FC3S Drift

[f8ldzz]

I bet this guy wasn't running a water temp gauge.
In case you didn't know, the stock water temp gauge is JUNK.
The temp gauge doesn't move between 160F and 230F.

Sure, the rotary engine isn't as detonation resistant as most piston engines, and it doesn't tolerate any type of overheating or drop in oil lubrication.

Most of these idiots who are blowing up their engines are just not maintaining their cars, period.

We've prepped and ran FC's as track cars, and proper maintenance goes a long way to keeping the car happy.

Talk to the guys who race these things.
The engines go between rebuilds LONGER than any comparable piston engine.
Going one to two SEASONS on the same motor without opening it up is typical.
Most race piston engines are rebuilt once...maybe twice per season.

[FC3S-D]

why?

i think people drift with fc3s's more because it's a rotary and also the rotary balances the car for better handling








_____________________________________
FC3s fan yayy....

[Duo]

do you know if the '87 has any common idleing problems
after about 130K and how to fix it?

[RotamanX]

idle problems??....could be alot of things such as vac leaks? tps???
just go get a aftermarket ecu

back to the topic about drifting....i notice my fc will only want to keep sideways at high revs but to initiate it i have to throw it into the corner??.....is it because of my wheel and tyre combo??

wheels are 17 tyres are 215 fronts and 245 rears
car was dynoed at 105kw @ 7200rpm torque was 323nm

[Rare]

tag

[SidewaysGts]

I saw someone mention the hand brake on the fc:

Somethign about using the hand brake to start a drift- keep in mind you need to push in the clutch while pulling the ebrake, or else the engine will just over power the brakes.
___

One thing to keep in mind for drifting is that the 50/50 (or close to) weight distribution the x7s are known for, is not an advantage for drifting. Being slighltly front or rear heavy actually makes it easier to drift. The heavier end will "over power" the lighter end easier. Also the FC has rear toe adjustment, which is a bit more grip oriented, as is itd independant suspension (comapred to say the ae86s solid rear axle).

These can be "set backs" when trying to drift the FC, BUT when you can get over them they do make awesome drift machines. My buddy (he posted earlier in here actally) does pretty well on a fairly stock FC. Pulling top 3 in most of the competitions hes been into around here on an NA s5 fc. Most of the work is suspension work.

Most agree the turbo models are easier to drift due to the better low end torque, and you can jsut get a little heavy on the throttle to use the boosti n power to break the tires free. NA takes a bit more balls because you need to be heavy on the gas and keep the rpms up.

[SeanFC3S]

Drifting FC3S

silver
Ok first I have a RX7 87 non turbo FC. I got the car like 2 months ago and my license about 2 weeks ago. I havn't been drifting to much but i dont know y everyone cant get the FC sideways. Personaly I think some of these beginners r juss scared to have enough speed. People r right the E-brake is hard to use, thats y i barely use it. (it works alright in rain). The FC does grip but when i come up to a turn i stay on the inside, faint to the outside and then clutch kick and my car gets sideways perfectly, sometimes i spin out but thats y u practice on a wide turn or open parking lot. the toe eliminators make it hard to drift with, but i got used to it quick. Take it out and put LSD in and its fine. I also think rotary is better because it revs so high. S13 understeers so much that its hard. In san diego its not that hot most of the time right now, at least not hot enough to really over heat ur car. people just dont know how to drive it and they dont keep checking oil and water and *Censored**Censored**Censored**Censored* like that. PEACE!

[haya_s14]

Re: FC3S Drift

Originally posted by civictantrum
I noticed in the option video not a lot of people prefer the FC, why is that? is just due to preference of the silvias over the rx7? just wanted to know what kinda problems i would run into besides rotary issues, and what are the major issues with rotary when it comes to drifting? please bear with me on this still a newbie thanks

I think most people prefer the FC is because of the "near perfect" balance of it. If im not mistaken then the front wheels of the FC hold 49.5% of the cars weight and the rear holds 50.5%.......something around that but like i said, its near perfect

[Valkyrie]

I think most people prefer the FC is because of the "near perfect" balance of it.

