2004 Mazda RX-8 Grand Touring

By now, unless you’re one of the Cro-Magnon cave-dweller crowd who have somehow bypassed much of the 21st century, you’ve probably either read at least one Harry Potter book or seen one of the movies. You might even have been suitably-charmed by J.K. Rowling’s whimsical series which revolves around a magical dual world co-existing somewhat peaceably with our own. In more than a few ways, Jeff Abrams’ maniacal turbocharged 2004 RX-8 Grand Touring is a vehicle which spans both worlds. It is a solid, well-build, sensible 4-door machine with enough amenities to please any Muggle (an ordinary non-magical person). At the same time, Jeff’s inclusion of his own custom-built and tuned turbo system magically transforms the very nature of this beast into a fire-breathing, black-hearted steed, just as likely to spit you out and chew on your nether regions as it is willing to do your bidding.

Jeff’s an easy-going, intelligent guy with a serious jones for modifying Mazdas. Prior projects include a turbocharged and intercooled 2.5 liter 1993 MX-3 and a turbocharged and intercooled 1.8 liter 1997 Miata. We sense a trend here towards smaller engines and positive manifold pressure. Needless to say, since neither of those cars initially came with boost, he’s garnered a great deal of experience with turbo tuning. Tackling the doubly-difficult task of tuning for the notoriously-touchy RX-8 ECU and thirsty, dual-plug 13B-REW was probably mere child’s play for Jeff. “There were parts waiting in the garage when I got the car. I pretty much voided the warranty the first week.” Warranty? Who needs a warranty?

Since he built it from scratch, we’ll let Jeff describe the sweet turbo system details in his own words. “It’s a hand-welded, tubular manifold with a Turbonetics T3/T04E hybrid turbo with an integral waste gate and a similarly hand-welded down pipe to a Billy Boat CAT-less mid-pipe and a Mazdaspeed V2 exhaust. The cold-side plumbing is 2.5” aluminum piping, through a custom-made 30” intercooler with an HKS Super-Sequential blow off valve. The system draws its air through a modified version of the OEM air box for stealth and simplicity of filter changes. The A/F is monitored by an Innovate LC-1 Wideband O2 Controller which reports to my GReddy E-01 boost controller and data display so I can have boost and A/F information all in the same place. The Koso EGT sits on top of that and monitors temps at the inlet to the turbo. The injector staging is controlled by a GReddy E-Manage Ultimate. The Primary and Secondary injectors remain under PCM control in cruise and light throttle. The EMU takes over in boost and adds the second set of Primary injectors for total fuel flow. The EMU also controls the secondary valves in the intake and keeps the OEM PCM happy (and not reporting CELs).” Whew! Did you catch all of that? Don’t try this at home, kiddies.

For the exterior, he knew he wanted a more aggressive look to match the performance, so he ordered up the Mazdaspeed nose and side skirts, and the rear Aero flares. “I only own black cars so with the rock chips we pick up out here (Phoenix), I’m constantly repainting the nose for shows.” He’s also added the adjustable Mazdaspeed rear wing and a custom finished billet fuel door. As well, he’s also installed, on his own, a set of GT Factory Lambo door hinges. While these have become commonplace on show cars, they’re not as prevalent on daily drivers. Doors up, combined with the body kit, the look is 100 percent sinuous and sensually exotic. Not too shabby for a car available under thirty large ones!

Bringing the meat to the table is a set of 19-inch Rays two-piece G-Games Wolf 77 wheels in staggered eight- and nine-inch widths. Nitto NT-555 Extreme tires offer summer-friendly traction for this “Valley of the Sun” resident (also jokingly known as “the surface of the sun” to the natives). Brembo cross-drilled (the holes are actually cast into the rotors to avoid dreaded cracking) and slotted rotors are clamped by the stock single-piston Brembo-engineered brake calipers, and produce excellent feel and short stopping distances. Never busy, we were able to place the car anywhere we wanted in a turn, at least up to speeds which would have earned stern glances from the local law enforcement.

From behind the wheel, most of the driving motions felt like any other RX-8, with the notable exception of the Axial Flow Engineering short shifter which imparted rifle-bolt engagement and nearly 30 percent shorter throws. The spongy feel of the original shifter has been banished. Turning inputs result in the car rotating around the driver with Mazda’s impeccable balance. Stock seats, nicely wrapped with red and black leather (as is the steering wheel), offer firm support for spirited driving. The first clue, however, that there’s more hidden in the engine bay comes from firing the car up and lightly touching the gas. The HKS blow-off valve just sounds so tasty doing its job and issues forth hearty “woooosh” sounds with each up-shift.