Hello my fellow RX-8 drivers,

I have owned a 04’ RX-8 for a year now and as much as I enjoy smoking the average street racers in my area with their mustangs and civics. However, I am looking to upgrade. I’d like to move up in stakes to a little bit bigger competition…other moded cars and cars like STIs and 350z. I will say right away I am not a real car savvy individual and I have been trying to do research on my own over the past few weeks, but most of the stuff (at least the data and lingo) is above me. Looking at some of the flow charts etc. makes me think I need an engineering degree to understand it! So I decided I would ask my fellow drivers who I know are far more versed in knowledge and experience than I am.

I’ve been smoked by some cars that have turbos and therefore I naturally decided that I needed a turbo my self. However, upon lots of forum trolling I read some things that said an RX-8 is a terrible car to turbo. I guess my first question is this true? Am I wasting my money if I decide to turbo my RX-8 or will it give me a substantial boost in low end power (which is what I need on the street…the car has great top speed on the freeway etc.). I guess I should mention my car is stock with the exception of Greddy sp2 cat-back exhaust and an AEM cold air intake. My next question I guess is how much on avg would it cost to fully turbo my car? I have read where a good portion of you guys have spent in the range of 5-6k. I have seen from looking on eBay that there are turbo kits as low as like $800 are these totally worthless? I realize they are not Greddy and other top name brands but does it matter that much? Also how difficult is it to install the turbo kit? Can most reputable mechanic shops do it, or would I have to find a specialty shop? I obviously would have a professional do it so that it would be done correctly and not blow my engine or cause me lots of undue extra costs.

I thank you for your responses I apologize for not being that knowledgeable on this subject and I hope you guys can enlighten me. I would certainly like to learn more. I am not looking to break the bank here but I don’t want a half-*** job either. I suppose if it comes down to be too expensive I will have to just trade my car off for a new Camaro SS. I am an RX-8 fan and would hate to have to part with it just because it doesn’t give enough bang for my buck. That is why I hope I can put a turbo in and get what I am looking for without having to give up a great car. I enjoy having a unique car that turns heads. RX-8s are pretty rare compared to other cars in my area and that makes it fun to know im not driving the same ole mustang, civic, or whatever everyone else is driving. I thank you for your advice!

 

5-7K is a realistic budget for a turbo. The issue with adding a turbo to the RX-8 is getting a proper tune. Unless you have a shop in your area that has a few well running turbo 8's under their belt I would not add one. In addition to the Money for the turbo & install you should also have 3-4G for a rebuilt N/A just in case. If you can't afford to blow the motor do not go FI.

 

If youre betweeen turboing your 8 and getting an SS, I would go with the SS. Before I went turbo, I tried to trade in for an SS but the trade in for my car was absurd. Granted Im still in process of tuning my car with the turbo on it but it really has made a world of difference. I would above anything else, stay clear of the eBay "universal" turbo ****. I would not cheap out on anything. Not with this car. I have over $8k invested in my car since I went turbo. Ya, some of the things I bought didnt have to be upgraded but I did it cause I want it to run right the first time and not worry about anything when I go into boost. If money is a factor for you, I wouldnt do it. Do it right, or not at all. There are millions of threads on here about going turbo. Do some research and see if you are still interested.

 

No. The RX-8 responds very well to turbocharging. But to do it halfway right isn't going to be cheap.

expect to spend $5K+ Personally i was floating around the $7-7.5K mark when I was prepping for an FI build

yes. quality and reliability of parts is said kits are always questionab;e at best, and ther one thing they all lack(which is what makes them universal) - manifold. you'll have to have a lot of fabrication done and at that point you're better off just going completely custom

Reputation is reputation. You want to waste $800 on some: generic pipes that may still need bending for your application, turbo and other expensive components that are of questionable a.k.a. - Ebay quality, some generic clamps, cheapo couplings and intercooler, and NO manifold??? P.S. - Greddy's reputation isn't that great... the Greddy turbo kit leaves a LOT to be desired and was very poorly thought out in design

Thats a hard question to answer because no one knows your experience level. If you are not comfortable doing all your own mechanical work(short of engine rebuilds), then I would not attempt it yourself.

Truthfully, any reputable mechanic shop should be able to do this no problem... but I personally would not risk anyone doing it but someone with specific experience in this field. A single missed item like vac line disconnected or connected wrong, can be disastrous. How much is your motor worth to you?

Your real work lies not in finding someone capable of installing the kit, but someone capable of tuning your car. If the tuning isn't spot on, then you've wasted all your time and effort. The widely accepted best means of tuning availible to us is reflashing the PCM. The inner workings of the PCM is something not a lot of folks know well though... for example, out of ALL the AccessPort(flash tool) owners worldwide, just one man accounts for roughly 90% of the sales/tuning

and lastly, dont waste your time thinking about it if you cant afford 1) $5-7K++ in parts, perhaps more in labor/tuning 2) the cost of a rebuild/replacing motor 3) loosing the car to repairs for extended periods. (ie is this your daily car you rely on)

 

Good answers paul... nice to have you back. I would add to what paul said that unless you have a desire to really learn a lot about the inner workings of your car and make the journey to get the car turbocharged part of the fun don't bother. Putting an aftermarket turbo on a high compression rotary is not for the faint hearted and takes a lot of research, patience, and time to say nothing of money. If you want a car you can know just enough about to fill up with oil stay far far away from heavy engine modifications. Trade the car in and get a stock car with the power you are looking for.

If you really want to make the car a hobby and learn more than you ever thought possible about it... its a long process but ultimately rewarding. I love my car, and despite a build that has taken years its been a fun journey and its not done yet.

 

Damn Paul and Black picked up pretty much everything to be covered, haha.

I will say unless you have deep pockets you need to be mechanically inclined to own any factory NA car converted to forced induction. Things WILL happen, and unless you know how to troubleshoot and fix them yourself, it's going to get expensive quickly.

 

Look into nitrous the 55shot does wonders on the "street" 350z, g35, and stock evos will be shocked on how good the rx8 looks like from behind. Turbos are fun to have tho I'm just trying to open more opitions for you good luck and do more research.

 

I'm just gonna say +1 to everyone who posted above me just so I can feel smart.

Oh and street racing is retarded. Don't be an idiot.

 

I would like to thank everyone who has commented. You guys have given me some great advice. I will continue my research to try and understand some more about it before i make my decision. Ive ruled out the cheap route via eBay. Glad you guys clarified that going that direction is disasterous. Also someone mentioned that Greddy wasnt that great. What are some good brands/companies to look at as i research them? If I decide to turbo I wont do a half-*** job ill get it done right the first time so I dont have to pay more later.

 

Some other options are:

Esmeril Racing

Speed Force Racing

Protech Performance

MM upgrade with the Greddy

BNR upgrade with the Greddy

The Greddy turbo kit isnt really all that bad. Although, here on the forum many have had problems with the manifold cracking. Also, the turbo that comes with the kit doesnt last very long. If you properly use the Greddy kit the way it was supposed to be used at 6-7 psi and a good tune, I dont see why you wouldnt be able to get a decent life span out of it. The problem is simply this: People dont use the Greddy turbo kit at only 6-7 psi.

 

If you go with the GReddy turbo I highly recommend sending the Mitsu turbo to BNR for his upgrade. Water cooled, better flow, reasonably priced, and fast work. I'm very happy with the MM upgrade, but its a long wait. (Minimum of 4 months) I've heard other people getting the BNR upgrade back in 2 weeks. If you do go the GReddy route, make sure you read the FAQs in this forum.

 

Prepare to spend lots of dough if you want to do it right.