1993 Mazda RX-7 OEM conversion - Gabriel Corona

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1993 Mazda RX-7 OEM conversion

Gabriel Corona

Instagram: @rotorhead82

Photographers: Chris Forster & Tyler Young

Instagram: @c4shootz & @yungrumblz

Performance Stats Estimated: 430hp / 370ft-lb tq @ 10-12psi (91 octane)

I'm a mechanical engineer at LLNL working on national defense projects and weapon development. I'm married and have one 2 1/2-year-old, Elijah, who is autistic but is my life.

Since graduation, I've always wanted to get into automotive development and design but the opportunities were far from home and it meant leaving California and my family and a great car scene. So I decided to stay in California and get a job in something that is pretty secure, stay with family and build my dream car.

I didn't have anyone in my family that was into building cars or were in the car scene but having a family (engineers, mechanics, machinists, labourers) definitely helped me appreciate and helped me understand the mechanics of a car project. My uncle handed down to me his old 1987 Mazda RX-7 when I turned 16 and my dad taught me how to work on cars. My uncle as an engineer and my dad who was a machinist were probably the ones who first got me interested in working on cars.

I had an old 2nd Gen RX-7 (FC) that was handed down to me during high school and had to learn how to work on it since local mechanics didn't want to touch a rotary. I guess they didn't know how to work on them. 

Naturally, I always wanted a 3rd Gen RX-7 as my next car since it was a rotary as well. It wasn't just the engine that I liked but I loved the sleek and curvy body lines of an FD RX-7. So in 2005, during college and a bad financial move, I purchased a stock running 1993 RX-7 for $12,500. I first decided to customize it to make it reliable. This was mainly upgrading the cooling system, removing unnecessary vacuum lines, and removing the pre-cats to remove excessive heat. That lead to upgrading the ECU then the turbo and the fueling system, suspension, etc. It just snowballed after that. 

Owning this car is, Raw, amazing, and exciting. I love the raw power from a large single turbo. It feels great being planted on the road and it handles amazing. But it is an early 90s car so there are no driving aids, and no airbags and I removed the ABS. It is nothing like my daily (2018 M550i). So it's a little scary as well :)

It's a beautiful 90's JDM legend. It's a running rotary 3rd Gen RX-7 with clean stock body lines dropped on some Fortune Auto coilovers on some Work Meister M1s with a fully built motor which has been running since I finished building back in 2017. That's what I think makes this car unique. 

What do you think?

Please leave your comments in the comments section at the bottom of the page

Build List

ENGINE: 

• 13b-REW street ported engine by IR Performance, 
• RX Parts upgraded Apex Seals, 
• Studded motor by Turblown Engineering, 
• Glease Manufacturing single turbo kit with a Borgwarner EFR 8374 turbo, 
• Dual Turbosmart 40mm external wastegates, 
• Custom Inconel heat shielding, 
• "T51r" turbo mod by OCD Works, 
• Full Function Engineering fuel step-up kit (550cc primary injectors/2000cc secondary injectors), 
• Aeromotivve FPR and Stealth fuel pump, 
• AEM water/meth injection kit, 
• Sakebomb Garage LS ignition coils, 
• Sakebomb Garage Dual 25-row oil coolers), 
• Apexi Power FC, 
• Greddy Front mount intercooler, 
• Greddy Profec B Boost controller, 
• Koyo N-flow radiator, 
• HPS silicone hoses, 
• RX7/RX8 hybrid starter, 
• ACT HD Clutch Kit, 
• ACT streetlight flywheel, 
• RE Amemiya D1 short shifter kit.

EXHAUST: 

• HKS Carbon-Ti exhaust w/ 4.5" titanium tip, 
• Full 3" SS piping w/ resonated mid-pipe. 

INTERIOR: 

• Tan to black interior conversion, 
• New '93 OEM plastics, 
• Sparco steering wheel, 
• NRG quick release, 
• Garage Alpha Titanium shift knob, 
• Prosport Gauges (boost, wideband, water temp, oil pressure, fuel pressure), 
• Sakebomb Garage fire extinguishers (passenger seat and trunk), 
• Battery relocation to rear bins, 
• Single DIN Kenwood Bluetooth receiver, 
• Type R Alpine component speakers.

EXTERIOR: 

• '99 Spec Mazda OEM conversion (front bumper, taillights, rear wing), 
• Shine Auto Project (Feed style skirts, low profile rear spoiler, 
• 99 spec carbon fibre Wing insert), 
• VIS Racing carbon fibre vented hood, 
• Garage Alpha Titanium tow hook.

WHEELS: 

• 18X10 Work Meister M1 3pc wheels (+38 Front, +26 Rear), 
• Project Kics R40 Iconic neochrome lug nuts, 
• 255/35/18 Hankook RS4 tires

SUSPENSION: 

• Fortune Auto 500 coilovers, 
• Racing Beat front sway bar

BRAKES: 

• Wilwood big brake kit w/ Ferodo DS2500 brake pads (front), 
• anti-lock brake delete kit, 
• Wilwood brake bias adjuster, 
• Sakebomb stainless steel braided brake lines

Who did the work?

