daydreaming What Car? RX-8 vs FB RX-7

rdcyclist said:

How 'bout a K24 swap? Would that wake it up?

Looks like 2500 bucks would cover the basic kit: https://collinsperformancetechnologies.com/products/honda-k-series-to-mazda-rx-8-swap-kit-1

You'd want to run a BMW trans so that's another 500 bucks and a coupla hundred to do the driveshaft.

I would K swap it but with a Mazda K motor. 

I'm always so sad when I read about the RX-8 flaws. I sold my NC because I wanted more of a GT car and if it wasn't for the fragile Renesis and 17MPG it would be the perfect car for my needs. I had a pair of FBs back in the day and loved them dearly.

(Before anyone tells me to buy one and swap it, I live in California so CARB/smog concerns and don't have the time or energy for that nonsense right now anyway.)

You really do need to beat the snot out of a rotary for it to be happy.

One of my friends I autocross with is a longtime FB driver. He got a C8 Corvette a few months before I did, still has the RX-7, but I think he has been won over to the displacement side of things (also the comfort side).

In reply to mr2peak :

I want to hear that car SCREAM

I bought a new FC in 1987 and drove it 282,000 miles over the course of 18 years as a daily driver / occasional auto-crosser.  Very much a GT car so great at nothing but respectable at everything I asked it to do IMHO.  I had a serious engine fire due to a leaking pulse dampener and it went through two HVAC logic units but other than that, it was drop dead reliable.

Next, I bought a new FE in 2005 with the same use case (daily driver / occasional auto-crosser)...love, love, loved that car.  Brilliant balance, tight chassis, excellent precision / control harmonization all around, and you'd swear it had two fewer seats and 500+ fewer pounds if you didn't know better.  Blew engine number one at 87,000 miles and got 157,000 additional miles out of a Mazda comped rebuild.

Now, I've got a previously enjoyed 1983 FB that I bought in 2017 with 41,000 miles and I'm currently just short of 50,000 miles.  It's an automatic which makes it far too slow to be engaging so it's just a toy to take to the beach / Cars and Coffee.  I'm almost sixty and I'm accustomed to modern cars so the lack of power steering & modern ergo doesn't offset the joys of its tiny dimensions and super light weight for me.  It flunked its most recent smog test (California) but just barely so I'm confident that it just needs to be run more and get fresh oil, plugs, wires, etc.  Other than that it, has been absolutely trouble free which truly amazes me...40+ years old, all original, and everything works like new.

I'd be very interested in getting a GSL-SE 5 Speed with the power steering option but I'm afraid of trading up as my seven years of history with this particular car and my 535,000 miles of total rotary experience make me confident that I've got a fantastic motor.

For me, the FE is superior in every way other than the funky factor and the 12a reliability but since I'll be retiring soon I won't be commuting 84 miles per day so I can live with $6,000 every 120,000ish miles for an engine rebuild.

Bottom line, both the FB and FE are capable of making someone tremendously happy, it just comes down to their use case.  For me, the FB would be a great second car but the FE would be capable of being my sole vehicle.

In reply to cghstang_chris :

12a carb a dead rx8. win win

This is the first time I've heard the RX-8 referred to as an 'FE' and wouldn't you know it, its right there in the VIN.

cghstang_chris said:

This is the first time I've heard the RX-8 referred to as an 'FE' and wouldn't you know it, its right there in the VIN.

Yeah, I've wondered for a long time why that term didn't take off.

codrus (Forum Supporter) said:

cghstang_chris said:

This is the first time I've heard the RX-8 referred to as an 'FE' and wouldn't you know it, its right there in the VIN.

Yeah, I've wondered for a long time why that term didn't take off.

 

Too much rotary, not enough Pontiac 2.5?? Spitballing here

In reply to RX Reven' :

Name checks out

In reply to codrus (Forum Supporter) :

If the RX-8 had an actual 2nd generation with a different chassis code it would have.

cghstang_chris said:

This is the first time I've heard the RX-8 referred to as an 'FE' and wouldn't you know it, its right there in the VIN.

I think Mazda's nomenclature of "FE" reveals their internal design language and "F" signifies rotary powered regardless of what type of vehicle it's in.

Did you guys hear that Mazda is about to release a 50' amphibious motor home that's rotary powered...yeah, they're calling it the "FF". 

In reply to RX Reven' :

First generation RX-7s were SA (series 1 everywhere, series 2/3 most places), Cosmos in the 80s were HB and JC, Luces in the 80s were HB and HC.  I forget the 70s.

P3PPY said:

In reply to RX Reven' :

Name checks out

If you're referring to my GRM name yeah, RX's of various flavors that all rev high.

I'm a medical device engineer so the "RX" also pays homage to my profession;  think proscription for speed. 

I'd like to see what that AI program we've been playing with would produce when combining a Caduceus (two snake medical symbol thingy) with a rotary engine.

Wiki for Mazda chassis codes

F is for wankel engine cars, except for all the other ones. For some reason RX-8 was also SE3P at one point.

In reply to j_tso :

im gonna go ahead and just blame ford for that one I guess...