TeamFc3S -- Tips and Hints Page

Adding more excitment to your RX-7 can greatly enhance the enjoyment you get from day to day driving, as long as it's running. As many Turbo IIs are getting older, more preventive maintaince is needed to keep them on the road. Remember that many aftermarket parts are sold under the assumption that your car is in "good as new" condition. No matter was trick parts you buy and how much money you spend, you aren't going to go any faster than anyone else if you are broken down on the side of the road. The harder you push the car, the faster it will break, even when you do it right. It's something that you have to accept when you modify your RX-7. Typically, an air filter and exhaust won't harm reliability, but beyond that, be prepared.

One thing that makes the RX-7 stand out above other sports coupes is the fact that it's a complete package. A powerful, smooth engine, excellent suspension, brakes to handle it all and looks to hint at what you've got. To only tune one part of this equation throws the whole car out of balance. Of course, in America, we seem to focus more on straight line performance and less on the rest. Not to say that's wrong, just not the same philosophy I think Mazda used when they designed the Turbo IIs.

These aren't the absolutes but after many hours on the phone with "rotary experts", these are the rough guidelines I've found to be generally true.

Often, people turn up their boost to net more power. This can give you slightly more power but there are points when you need to upgrade before you can get anymore power.

5.5psi Stock Boost for 1987-1988 Turbo II (6.2psi max peak)
7.5psi Stock Boost for 1989-1991 Turbo II (8.6psi max peak)

The stock ECU will cut off fuel above 8.6psi. Once that is taken care, there are some guidelines to follow when turning up the boost.

How far you really want to go

Tuning a car is full of comprimises. You must decide if you are willing to give up either reliability, performance, or a whole load of cash. You will almost always lose one of those when tuning. Also remember that repairs will seem to come up much more often as you strive for even more performance.

As it says in your oh-so-valuable manual, "Do NOT use any Synthetic oils in your engine". But why? you might ask. Well, many reasons. First of all, Mazda had never fully tested the engine with synthetic oil and didn't want to push all the tests the American government throws at cars coming into our country. Secondly, the car injects oil into the engine to help sealing and lubrication. Since oil is injected directly into the combustion chamber, synthetic oil doesn't completely burn away and causes build-up. Thirdly, it suppostly degenerates the oil seals and can cause leaks. I personally used Mobil1 15W50 Synthetic oil and it worked fine but I ultimately got what's called a Tubular Dowel Leak on the side of my engine. Doesn't hurt anything from what I'm told, just makes a mess. All in all, synthetic oil can help if you are running a full, all out modded engine with the works and plans to rebuild the engine regularly. Otherwise, a good mineral oil changed very often works just as well.

The Rotary doesn't allow much in the way of rotary adjustments unless you port the engine. The basic recommended timing for the Turbo IIs are to leave it stock. Use the timing marks on the main pulley and keep them there. You might have some luck retarding the timing slightly if you are running higher boost though but not much more than a few degrees.

This completely depends (obviously) on how well it's taken care of. If you change the oil and let the turbo cool down regularly, most turbos and engines should last over 100,000 miles. From the year or so I've been on the RX-7net, most people seem to need their turbos rebuilt at or near 100K and the engines seems to last slightly longer. This is just an estimate though. It's like answering the questions, "How long will this computer last till it's outdated?"

The stock wheels are 16x7JJ with a +40mm offset. The stock tire size was 205/55R-16. The main limitations on going to a larger wheel and tire diameter is the front suspension/fender. Some people have gotten 225's to fit up front with the stock tires and I use 245/45's on the rear with stock wheels. I've seen some people use 8" wheels up front and 9" wheels in back but I don't know exactly what offset they are using. If anyone with larger wheels can elaborate on this issue, please contact me.

Last Updated: April. 18, 1999, by: Mike McLeish

Tips and Hints

Before Making any Upgrades

Tuning Philosophy

Upgrading Steps

How far you really want to go

Synthetic Oils

Timing

Engine and Turbo Life

Tire and Wheel Sizing

Tips and Hints