts it will just delay the turbo.

damn patience

thanks for all the input. I don't plan to be a hardcore tracker per se, just because this is my daily driver and I drive from PA to MD every two weeks for my job. I've heard a lot of good things about the RB sways w/ tok's struts and swift springs but I'll look into Koni springs.

I don't really think I'll need to upgrade the clutch as that's really to handle more power and torque, although I like the flywheel and pulley's for rev's (but cobb is probably better worth money for overall performance gains).

I will however be upgrading to better fluids like you said and will definitely have a dedicated set of wheel/tires (I'll need three, one for winter, one for summer, and one for track events, and I plan on keeping a stock of pads and normal wear and tear track items (I'll also look into the speed bleeder).

I really just want a phenomenal car that I can bring on the track and then drive home, with minimal adjustments and wear (hell don't we all)?

Although on a side note, I'm a few lessons away from getting my SCCA club sport license and in that case I'll be working on a dedicated track car (pictures will be posted).

I've gotten a ton of good suggestions so far but keep them coming. It's greatly appreciated guys!

Yeah you have a nice list of mods. I myself have the Racing Beat Sways and Borla Exhaust. Both of which I would highly recommend. I to do AutoX and will soon be tracking my car once I get some track wheels/tires. I definitally noticed a difference with the sways, and the Borla sounds like sex.