S13 240SX vs. Mazda RX-7

Post by **encasemyheart** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

So my plan for the last few months has been when I finish paying off my 92 240SX to buy a 93 RX7 as my track car and use the 240sx as a daily driver. But in the last day I have been thinking different, about maybe just modding my 240SX. Up until now I haven't loved the looks of the S13 and the RX7 looks amazing, but I think with some work the S13 could be what I want. Here's what I was thinking:

Exterior:16" wheelsPDM racing bodykit180SX Type X wingKouki taillights

Performance:T04E 60 trim stage 3 wheel .82 A/R (maybe)equal length manifoldFMICexhaust/supporting modsbuilt lowered compression engineengine computer

Handling:Sway barsshocks/springsLSDbrake upgrade (maybe 300zx, maybe just 240sx upgrade)

What do you think? I really like the looks of the PDM body kit lowered with the type x wing and tail lights. It would for sure be different looking than every other 240sx. They are both RWD, 50/50 weight distribution, the 240sx is lighter (2,684 Lbs. vs. 2,789 Lbs.) And both will be very fast, my goal with either would be 375 whp, this is all the bolt ons with the RX7 and the built engine with turbo and supporting mods on the KA.

So which would be better from a performance standpoint? A fully modded 240SX or an RX7 with all the bolt ons? How reliable would the 240 be? realiability on the 7 doesn't matter because it is a second car for weekends/track. Plus the 240 would cost less, no $300/month payment + insurance rise. And how would handling compare? RX7s pull very high .9x on the skidpad.

Post by **MainEvent212** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

well this is incredibly hard to say but, i'd liek the rx7 more. it's just better all around. the S13 is kinda a poor-mans sports car. the RX7 IS a sports car. You'd be better off driving the S13 as your weekend warrior for 1 reason though...*skrr...boom*

w/ the rx7 it'll cost wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy more to fix things than the S13

Post by **encasemyheart** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

Yeah that's what i was thinking too, the rx7 is a true sports car, so it has a better image.

I'm not worried about reliability though because it will be parked probably 5 days a week, plus if anything goes wrong I need to shell out $2000 for a new engine.

Post by **Doogz** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

F that rx7 and F all your mazda's!!!!!!!!! you need to just get more 240's!!! nah, rx7's is pimp as shizzle...im just a lil nissan boy so i had to say that

Post by **yellwmonky** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

240sx a poor man's race car? An RX7 is a REAL sports car and 240sx is not? HOw do you figure that? Yeah sure, we got jacked on the engine over here in the states, but I wouldn't count the 240sx out. I would say your original plan of 240sx as daily driver and RX7 as track car makes since. Because the RX7 is rotary engine, you may run into some problems with it if you're driving it daily. FIxing those engines are much more costly than a KA.

Is the Silvia not a sports car?

Post by **Onizuka** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

ive seen a s13 SR20DET in a RX-7 but i have never seen a 13B in a s13 chassi...

I actually think you would be better off with 2 240sx's. FD's are expensive in every way.

Post by **Structure240sx** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

there was a thread just like this before. a guy was figuring what would be better. he planned an s13 with an SR, coilovers, brakes, etc. to perform just as good if not better than the 7. for a decent 7 say 20k and the s13 at 2k plus mods he came out with sumthin around 13k for the worked s13. my friend has a 7 its awsome but he spent a lil over 20k just for the car and from what i've heard the rotarys are only good til 70,000 mi until a rebuild is needed.

Post by **SRdS14** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

FIRST off i'd like to say that i love rx7s...they are an incredibly badass car all around. but, there is one downfall. they like to blow a lot. every single person that i know that has an rx7 has blown their motor. sometimes even the same person more than once. i know a good bit of people with 3rd gens....there are upsides and downsides to everything though. sr20s are reliable (if u decide to do the swap). rotaries aren't...this is definitely not a bash to the rx7..but if i had to really choose between having an sr20'd 240sx or a 3rd gen rx7, i'd choose the 240...not because i already have it, but i know its trustworthy and i am happy with my 400 at the wheels... rotaries can handle much more, bu how would u know til it comes that time to blow? u never know.

~Scott

honestly i still envy everyone with a 3rd gen...

Post by **MainEvent212** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

oh well hell...get a S13 coupe and then do a SR20DET and strip it out for the track...you'll have a beast :-p

Post by **ZERO** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

Getting back to the original statement... The 240 as a daily driver sounds like a good idea for reliability reasons. The R7s produce a lot of power but at a price. They need rebuilds every 75k miles, so I guess its the way to go for a weekend warrior. One problem that I do find with the rotary engines is that they make their money at high revs. They are like hondas in that sense. No bottom end torque, but a lot of power at the top.

Post by **kingsoup** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

Its very simple

The RX-7 is a nice car with a HAND GRENADE for a motor, they are very maintence expensive (especially FD) and plan on replacing the motor every 60,000 miles if its a turbo.

