RX-7 Pros & Cons?

[SidewaysGts]

Thats because rotaries are actually like twice the displacement theyre listed as, if you think about their mileage and power output, it makes more sense.

Rotaries do have pretty good throttle response since thats all they do- rotate. I can only imagine how a webber setup would be

[f8ldzz]

Originally posted by Octagon
Funny how few of you mention the 1st gen RX-7's. They make the FC's look like prima-donnas.

Oh, you gotta be kidding me...

Inferior 12A's to the more powerful 13B's
The 13B finally made a debut in 1984 in the GSL-SE, but Mazda upgrades the old 9-pin rotor with the current 12-pin design, cause the old rotors were still spinning their gears!
Rear drum brakes except for 1984-1985 GSL-SE models - all FC's come with all disc brakes in all 4 corners!
Live axle rear with an inferior Watt linkage, which binds under hard loading (FC's have IRS w/ trailings arms in the rear)
Reciprocating ball steering which had gone out with the dinosaurs (FC's have rack & pinion)

Kouki NA FC had 160bhp and a 8kRPM redline STOCK!

Bad rear end + bad steering makes for an inferior car on the track.

[Octagon]

Funny you say the SA22C is an inferior car at the track, when it's the most popular RX-7 at the track and the most accomplished.

From the high banks of Daytona to the grueling gravel trails of the Acropolis Rally, SA22C RX-7's have been there, won that. The FC barely made a dent in the international motoring scene and the FD was a non-event, but the SA22C is a legend, and that legend is based around one incredibly competent, well-built, durable as all hell car.

And, if you really want to debate the handling of the SA22C, remember that in 1984 Motor Trend wrung 0.88g's out of a stock SA22C on the skidpad on the stock fuggin 205/60VR14's!

[c.wan]

You guys are giving me second thoughs about running my FD again.

Calvin Wan

[Octagon]

I will admit, your FD that made it to the cover of Grassroots Motorsports was one pretty car.

But hey, at least the G35 is pretty, too.

[f8ldzz]

Originally posted by Octagon
Funny you say the SA22C is an inferior car at the track, when it's the most popular RX-7 at the track and the most accomplished.

From the high banks of Daytona to the grueling gravel trails of the Acropolis Rally, SA22C RX-7's have been there, won that. The FC barely made a dent in the international motoring scene and the FD was a non-event, but the SA22C is a legend, and that legend is based around one incredibly competent, well-built, durable as all hell car.

And, if you really want to debate the handling of the SA22C, remember that in 1984 Motor Trend wrung 0.88g's out of a stock SA22C on the skidpad on the stock fuggin 205/60VR14's!

The SA22C got all those accomplishments because the majority of development of the Mazda rotary engine was done during those years.

300hp out of a 12A is nothing to sneeze at!

By the time the FC was released, the rotary engine was banned or heavily handicapped from almost all types of competition.

The rotary engine is banned from F1 - the pinnacle of automotive motorsports.
The rotary engine was banned after the 1996 Renown LeMans cars made the other big car makes stupid; it was only allowed into LeMans a few years ago with heavy appeal from Mazda - to which it was the FIRST car to retire on lap 8!
SCCA systematically handicapped the rotary engine through successive years - how the hell does the car jump from the GT-U to GT-O classes when displacement did not change???
BTW, GT-under and GT-over was to define engine displacement.

Sure, I'm not going to deny the SA22C was the trailblazer - about the only other rotary Mazda that had such accolades was the RX-3 - but your conclusions are skewed due to ignoring some of the history after the FC was released.

Ok, so the SA22C got all the awards...
The Kouki FC NA stock-for-stock will smoke a GSL-SE.
I know the FD will definitely SMOKE all of them stock-for-stock.

Sorry, skidpad numbers don't mean anything to me.
What were the slalom numbers?
I bet the FC was faster in the slalom.

[driftex]

if you upgrade your turbo (on an FC) do i have to use an external wastgate?

