I haven't posted a whole lot, but I've read this forum pretty religiously for about 4 months. I finally got my hands on an rx8 for a great deal. Really happy to be an owner and I will post pics soon enough!

My question: I got around $1 k for a tax return. I have generally pieced together what needs to be done to improve the 1/4 mile performance of our car. One day a supercharger / turbo will be nice, but until then... What all can / should be done to significantly improve drag times? Exhaust, headers, pulleys, sway bars, etc... This thread is ended to be more of an open forum than a right or wrong discussion. Throw some ideas and possibly a mod list at me! Ive got around 1000....

Thanks all, hope this thread is not somehow violating rules on placement and I get some good feedback.

 

significantly without FI? Basically nothing.

Headers, exhaust, pullies are all going to give you minimal if any change. Some even take away. Sways aren't going to make you faster in a straight line either.

Nitrous will help, and is cheaper than sc/turbo...but that's FI again.

 

Best bang for you tax return?

DRIVING LESSONS

 

Rear sway bars can improve traction at launching no?

Driving lessons could be valuable, but are a lot less satisfying than modding my rx8.

Any more ideas?!

 

nitrous.

I was close to doing it myself, there was a full kit up for sale here a month ago for a really good price. I just wasn't ready take the risk of screwing with my daily driver that much. Maybe in a couple years.

I highly recommend reading through these:

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-major-horsepower-upgrades-93/nitrous-where-all-started-bhr-32578/

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-major-horsepower-upgrades-93/direct-port-nitrous-conversion-93864/

 

Driving lessons.

 

lighten the weight of your car first. Go with some lightweight 17's or 18's with some good tires. Go with an aftermarket exhaust, but make sure you go with one that weighs less than stock. For example, the HKS single outlet weighs only 23 pounds. Maybe look into lighter racing seats, and a lighweight smaller battery, possibly mounting it in the trunk or somewhere in the middle of the car for weight distribution. Weight is your enemy and you can defeat it by going that route.

 

Good info...

I currently have some aftermarket 18s on there. I am sure some forum members will not like them, but i had them lying around from my mazdaspeed protege and i bought my used rx8 with HIDEOUS 35+ lb chrome wheels, so i am headed the right direction!

 

Then don't bother, because you are on the wrong track to begin with.

 

Are they the ms protege wheels? if so post or e-mail a pic of them on the 8, I am curious as to how they would look.

 

I dont believe wanting to improve the rx8's 1/4 mile time and appreciating the true benefits of the car are mutually exclusive. I am not trying to look for cheap mods to blow into the 12s... I would simply enjoy the rx8 to be able to pull with boxsters, s2000s, etc from a light. I certainly understand the benefits of handling and braking associated with the rx8.

The wheels are actually aftermarket wheels I bought for the protege. They are Rev Model II's Hyperblack. I think they look pretty good, and weigh roughly 18-19 lbs. Like I said, they were a free alternative to the chrome atrocities that came with my 8

 

Without forced induction of any kind you will not get into the 12s. I mean, I guess you could but you would have to do some MAJOR weight savings. F/I is the only reasonable option to significantly improve the 8s 1/4 mile time.

 

ahh ok.

 

If you're looking for some power, bolt-on's aren't gonna get you there.

For something under a grand... I would go with a light flywheel. Although it doesn't give you power, it frees some up.

 

+1

 

Thanks for yalls advice. If i have learned one thing on the forum, the benefits of your everyday bolt ons are about as minimal as possible on the 8. However, I plan to cover the basics, so when F/I becomes a realistic possibility, the car will be as ready as possible for the serious power.

Never really read up much on nitrous, it was essentially unthinkable on the mazdaspeed. However, the benefits look extremely promising and cost-efficient on the 8.

FYI - My 8 is NOT my daily driver, I dont mind having a little bit of fun with it

 

Sell your 8, take the cash and the $1k to it - and buy a car that was meant to drag. Unless your ready to spend close to 5 to 10k - your not gonna get close to the 12s with a streetable rx8.

Oh - i just noticed you were asking how to get 14s. Why is that even a goal? Its like hearing owners brag to one another when they broke 16s. Point Being - 14 is still slow.

-hS

 

Ya I used the 12 sec comment to stress what I had no intentions of doing.

I disagree with your comment. Just because this is only a high 14 sec / low 15 sec car there is no point in bringing it down to the low 14s just because thats still "slow"?

Why is it that every time someone expresses interest in improving the 1/4 mile time of their 8 people have to throw in the typical "sell out and buy a mustang" comment.

I understand the benefits of an rx8.
I love the car.
I'd like better off-the-line performance.

 

clutch flywheel setup, short shifter from RP would be nice a well. If you drag your car, eventually you'll destroy your stock clutch. just like a few others said, it takes a lot of moolah to make this wuick in the 1/4...turbo is your best bet, with a good setup and tune you could possibly be pushing a reliable 230-240 whp and be able to run low 14's to high 13's.

 

Agree with the L\W flywheel & pehaps HD clutch while you are in there . That is best bang for buck to improve 1/4 mile time by up to 0.4s .
You might get the racing beat flash as well for another 0.1-0.2 s .

 

I always thought nitrous was just a way of blowing up your engine quickly until I read the two threads Charles started. He did a large amount of leg work in testing and retesting what worked and what would be relatively safe. If this weren't my daily driver I would have bought the kit the moment I saw it for sale.

There are still plenty of risks involved with it, and it wouldn't be something that is always there such as flywheel, etc. (unless you keep the bottle open constantly) but it still gives you a good amount of power for the money.

If you are planning on going FI then you know about risks anyways, so may as well try it!

 

Tires, you need to hook up.

For the price you pay for weight saving, you should probably look at yourself. What si the point of spending $1000 in light weight material when you weight 200lbs? I say go all out and do Nicole Richie style.

 

What is the stock quarter mile time for the 8 anyway?

 

about 20 seconds.

 

poeple are hitting high 14's and mid to low 15's