I would have gone for an FC or FD if they didn't have the 13B, so you have the SR 240. Its the weight of a RX-7, but with a superior motor (without a doubt for reliability)

A car, no matter how fast it is, is no fun if it breaks down all the time, take it from a Mk3 supra guy.

Post by **encasemyheart** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

thanks for the replies. After seeing how good a well put together 240 can look I've decided on it. Plus the fatc that RX7s prices are dropping daily while the 240's price is rising. BTW you can get a nice 7 for about $16k-18k, I've looked around for a loong time.

And I plan on a KA-T, i like the torque and the fatc that my daily driver won't have to be down for a month for the swap. Besides, every ricer wants the "SR20 SAWP YOYOYO!!1!!!"

Not that it's bad, just not for me.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

every ricer wants an sr20 but most if any will not get. :batman

Post by **[GoaTSLonG]** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

thats funny, im selling my rx7 to get a 240 with a sr20det

but my rx7 has treated me well and has 114,000 miles on it and i beat the living **** out of that thing everyday.

Post by **kingsoup** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

Its kind like the Supra guys. You can take what you have from the factory (7MGTE, a non-turbo motor with a turbo slapped on the side) Try too get big power out of it, but suffer eventually from the fundemental fact that the 7M (KA) was never designed for turbocharging.

You get a motor that was directly designed from day 1 too be turbod (our 1JZ, 2.5 litre version of the legendary 2JZ) you guys have the CA and SR engines. While you may lose a bit of displacement, you gain the fact that instead of being designed as a truck motor, you get a purpose designed turbo motor. Not too mention as the 1JZ is, the SR and CA have high capacity valvetrains, better cooling, ect ect. Injection and timing advance that was made for turbo not N/A.

It doesn't take a month for a swap, but it does take a month too rebuild your internals after you melt them, or blow the headgasket on a motor that was not meant too be turboed.

Why do people care so much that everyone has a SR? Its a kick *** motor, if you want too be original but broken down on the side of the road, then thats your perogative, it certainly isn't mine.

Post by **SilviaLuvr** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

kingsoup: ummm I don't think the SR is an original thing anymore considering damn there everyone in there mother is goiing for the motor these days...

B2T though these are all ture legitment statements. The RX-7 did hve over heating problems which would lead to it's demise (one of the reasons why Mazda discountinued the car) Trubo charging a KA is a good idea if you are willing to spend a lot o money on advile do to the headaches you will substand. The KA wasn't build for turbo. If you do turbo the car, I believe that you will most likely sit the car b/c of the dangers that you will have to face if you didn't build your engine to turbo statue i/e a lot of htings blowing onyou

Post by **SRdS14** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

everybody and their grandma is wanting to do the sr swap nowadays because they know that its *almost* impossible to blow it up...i really think its funny as hell that everybody is calling the sr20det a "ricer" motor. i think its because you know its 100% JDM and it came out of a Silvia. i mean, thats what everyone wants anyways right? a silvia? before you start YOYOYO'ing. think about what ur saying. i love the ka-t...but if ur gonna call the sr20 a RICER motor. you must be about the biggest jackass i've ever met on this board. PEACE OUT YO YO YO YO.

btw take those apc stickers off ur car... :rolleyes

~Scott

Post by **SilviaLuvr** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

SRdS14: ROTF LMAO!!

Post by **kingsoup** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

The 13B has man problems other then its heat problem. Delicate Apex seals that respond very badly too the slightest bit of detonation. The port design leads too terrible fuel milage and inefficency.

Its a bucket of expensive problems and repairs.

Quote »ummm I don't think the SR is an original thing anymore considering damn [/quote] I didn't say it was unoriginal, sure its common, but its common because its an excellent motor. Like the Talon guys, no body cares everyone has a 4G63, they accept its a great motor and are happy too have it.

So what if a bunch of people on the internet are talking about swaps. Most likely you'll still have 1 in 5,000 240 owners with a SR20, CA , or KA-T in it. Pretty rare still

Post by **encasemyheart** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

Man some of you are pretty lame.

First off, APC stickers? What's that all about?

Second, I didn't say the SR20 was a ricer motor, I said it is a ricer's dream motor, similar to the ITR motor. The SR20 is a very competent motor, and reliable. I have heard many horror stories about the length of time it takes for a swap and complications involved, it's not for me. With the correct parts I can turbo a car in a weekend. (maybe not tune it, but have it running) Plus I would hardly call the KA an unreliable motor, even if turbocharged, you just have to tune it correctly, same as the SR. And although it wasn't originally built for turbocharging, it does a damn good job, especially with lowered compression and forged internals. The torque is through the roof, and if I blow my motor? I don't have to order another for a couple thousand and wait months to recieve it, I can just run to the junkyard and pick a whole motor up for $500. If a part breaks? I don't have to give daunttless a call and overnight some parts to fix the SR20, I can just use the local Nissan dealer/Autozone. No sweat.

Different people like different motors for different reasons, accept it.

Post by **SRdS14** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

it just came across as u saying that the sr20det was a ricer's motor. i started laughing my azz off. and when u said rice. WHAT pops in ur head when people talk about ricey cars? APC. so thats where APC came from. i ain't mad atcha....got nothin but luv for ya. YO.