[nasty nate 7]

the rotary is king of the street in japan

[phantasm]

Originally posted by nasty nate 7
the rotary is king of the street in japan

Not KING...royalty maybe...but NOT King.
I am seeing a LOT of Srs being swapped into MANY more cars than the wankel.

Personally, as far as beefy cars go....I like this better:

RB26DETT ...Tomei cams, Bigger injectors, HKS turbines, 650+ HP.

[nasty nate 7]

after when i saw putting a 20b in a ae86, i have not seeing anything faster than that buddy.

[Ghost of Duluth]

Give it a rest. The thread is RX-7 pro's and con's not who swaps what into what to get where. Get back on track please. Jesus.

[Octagon]

Wow, you really REALLY do not know your Le Mans history.

Mazdaspeed DID campaign a rotary powered prototype at Le Mans under Reknown colors in 1996. It was a friggin LMP2 KUDZU that qualified 25th and finished in 23rd overall, winning the LMP2 category.

The Reknown sponsored Mazda 787B which won Le Mans overall in 1991 qualified 12th overall. The top qualifying spots were shared by Sauber-Mercedes C11's, Peugeot 905's, Category 2 (read - IMSA spec) Jaguar XJR-12's, and Porsche 962's. It was through good laps on light fuel loads, clockwork reliability, and some very classy driving during early morning rains by Johnny Herbert that the Mazda was able to hold off the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th placed Tom Walkinshaw Racing Jaguars.

Mazda, however, saw the writing on the wall for rotary engined prototypes in the Group C/GTP category. Their new IMSA rotary cars


- the MX792P -

were dismal failures . The debut at Sebring was a disaster, with the car unable to even start due to heat cracking the header. When it came for the World Championship of Makes to start, Mazda ditched the rotary and went with a Mazda badged Judd V10 prototype that, while not nearly a match for the Peugeot 905's, was good enough to grab 4th overall at Le Mans in 1992.



In 1993, rule changes introduced the WSC category. Mazda contiued their GTP and Camel Lights engine programs (Lights actually used tuned 13B's) and began the introduction of a WSC engine program using the rotary. This culminated in 1996 with a partnership with Kudzu to run 3 row Mazda rotary engines in factory-supported Kudzu chassis WSC cars.



As recently as the Daytona 24 Hours, 2002, Kudzu Mazdas have been LMP1(SRP) and LMP2(SRPII) legal. However, more due to the Kudzu chassis than the Mazda engine, the cars have not been competitive. The Kudzus have been uncompetitive since the founding of the ALMS, and with the formation of the Daytona Prototypes class, unwanted by the Grand Am Rolex series.

But, make no mistake, the rotary is NOT illegal. Matter of fact, let's ask Ryan Hampton about one of the rotary powered Kudzu's he drove. Namely this car.

[f8ldzz]

Well, you surely know a lot about the trivial racing history of Mazda (rotary).
I admit, I do not keep up with that kinda stuff, since it really is of no worth to me at this point in time of my life.

The rotarys in WSC and ALMS are severly handicapped and will not probably win a race due to their superiority; if anything, they might win under attrition.

IMSA figured this out when it started slapping weight penalties a while ago.

LeMans banned them after the 1991 win.
Only after insistent badgering from Mazda / AutoExe of Japan was the rotary engine allowed recently.
Though dejectors of the approval were around, I'm sure they were satisifed that the car retired very early.

Big deal.

Fact of the matter is that this is a drifting forum which we should be debated about drifting.
Mazda racing history, although interesting, has no place in this discussion.

I still stand by my statements.
FD costs too much and breaks down too much.
The SA is just too archaic a chassis to be developed into a competitive vehicle.
I'm talking about competitive drifting and not sliding around in your local parking lot - you can drift ANYTHING if you're talking about casual, unsanctioned drifting.
The FC is very popular due to it's balance of cost, upgradability, and (arguable) styling...