JV911 Posted 5March, 2016 Report Share Posted 5March, 2016 Just picked up an Rx2 and in doing so ticked another car of the "must own one day" list The donor is an original twin dizzy and probably the cleanest and straightest I've ever seen. No rust to speak of and no accident damage. Plan is to strip it back to a shell, paint it then stuffed full of goodies. Under the bonnet will be a ported series 7 13b turbo, precision turbo, modern cooling system and haltec engine management. Underneath will be modern suspension, VT Clubsport brakes, supra gearbox and 9" diff. Internally and externally it will look stock down to the venetian, apart from the deletion of some badges and trim. Wheels will have to be 16" stockers with dress trim and red walls. I expect it to take 18 months (Edit 25/5/2020: LOL) but will keep this thread updated Blue964, Flatout, clutch-monkey and 12 others 1 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeM Posted 5March, 2016 Report Share Posted 5March, 2016 Very cool. Love a rotary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coastr Posted 6March, 2016 Report Share Posted 6March, 2016 Awesome! Rx2 pick of the early rotaries due to coil spring rear.busted many knuckles working on these ... Did a complete resto on a 4 door back in the day. First attempt at a resto so it wasn't great. You'd cry if you saw the trailer load of rx2 parts that eventually went to the tip.i didn't know these could be found in the states. I see the usual bumper weirdness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 6March, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 6March, 2016 Yea there's a few in the states and a surprisingly large number in NZ. Couldn't find a good one in Aus let alone a coupe. Gumby-spec bumpers are destined for the scrap heap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WOKA Posted 6March, 2016 Report Share Posted 6March, 2016 (edited) Excellent car..! Love the early rotaries, though my preference is for an RX4 Coupe. That front bumper looks unique. So hard to find any original RX's now.. They've all been modded to death or killed, and the their piston counterparts are also commanding massive bucks.Keep this thread alive.! Edited 6March, 2016 by WOKA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 8March, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 8March, 2016 A better pic LeeM 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coastr Posted 9March, 2016 Report Share Posted 9March, 2016 Amazing that a twin dizzy 12a is still alive after 40+ years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MFX Posted 9March, 2016 Report Share Posted 9March, 2016 I airbrushed a heap of them over my time (ruining them), but they were all mini-tubbed and thrashed. It will be nice to see an original looking one getting around. LeeM 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaleAlford Posted 9March, 2016 Report Share Posted 9March, 2016 (edited) Looks great, very clean. What sort of money are they worth if you don't mind me asking, I'd love another one, but as has been said they command more $$ than I really think they are worth locally for a reasonable one.My first car was one of these. Awesome little thing, I loved it !!!I killed two twin dizzy's before eventually putting a series 4 13B in . Edited 9March, 2016 by DaleAlford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJM Posted 9March, 2016 Report Share Posted 9March, 2016 (edited) Turbo rotary is the go, solves the limp torque of NA rotary. Here's my gen 1 RX7 after some recent fettling. Mines a stripped out track car, sub1000kg and over 400hp at the wheels so I'm looking forward to Phillip Island 10 April so see what it's like now it's running properly. Not road reg so just a quick tame squirt. You get the idea....shes a bit agricultural with noisy locked diff and death wobbles thanks to big negative camber. All good at speed though. Edited 9March, 2016 by DJM Scott930, JV911, Macca and 3 others 1 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airhead Posted 9March, 2016 Report Share Posted 9March, 2016 That pic looks like a test drive on a trailer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 9March, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 9March, 2016 What sort of money are they worth if you don't mind me asking, I'd love another one, but as has been said they command more $$ than I really think they are worth locally for a reasonable onethere is an neat orange one (LHD) on gumtree for 20k...won't last long at that price Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaleAlford Posted 10March, 2016 Report Share Posted 10March, 2016 there is an neat orange one (LHD) on gumtree for 20k...won't last long at that priceWOW, a fair bit of work to recommission it, but it would make a pretty good project with a MIG, some money and some time.....US sourcing might be the way I look if the wife lets me.