It seems like a lot of RX8 performance mods are in the development phase. I would love to get a supercharger but there isn't one on the market. (I've been waiting on that pettit set-up to circulate among some RX8s) I was wondering about an ECU mod. I saw that Racing Beat offers a PCM Flash. Also saw Canzoomers Piggyback system. I was wondering if someone could tell me about their experiences with one of these services. I want to retain reliability but looking to add some more power other then letting the car breath better. Just wondering if its worth the money or should I just save my money.
Thanks
Jon Swift

 

Save it for a bit........things should be happening this summer

 

thats what people said last summer, and nothing happened. specifically referring to the PTP turbo kit.

 

well if you had started saving back then you would have the cash to jump on something when it finally happens by now.

There is nothing to do, really, but be patient and enjoy your car as is for the moment.

 

someday........my car would blow up because of a turbo, but it is not this day!!!

this day, I blow up naturally aspirated!!!

 

for NA, get RB Tune.

Its a very *safe* tune, basically it just lean the A/F ratio, and fine tune some of the stuff. saves you some time to tune it yourself. and it throws no CEL(mine didnt throw any)

There is not much that you can ask for, Renesis almost got maxed out from factory.

 

listen to him.

beers

 

lots of turbos out.. for a while.

beers

 

Well, you are looking to keep the reliability of the car, but want (much) more power. Those two things are usually not possible. You can go forced induction but the reliability even on very good tunes will decrease in the car.

I'm not sure what you are expecting, but a ECU reflash or a piggyback ECU aren't going to give you a ton more hp. Even with a full NA mod (intake, exhaust, HFC, pulley, ECU reflash) you are looking at maybe 20-25 whp, and tq a little less than that and most of that on the high end. But with the NA stuff you won't affect the reliability nearly as much as putting FI on it.

 

Wait for the accessport. There may be some more things on the horizon. The RB flash seems to be well received but I am holding off in anticipation of some better options surfacing soon.

I'm not a big fan of the piggyback deal. The PCM in the mazda is a learning type and it will attempt to offset the effects of the Piggyback by chaning its fuel trims etc over time. I guess you could just keep reseting the KAM and NVRAM though.

 

Well if I kept N/A I wouldn't expect much power. Looking for around 30hp that way. I want to shy away from a turbo because my experiences with turning a non turbo car into one is a huge headache. I don't want to be popping my hood making adjustments on a 3 year old car every other day. (Would rather try to pick up a 3rd gen cheap) A supercharger is appealing to me because they tend to be a little more reliable. I would probably go with a 5-7lb pulley. Something that can add a little power but nothing that is going to compromise the reliability too much. I'm sure everyone is in the same boat, we want to make a lot of power the smart way with a limited budget. I just don't want to invest too much into an RX8 because I know it has a lot of limits as far as being fast and reliable at this point. I feel like its better to throw my money in something that can ball out. On the other hand I don't want to be getting pulled on by S2000s and 350Zs. Idealistically I just want a mid-high 13 second RX8 with day to day driving capabilities. I probably wouldn't want to spend more than $1500-2000 keeping it N/A. And no more than $3-4K on a supercharger kit (with everything!!!) I know I should just be patient but again I think the RX8 is just too sweet of a car to have the lack of power it does in the straight line. I drive my friends S2000 (he has some mods) and its just fun. I've had some RX7s in the past so I'm craving a little more power. I think at this point I'll just keep the intake/exhaust and wait on a supercharger kit. I just wish Mazda had this motor pumping out like 270-280 at the crank, that would be niceeee!!!

 

good luck.

and you think a 3rd gen is going to be less maintinance than a turbo renesis?

what exactly do you percieve to be doing under the hood every day? playing with the carbs and adjusting the timing?

 

a 3rd gen will cost you even more.

for an engine, Renesis should still be consider as *new* , it just reached its 4th birthday !

Give it time .... there are people working around the clock ......

 

No I don't think a 3rd gen would be less maintenance but its older and is a better platform to build on. I just think an RX8 is too new and nice to be working out kinks here and there with a turbo set up. I just want a one time install and done set-up. All types of things go wrong with turbo set-ups. Just something as simple as a vacuum leak which happens all the time from my experiences would bother the hell out of me. I just don't want to be under the car with a 3 year old car jacked up in the driveway. I was just saying that part of me says throw the money into another car but I love the RX8 and I can't bear to see it loose to some cars haha. I haven't done much research about the experiences of people and their turbo rx8s. Maybe I should but like I said it's been my experience as just being a headache. I'm not looking for the RX8 to be a bat out of hell but I want a mid-high 13 second car that can pull strong in straightaways. Something just a tad bit quicker then a stock 3rd gen. My theory is if your car can handle great, a mid 13sec car can be perfect fun. I guess thats why I have always hated American cars haha.

 

My idea of just picking up a cheap 3rd gen is keeping it as a second/weekend car not a daily driver like the RX8. I could live with always fixing up a secondary vehicle but not the RX8, its too new and nice. Although I really don't have a parking spot for a 3rd gen haha, it was just a thought. I know greddy makes a very conservative and cost effective turbo set-up but I haven't heard much about it. Any turbo RX8 I see is always for sale, I always think hmm I wonder why? Like I said idealistically just looking fro an additional 30-50hp, I don't need something crazy as they become more of a lifestyle than a ride. I guess I just need to be patient as I'm sure people haven't been able to quite judge the reliability of a force-inducted set-up yet. Looking for some practicality out of my RX8, which means tearing up some back roads!

 

you, sir, need to do some research.

 

agree with you mac11.

 

Check out cobb tuning...should be out this summer....I'm hoping....

 

^^^ +1

Also, FI is FI. A super charger is not more reliable than a turbo charger.

And according to some VERY knowledgeable people a supercharger is actually less reliable.

It's just that people seem more willing to over boost/drive a TC then they are a SC.

Don't know why.

 

Well a supercharger has less components. If there's a certain pulley on there it keeps you from saying hmm, I wonder if I turn the boost up...I guess.

 

Both RotaryGod and mysql101 who are very, very knowledgeable people have said that for equivalent set ups a turbo is more reliable than a supercharger.

 

well the ability to overboost on a s/c is just not available without physically getting out of the car and swapping pullies. To overboost on a turbo you just need to turn the boost controller up (or have your wastegate fail).

 

Yeah, that would imagine a few people would be willing to mess with a dial without thinking. While buying a pulley takes effort, money, and maybe a moment of thought.

 

After spending time on this forum you will realize that if you really want a big power gainS, FI is the only worthwhile path. I decided this is not for me however and I'm comfortable with the fact that the few mods I'm doing won't make the car much faster in a straight line.

In the end, the flywheel seems to make the most difference in terms of real useable performance. The RB flash and pulley are a nice combo as they both improve cooling and net a small increase in performance, so you get a double benefit there. I would say most everything else for NA performance is overpriced for the gains you'll see.

Mods are expensive for this car, if your looking to get alot more out of the car without going FI, you picked the wrong car. Thats not so say everyone who's invested in intakes, exhausts etc. are morons. Most are not, and understand that the gains are nominal and are okay with the cost/benefit. It sounds like your trying to make this car something it can't be without going FI. There seems to be alot of that going around these days.