I have some serious questions about the kit. I'm pretty familiar with what it entails, and have been following it since it was first announced.

Here are my questions:

1. Now that the kit has been out for a while, has anybody blown a motor with this kit? If so, how many miles were on the motor when you put the kit on, and how many miles did you get out of the kit?

2. Ive heard that highway mileage can actually be improved using this kit if you have a light foot. Any truth to this?

3. I'm still looking for the rx8 to purchase, but adding this supercharger kit is my ultimate goal since it seems to be the safest and most well thought out boost option for the car. At what mileage on the motor would you say that you would NOT recommend putting the kit on anymore?

4. Is there any plans to adapt this kit to the 09 rx8? If i cant find a used one with low enough mileage to put this kit on I may consider purchasing new. If this ends up being the case, and having the kit for the 09 is on the drawing board, what kind of timeframe could be expected of this?

Thanks for taking my questions under consideration.

 

1) yes, there have been engine casualties

2) that would depend on the tuning

3) not necessarily the "safest and most well thought out". That's a bold claim, not sure that can be stated as fact at this point. There are other great FI options out there.

4) not sure, maybe Pettit will chime in on that one.

5) there is another SC coming out soon... look into Hymee's new unit. Just food for thought

 

Hell don't give him food, just way your hand and use the mind trix.

 

oh well, thread hijack, anyone know what would be the best option (if i ever go for it) of FI that retain as much of a linear response as possible + 50/50 weight distribution?

 

i like this kit. I have always preferred s.c. over turbo--personnel choice. I think it looks GREAT and is distinctive. With the addition of the flash and now the efi dude that allows data logging and a personalized street type tune via the internet makes it even more attractive.
you do have to learn the car again as you actually have power at 3K! no need to go to 9K anymore no need at all. max at 8K.
I get 20 mpg on the interstate with the a/c on at 70-80mph.
Add a water meth kit and you have a fine kit here. Plus pettit backs his stuff up and there are enough owners now that can help troubleshoot any issue you may run into. Now there are other good fi kits out there--not knocking them at all.
The 2009 flash has not be processed yet--its management will be a little different.
olddragger

 

Love mine. I prefer the s/c and now with the Cobb AP it is really what I expected. I refuse to tell what I get in town but on a recent trip to Cali at speeds that are not legal, I got 21.3 on the trip down and 22.1 on the return trip. I do believe the s/c will work on the 09 but the present Cobb AP maps will not.

 

would you guys say this kit is safe enough to use on a daily driver? reliability is the most important thing to me in this kit. I want to put the kit on, and have no fuss with it. I would think its the case now that for engine management all we have to do is have the ecu reflashed.

 

Close to 11k miles driven in the year I've had the SC. No issues, and for the past 6 months, no CEL.

I took it on a 2500+ mile trip a couple of weeks ago (look for a thread in the multimedia section) and the car handled it with no problems.

 

With a few qualifications, yes it will be an excellent daily driver. My qualifications would be that it is used with a flash system and that you make the necessary changes/upgrades to your car prior to installation of the s/c.

 

Exactly the thread I was looking for I have a couple of more questions:

1) What is being referred to above? What upgrades would be advisable prior to install?
2) Are there any downsides to running the supercharger in the winter? It's gets pretty cold up here.
2b) Can you "turn off" the supercharger. (for the winter)
3) Does the supercharger or computer flash have any effect on the DSC system?

Thanks!

 

1- That is up to you and depends if you just want a strait daily driver car or the occasional track day. More power needs suspension/power train/brake upgrade. That pretty much goes with any vehicle with aftermarket power add on upgrade.

2- None
2b- Yes, uninstall the supercharger belt and re-flash back to NA.

3- No, DSC will still be OEM after SC flash.

 

if you are asking about the additional equipment to make sure a s.c. preforms well for a daily driver---i would recommend gauges---water/oil temps and at least a wideband a/f gauge. You may want to consider an intake charge temp gauge also-- my intercooler stopped working for a little while and i knew it because the intake temps started going uP! (it was just a fuse.)
You need to run a heavier oil and different sparkplugs, make sure your coils and wires and fuel pump are all good
thats about it for a good daily driver car.
olddragger

 

Thanks guys!

While I know FI might void the engine and power train warranty will it affect other things like the radio, power windows, visors etc....

 

Negative

Also, warranty voidance depends on the dealer. I take mine to a local dealer and everyone loves it, including the dealer owner. However, there are two other dealer that would not do warraty work on mine.