Post by **SWIFT_DRIFT** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

i didnt read any of these posts, but I can say from experience...I owned a 93 rx7 r1, loved it. but after driving speedracers 90 hb sr...i wouldnt go back to an rx7 unless i won the lotto and had so much extra cash i could buy and afford the upkeep on one. rotaries require so much more preventative maintenance and i would suggest reading up on the service bulletins and such. a stock daily driven rx7, driven grandma style is fine, however, a stock daily driven rx7 driven like a racecar...well i hope you have a firesuit because it WILL blow up on you. also i'm not all about replacing a 2000 dollar motor every 80k miles or less. Unless your willing to spend at least 10k+ on a new motor, single turbo upgrade, necessary cooling upgrades, etc, including the cost of the car...then go for it. otherwise rx7's are a big money pit for the pleasures of driving them.

Post by **sims** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

I understand what encasemyheartis trying to say. Its like, think if it this way, the Acura Integra type R, its an amazing car. But everyone looks at Honda and thinks rice, you don’t picture the s2000, or Acura NSX, when you think Honda you think of some wannabe thug driving in a civic DX on cut springs and big chrome wheels. It’s the owners that are the problem, not the car.

And I’m very sad to say, Nissan is getting to be the same way, “JDM” is the next big trend, every one I talk to know wants to get a “silvia”(I’ve talk to a lot of people that call there 240’s silvia’s) and swap in a SR20DET, so they can “drift”.

You can’t deny its happening, at least every other day someone comes here asking the exact same thing. It even made a reference in TF&F.

I’m scared for imports, I’m coming to the realization that the newest trend for all the ricers is quickly becoming "JDM"

The only reason it’s not everywhere its the price, JDM parts cost a lot of money. But right now there getting cheaper, there is more of an interest for the parts, engines and parts are becoming reasonably priced. This is something I thought I liked, until I started to really think about it…. cheaper parts mean there is a larger demand, meaning they will sell more, This is a relatively new market, things are good now for us. Prices are reasonable, parts aren’t to hard to get, but your still unique by having them. But a soon as companies figure out there is money in it, they are going to try and whore it as much as they can. Its already started, search JDM on ebay, you get JDM HONDA APC MUFFLERS and BS like that, its become a new catch fraise. its becoming popular and people will try and copy it, there will be ricers, just instead of blinking lights and neon’s they will all be painting there stock 15 wheels gold and black or gunmetal, painting there hoods to look black like carbon fiber, and bragging that there base model cars are like the "JDM". Its going to be the new catch fraise, "my car is JDM” with every part on it from the US.

The more I try and think of a way to stop it, the more I realize it’s impossible, this is how life works. Someone sees something they like, other people start to like it, its moves from there, any time there is a chance for money to be made people will be there to exploit it.

Post by **encasemyheart** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

yeah, it's all about the trend, unfortunately.

I have been buying a few "JDM" parts, a term I don't even like to use because it brings up images of people paying ridiculous amounts for something that looks almost EXACTLY the same as stock. You should see what Honda boys put on their car just because it's "JDM," it's sickening. But what I buy has to do with looks, lets see, stock 240sx spoiler which looks like *** or 180sx type x spoiler? Stock tails or 180sx tails. Although I have to admit I will only buy those tails if I have ALOT of money extra and no bills to pay. (how often does this actually happen!!

) But I need another spoiler anyways, so why not spend a little more and get something to differentiate your 240 from everyone elses. I also have to admit I bought those foglights that go in your vent holes under the turn signals. They look really good. Although I don't know if they are JDM or just CDM (Canadian Domestic Market)

Anyone know? I think they just may be Canadian DRLs.

But my question that STILL hasn't been answered, how does a 7 handle compared to a 240? They are both light and 50/50 balanced, I assume the 7 will handle better, bu thow much better? And what will be needed to be modified to get to this level?

Post by **SRdS14** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

lol...:rolleyes

u guys are so hiliarious...

Post by **I H8 UR DSM** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

GOTRICE?

Post by **SRdS14** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

i'm a Neeeeeenja SupaSTAAAAAAAA...haaaya.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

go with the 7. its more unique and you can build the engine to the roof. need an sr20det to drift bah people are stupid. what makes them think that power is everything? i can drift my 240 and all i have is the little old ka24e. damn ricers.:alcoholic

and another thing ask a ricer what jdm stands for i guarantee half or more wont know what it stands for!

Post by **midwestdrifter** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

durability? drifiting? who cares about that i want an sr so i can pop wheelies with daily driven wrinkle walls and drive on the wheely bars, and brake with a parachute that has an APC logo. muuuhahahah.

Post by **Onizuka** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:46 am

ok, here is a comparison of the FD RX7 and S13

FD RX7 = Really expensive money pit with more potential

S13 = realitivly inexpensive no matter what you put in it.

ok?

S13 240SX vs. Mazda RX-7

S13 240SX vs. Mazda RX-7

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