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 10March, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 10March, 2016 It brings back old memories of constantly cleaning fouled NGKs after sitting in traffic heading to the old pacific highway. I had an R100 track car which I got "registered" in the rego friendlier ACT.In a rare win for modified car enthusiasts, the engineering & rego laws were changed about 2 years ago (at least in NSW). Gone is the old tare weight x 2.75 = maximum capacity for turbo/supercharged engines, which would have mean the biggest you could go was 12a turbo. Now you can do pretty much whatever you want as long as the rest of the car is upgraded to suit the power (i.e. brakes, driveline, chassis etc) and an engineer has been consulted along the way and signed off. So you could in theory put in a 20b! I briefly considered an 18a just for the fun of it, but 12a parts are getting hard to find and there would have been a lot of custom work involved such as the plenum and crank. There is a mob in NZ that does them but $$$, although it does have advantages over the 20b such as its compact size.Emissions is as per whatever year donk you're using. symsy and TG911 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flatout Posted 11March, 2016 Report Share Posted 11March, 2016 Congrats, big rotor fan and think the RX2 coupe is probably the best looking. I sold an RX3 coupe to get in to my 911 as good ones get good money especially after it had been featured in a mag. Your RX2 should get along with a turbo, I just had a 13B bridgeport and that went pretty well. They can drink though, I had to plan my drives around petrol stops.Like the sleepa idea you just need to sort wheels that will clear the brakes but look stock. Mine was JDM style with fender mirrors & Watanabe rims.Good luck with the build. JV911 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 19March, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 19March, 2016 Engine and gearbox outGuards, bumpers and grille offInterior and glass outDash outWasp nest out LeeM and Tit 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 21March, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 21March, 2016 I couldn't be happier with how clean the body is, not even any rust under the battery!There is a small spot of rust in the rear window sill and evidence of a small repair in the rear quarter but apart from that it's tip top Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coastr Posted 21March, 2016 Report Share Posted 21March, 2016 Funny how well I remember that engine bay. Did about 4 or 5 engine removals in these.iirc the steering box is dead simple to move over because the firewall was common between LHD and rhd? I remember seeing the mounting position based on your photos.are you going to source some genuine Yankee rx2 badges? Those look better than 'Capella re'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 21March, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 21March, 2016 Yep, firewall is almost a mirror image. Small amount of work to do but nothing majorI have most of the US spec badges but considering debadging altogether Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 2April, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 2April, 2016 Doesn't look like much but got a lot done today. All the wiring has been name tagged and is ready for removal. Windscreens are out and frame has been cleaned up. Fuel and surge tanks are out...the former took longer than expexted thanks to one hidden ******* bolt. Interior has been cleaned up: every last bit of rubber, foam, underlay & glue scraped off and vacuumed. Headlights out and apart. Front air dam off. MFX and symsy 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clutch-monkey Posted 4April, 2016 Report Share Posted 4April, 2016 need anything from here?http://www.performanceforums.com/forums/showthread.php?67307762-RX2-Cleanout&p=842584608#post842584608 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 5April, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 5April, 2016 yep! thanks registration page timing out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 11April, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 11April, 2016 (edited) Loom is out!Relays etc removed from the engine bay and under the dash. Heater, blower and vents (and more wasp nests) also removed from under the dash.Surge tank, fuel lines and filler neck removed. Edited 11April, 2016 by JV911 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diamond911 Posted 11April, 2016 Report Share Posted 11April, 2016 Looks like a great project. Bring back memories of my old '79 RX7 which I had for 19 years. 12a turbo etc... JV911 and Macca 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV911 Posted 31May, 2016 Author Report Share Posted 31May, 2016 Not much to update Waiting (im)patiently to get in the fabricators. Have been sourcing bits and pieces in the meantime - have bought a whole RHD firewall to scavenge bits off, heater box, steering box, bits of chrome trim, blinkers and lenses. Have made the decision to go auto - 3 speed Jatco to be precise, to handle the predicted 400+ at the wheels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.