I did most of the work on this build except for the last engine build. I had IR Performance in NJ do a rebuild on the short block with a custom aggressive street port and studded engine with a stud kit from Turblown Engineering. I pulled the motor, disassembled it from the long block to the short block and shipped it to IRP. I installed the motor back on the car and installed and modified everything else on the motor including the fuel system, ignition and single turbo conversion as well as suspension. 

The exterior 99 spec conversion (front bumper & wing) and other carbon fibre body pieces I installed myself with the help of a local body shop to paint match the pieces. Initial tuning was done by Daniel Kuo from Garage Life on the Apexi Power FC which was done a couple of years ago with an old exhaust system. I believe I hit about 390hp at the wheels with a restrictive exhaust and a catalytic converter. Since then I modified it with a larger, free-flowing exhaust system so I will need a retune from Daniel and hoping to hit above 430hp at a conservative 10-12psi boost.

Future Plans

Oh Yes. A car project is truly never done:

1. New OEM paint refresh
2. Re-tune the motor (a little more power)
3. Possibly a half-roll cage
4. Possibly bucket seats 
5. Air cups or air bag suspension
6. Some new carbon fibre exterior bits

Advice/Tips

A good car build will take time and money to build. Take your time learning about the car before modifying and customizing it. And if a rare part is not available anymore make it yourself or find someone who can. An RX7 and aftermarket parts are becoming rare but it is still popular enough that a lot of enthusiasts out there are still making good parts. Even Mazda of Japan is making new core 13b-rew motors that can be purchased by your local distributor. 

Tips on keeping a rotary alive....remove the oil injectors (if possible) and premix heavily. Burning regular dino oil or synthetic motor oil will leave carbon residue which can lead to pre-detonation (think burning hot coals stuck on your rotors as your ignition source). Premix or 2-stroke oil was meant to burn cleanly and lubricate hard aftermarket apex seals. Also, e85 if you want to make good clean power which will help with pre-detonation. Or, if you're not wanting big power or have e85 near you, then 91 or 93 octanes but lower the boost pressure and shoot 50/50 water/meth after you tuned the motor without it. This may lower your power a bit but will lower your intake temps and clean out your motor from carbon residue. I consider this a safety factor for any pre-detonation/knock...which kills rotaries.

One other thing, horsepower is not always number one. I have a tuned 532whp/629ft-lb daily M550i which is faster than my single turbo FD. I have come to appreciate tuning the FD to be reliable at a lower boost pressure and lower horsepower. When I had a stock block 13B with an old Garrett GT35R turbo, I was making only 355hp at the wheels...and that was fun enough, hence why I'm shooting for only low to mid 400s on my next tune.

Shout Outs

Shoutout to my team Gifted @giftedlifestyles and all the members there with their unique and significant builds. I also want to give thanks to my Wife for all the support she's given me for this build and also to my mom and my dad for letting me use college money for the initial purchase of the car :) 

Thanks to all the unique shops out there that help out the RX-7 community by providing parts to us, including @sakebombgarage @garagealpha @bubbletech.us @jp3motorsports. Thanks to @shineautoproject for their great carbon fibre aftermarket body parts. Thanks to @atkinsrotary for carrying all the OEM rotary parts I need and finally thanks to Daniel @itsgaragelife for all the tuning work and willingness to come up to NorCal to custom-tune the Northern California FDs :)

Gifted Life Styles Merch

There are a lot of people in the car scene. I get to meet different and unique car builders and owners who drive me to continue to make a better RX-7. What I get from the car scene are the acquaintances and friendships I make at car meets, car shows and drives throughout the year. I also make a lot of connections who are willing to help with my build. 

From mechanics to suspension specialists to autobody mechanics to entrepreneurs who are specializing in designing and engineering a specific car part(s) that Mazda has discontinued. I also enjoy helping other fellow RX-7 car enthusiasts with their builds and connections. The car scene is made of different people who like different parts of the car scene. Some are racers or drifters, some are builders, some are car show people, some are weekend warriors or daily drivers...and some are a mixture of a few things. I feel like I'm more of a builder. I enjoy building a car and just driving it.

Dream Car

I can't just have one dream car. I have a five. 1st would be a Porsche 991.2 GT3 RS. 2nd would be a 5th or 2nd Gen Viper (my childhood dream car). 3rd would be another FD build with a 20b turbo 3-rotor. 4th would be a Cadillac Miller-Meteor Ghostbuster's Ecto-1 replica (a fun build). 5th would be a new tuned BMW M5 Competition without a carbon roof (I like moon/sunroofs). I'm actually hoping someday I get to trade in my daily 530hp M550i for a tuned 800hp M5C.

Please leave your comments in the comments section at the bottom of the page

'The future is bright as long as we can still Smell the Fumes'

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