Yep, even Ryosuke Takahashi.

ehehehe... jk

I hear that a slightly imperfect weight balance is actually better for drifting... Is it a front-bias balance or a rear-biased balance? I assume it's the rear... which would mean the FC is practically meant to drift (weight balance-wise).

I personally want to get an S5 Turbo II FC.

I'm not scared of the rotary (I intend to baby my first car!), although my dad and his friends think I'm nuts since there's no mechanics who work on rotaries near where I live (I don't care. I'll do it myself or take it to a Mazda dealer.).

I plan to do mods to increase reliability (upgraded radiator, seal up the radiator ducts to increase it's efficiency, install a REAL temperature gauge, etc)... when I actually get one. eh...

[SidewaysGts]

the cars still a TINY bit front heavy- even mazda has said its only 50/50 on a full tank of gas.

Added: Whoops sory missed ur post- ya slighty off one way or the other is usually better for drifting. This makes it a little easier for one end to "over power" the other end in a sense.

rear heavy being prone to over- front being prone to under.

I prefer a tiny bit of under, with understeer you need to be heavier on the throttle to spin it, with over steer you cant be as heavy on the throttle (your using throttle steer to rotate a car thats already going to rotate ya know?)

[f8ldzz]

Originally posted by RotamanX
back to the topic about drifting....i notice my fc will only want to keep sideways at high revs but to initiate it i have to throw it into the corner??.....is it because of my wheel and tyre combo??

wheels are 17 tyres are 215 fronts and 245 rears
car was dynoed at 105kw @ 7200rpm torque was 323nm

Yes.
You got too much rear tire.
If you can swap the tires, it might make the car more tail-happy.

[SeanFC3S]

E-brake

wen i was drifting i was learning how to heel toe but its hard to go down while drifting, im still learning, i do clutch kick but it *Censored**Censored**Censored**Censored*ed up my slave and master cylinder. Its ok in the rain since there is less force on the drivetrain but my EBRAKE is perfect for drifting a nice hairpin on long turn i ono juss tighten ur ebrake n it should work, i love my FC

[spooln7]

Fc

FC are good drift cars, everyone I ask is usually kind of scared b/c of all this talk that rotary is unreliable and what not.PL don't be scared of "Rotary". Here's one of my friends at a buttonwillow event this past month and me in the passenger side .

[RyanHampton]

I personally like the fC for drifting... I have one as my personal drift car. It is a car that is well balanced, and transitions almost like an 86.

[wbsnakes]

i would just like to say that the rotary engine is not SCARY, its very simple to work on, u just need basic mechanical skills and a decent manual, everything is straightforward otherwise. i have been working on rotary engines since i was 16, that is three years, i never asked anyone for help or had anyone work on my cars. if u take the time to do things u can do it right and save alot of money. most rotary engines don't need to be replaced when they're "blown" just take it apart and replace whatever is the obvious problem, anything that looks out of place probably is out of place. also the overheating problem on an fc3s can be fixed by replacing the radiator with the following modifications:

1. racing radiator
2. constant speed always on aftermarket fan
3. removing unnecessary hoses and other unneeded items (heating core, air conditioning system, and anything else that bypasses the engine)
4. hi-flow water pump

Also you may need to make other modifications to the engine or engine bay, adding a TII hood to a non TII car really helps let out some of the heat under the hood, also try putting some insulation around the exhaust pipe under the hood. There are also front air dams available to let fresh air into the engine bay, and u can get a conversion kit for the lamps that has a slot in it to let in cooler air too. Overheating is one of the main causes for a rotary engine to "blow up". Preventing the engine from overheating will help improve the cars reliability significantly. If anyone doesn't feel comfortable working on their own rotary engine i would love to take ur money, and i'm sure there are more people out there who would charge you a body part or two for a rebuild.