Project FD RX7 Restomod: Part 25 – JP3 Motorsports RX8 A/C Upgrade

JP3 Motorsports FD RX7 13B-REW to RX8 AC System Upgrade We upgrade the stock FD RX-7’s subpar A/C system with JP3 Motorsport’s A/C line kit that adapts the newer, more efficient, and more effective RX-8 A/C compressor and condenser to the notoriously hot FD RX-7. JP3’s A/C system regularly outputs lower than 40*F air from the vents and we were eager to get this installed.

FD RX-7 Koyo Radiator no ducting FD RX-7s are known to overheat, especially when driven aggressively on hot days. Back in the day, it was common for weekend warriors and boy-racers to remove the A/C condenser to improve airflow and cooling to the radiator, at the sacrifice of comfort and street-ability. The previous owner of our car was one such example, but also did not retain any of the factory ducting. This made things worse by essentially turning the entire radiator into an air deflector, guiding air from the front grille to underneath the car, rather than going through the radiator. We will go into the importance of ducting in a future article. With our plans to upgrade the entire cooling system of the car to avoid overheating, reinstalling air conditioning into our FD was a must.

JP3 Motorsports FD RX-7 13B-REW to RX8 AC System Upgrade JP3 Motorsports developed high-quality A/C line kits that adapt the 2004-2011 Mazda RX8 AC Compressor and condenser to the FD RX-7 with all the necessary hardware, sensors, wiring leads, o-rings, and billet compressor adapter brackets. The high-quality lines are small in diameter and utilize DEI thermal insulation sleeves in the areas around the exhaust to protect the lines from excessive heat that could damage the lines or reduce the effectiveness of the air conditioning.

JP3 Motorsports was founded in 2019 by car enthusiasts with a mission to develop bespoke parts for the 3^rd generation Mazda RX7 and 2^nd generation Toyota Supra. Over the years, they have developed countless much-needed products that greatly modernize and upgrade the FD RX-7. JP3 is constantly innovating and pumping out new products that makes ownership of these cars easier, while making it easier to modify with bolt-on solutions that typically required a lot of custom fabrication.

JP3 offers these RX8 A/C line kits for both RHD and LHD variants of the FD RX-7, along with every evaporator combination out there for the stock or front-mount intercoolers (SMIC/FMIC), the HKS Vmount, as well as the popular Greddy Vmount intercooler setups.

Needless to say, there are tons of different variants of air conditioning systems for the FD RX-7. To better understand these differences, check our JP3 Motorsports’ video on the differences between evaporator cores: