Is this normal?

[silat69]

Morning,

First time poster, just after my first drive in a RX7. I\'ve bought a  modified big single turbo from Japan and just yesterday took my first drive in it. Having never drove even a standard RX7 before i didn\'t know what to expect, but what i got was suprising.

Driving easy at 80kmph (50mph) in third, i hadn\'t got the turbo on yet as i was letting the engine warm up, i gave it it\'s first bit of throtle. Just insane screaming sounds from the back end, it felt like all h*ll broke loose, everything just started spinning. Scared me quite a bit - in fact the short drive i had - i was simply intimidated by the car!

I\'ve had a WRX, GTO, MR2 Turbo and a Supra (NA), but nothing even close to the sheer holy s**t nutter power of that beastie. I bought it on a picture and a stranger saying it was a monster - i still don\'t even know it\'s full spec., but i\'m glad i bought it anyway.

If that is the performance of a tuned RX7 - how do you guys drive them?

Cheers

[Iain C]

lol...not been in a single turbo rex but i think it sounds about right! It must be running over 300 bhp as a single turbo is an expensive mod.
They are a scary car as stock!
Im sure someone who knows their stuff will post soon tho!

[Holmsey24]

I\'m in no way technically minded but wanted to post this to give you an idea of comparison.
I\'ve just taken delivery of a (realitively) standard RX but with twin turbos on it.  The second turbo is not even working properly at the min, should kick in about 4500 rpm and that gives you a kick when it does.  Even with the car in it\'s current state it is genuinely quite dangerous in the wet.  Many people on here have had nasty spins and bad accidents from driving these cars in the wet.  Some cars were standard at 280 bhp.  
Your car could well be well over 300bhp so until you get used to it don\'t abuse it ESPECIALLY in the wet!!  If it has been as wild as it sounds it has then it will quite easily bite you!!  Also invest in some good quality tyres many choose Toyo\'s, Goodyear Eagles as quickly as you can.
Sorry if I sound like your dad, but there have been some guys on here who have had some real nasty accidents and been lucky to get away with no injuries.  Would hate for someone who has just got a big powered Rex to suffer the same fate.
Oh and that would also mean one less rex on the road!!!
:cool
Matt

[iaint]

Sounds about right for a single turbo - you should be running 300 at the wheels with even a modest single tubby so:

BIN THE JAP RUBBER AND GET SOME DECENT TYRES!

Heed that advice and you\'ll get to drive it in spring rather than post pics of the write-off!  Also, take it easy when it\'s damp (even dew) as you can lose in even when going streight if you\'re not controlled in how you apply the power.

What mods are on the car?  Which turbo is it?

Be safe!

Iain

[Donato]

Definitly bin the tyres! My car understeered all over the place until i put decent rubber on it! Best to spend a few hundred on tyres than loose a few thousand crashing. Not to mention for your own safety and that of others too!

Happy motoring, sounds like you have a nice beastie there.

Cheers

Donato

[boltoa]

I\'d definitely recommend Michelin Pilot Sports in the wet. Best tyres I\'ve ever had - absolutely transformed the back end grip, and car is much more confidence inspiring. Pity they\'re so bloody expensive though!

Andrew

[silat69]

Thanks for the replies, i reckon your right with the tyres. Living in Northern Ireland, most of the roads i\'ll be on are not the smoothest and not very often dry - i\'ll have to put some thought into the right choice. Also i thought i was a good driver, but i suppose i\'m really going to have to take my time with this car and learn how to handle and use the power delivery.

By the way as i have only recieved the car yesterday and am stuck at work right now, i can\'t really tell you any more of the spec., but one thing i noticed under the bonnet that i wanted to check was that i think the car has 2 radiators?? Would that be right or possible? I reckon i for the cooling side of things i saw 2 oil coolers, a big FM ARC intercooler, 2 electric cooling fans, and then 2 radiators - one behind the other.

Cheers.

[Donato]

Hi mate

#2 radiators?

You sure one of them is not your Air conditioning rad?

Cheers

Donato

[Ed_RX7]

Hi Richard...welcome to the single club!!!:D

Don\'t be intimidated by her ....just break her in nicely.....er!!!//:rolleyes:

Anyway...well done....give us an idea of the mods and we\'ll be able to give you an idea of what your would be running in bhp.

What turbo are you running?

[scooby_si]

Sounds like a good way to be mate be afraid & when it even thinks a bout being mildly moist (Clarkson topgear trademark?) i now drive totally off boost having stacked it previously when brain fade kicked in, dont wait get decent tyres on straight away & if possible get thee a track/airstrip day to learn the limits in safety....
Si (de ja vous as already said but i\'ve been bitten by not doing above so now can almost be called wise erm or is that stoopid? lol)

[scooby_si]

PS welcome matey :wave   fear can be fun so enjoy as well.....

[gsb876]

Welcome to the club matey, find a nice open road and when empty try the cars limitations very valuable so you know exactly what to expect!!!

Sounds a interesting car, pics please?

Gurj:wave

[iaint]

Originally posted by gsb876
Welcome to the club matey, find a nice open road and when empty try the cars limitations very valuable so you know exactly what to expect!!!

Sounds a interesting car, pics please?

Gurj:wave

People don\'t tend to crash on streight bits without doing something stupid though - it\'s accelerating out of corners/round bends or trying to carry too much speed that\'ll fduk you right up.  I wouldn\'t reccomend finding those limits out on a road - even if it\'s wide and empty...  Back end setpping out and a bit of counter-steer and you can easily be off the other side.  As soon as you clip a kerb all bets are off!

As You say though - it\'s a good place to find out where abouts the main power kicks in as that seems to be when it all goes wrong - these cars often jump a hundred horses over very few rpm which can really catch you out...

Iain

[JamesFD3]

I\'m no expert on FD handling but have had alot of experience with these cars on track and the road over the 5 years I\'ve owned mine.My car has still got the twins as I prefer this setup but I\'ve also driven a number of freshly imported RX-7\'s and driven a single turbo RX-7 as a daily driver for a while.

One thing I find interesting that keeps cropping up on here is the Jap rubber they come in with should be ditched staight away,I\'ve found this not to be the case,sure swapping the Jap rubber for some good UK stuff will improve things but I believe this is not the whole picture.
Examine the Jap tyres very carefully for signs of cracking and damage etc as they tend to get baked during those hot Japanese summers but if they have good tread and are in good codition you will be ok for a while.
The FD is the most sensitive car to chassis setup and to throttle imputs I\'ve ever driven and this is the critical factor in my opinion,you can dramatically improve the cars handling by having a proper alignment setup by someone who really knows what their doing,not just the local high street wheel shop.This will transform the way the car performs on the road and the track.

Another thing I\'ve found is the FD is also very sensitive to changes in the road surface and especially so if the road happens to be wet,you can be accelerating from a corner and then the tarmac surface changes causing the wheels to slip and hence the car enters a spin if your not quick to correct,I reckon this is why so many new owners tend to end up swapping ends.Tyre temp is also critical,never attempt to drive an RX-7 hard with cold tyres,especially the Jap tyres,UK spec stuff seems to be better at this probally because of the slightly different compounds used.

Best tip for a newbie is first spend the money on having a proper alignment setup and then get the rubber changed eventually.

Just my ten pence worth guys!!

[FDRZRich]

Correct me if I\'m wrong, but I was under the impression that all imported cars had to have the tyres changed to UK ones (with the British/EU Kite symbol on) so that they can pass SVA?

I know that the garage where I got mine had all their cars on the same Fulda ones, even if they were crap!! Toyo T1S transformed it!!