1980 vs 1985 swap
 

I recently bought a 1980 RX7. I have come across what is probably a 1985 GS 5speed 12A that was given up for dead at a garage. It doesn't have a title and the guy is selling it to me for $200. I am going to get the rear glass, the rear glass struts, the louvers, coils, distributor, cap, rotor, wires and anything else I can get off the car of use. I may even get some suspension parts, and possibly the tranny. I'm taking it to my storage building to remove the parts.

I am just curious about a few things. The books I am looking at show the altenators, starter, brakes, rotors, and a few other parts as different part numbers. What gives? What changes were made? Would the wheels off that car bolt up to mine? Would the altenator work on my car? Are the brakes better than what I have?

It is a shame about the car because it has zero rust in it. Also, it just came in for carb work and apparently the guy gave it up for dead.

if the car is in really good condition why not just drop your good motor into it? You have to put the 85 intake to keep the emissions working, but thats it.

Also the 79-80 were known as the SA22C. Basically its the series 1 rx-7. Series 2 is 81-83, and series 3 is 84-85. There were major body changes in 81, and in 84 the GSL-SE was intrduced and all the models got a revised dash.

Also, 83+ cars have a larger flywheel which is probably why the starter's are different.

ih thise days i still doiing the same think, you are doing... 1980 12a swap with a 13b.

BUT..

the header is not the only part you need.. you need also a fuel pump and i have take sparkle.

i think its all.. but is better also change clutch (i have do) and tranny (i have no money for do)


its very cool we are doing the same identical work in the same time..

here are some picts for you (only for you ihih ) the swapping of my rotor... i will post at the end a tread with all the picts and the swapping impression e experience that i have do =) ihihi
http://www.sicurezzanet.com/board/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=16

unfortunately, the other car is a 12a. I'm not doing an engine swap. :(

because I want the 1980 body and paid extra to get one. The parts car doesn't have a title. It was abandoned by the owner and I guess it it legally still his. I would have to track him down to get a title or hire an attorney to get a title.

What were the changes to the brakes after 1980 that make them different? On the 1985, with the 13" rims bolt up to my car? I also noticed that it takes a different strut cartridge. Front and rear brakes are different and so is the master cylinder.

I believe the rims from the 85 will bolt up. They are the 4 spoke rims right??

One of the reasons for the different alternator part numbers is that the 79-80 cars have an external regulator. All of the later RX-7's have internal regulators. You will have to wire it up a little differently.

yeah, they are 4 bolt. I just didn't know if the patter was changed.

All 79-85 Rx7's have the same bolt pattern except the Gsl-SE's.

The garage owner should be able to go to the DMV and show prove that the car was abandoned and get a title for it. Then he'd be able to sell it to you - all legal and such. You could do the investigation for him and just let him know what to do. I think this type of thing happens often, I used to know some folks that had garages.

Only '79 had external regulator. My '80 was definitely internal-reg.

Swapping engines is easy but you can't use the smog gear from one engine on the other. Ports are in the wrong place. A smog legal swap would involve the ECU and lots of wiring. It can be done, but it's pretty pointless.

Starters are different because the number of teeth on the starter are different and the solenoid is in a different place. But they are swappable. (I had an '80 starter in my '85. Now I have an '80 starter and most of an '80 transmission in my '85)

Practically everything is different between '80 and '85. However many things will interchange as assemblies. However, for the most part, there either is no specific advantage one way or the other, or the '80 stuff is better. (Two notable exceptions - the '85 had bigger alternator, and the '84-85 had better front wheel bearings)

well, there are plenty parts that are swappable that will make it worth my while. Except for the struts, the basic suspension is the same on both. I got the door moldings, the hatch struts and I am taking the rear glass so I can get the defroster working again. it has a new distributor cap, rotor and plug wires. I was going to buy those new. The coils will swap. Wheels and other stuff. It has louvers and a front bra. I'll come out ok on the exchange and live and learn on the rest.

The BASIC suspension is the same. The springs (all four) are identical, the rear shocks are identical, the front struts are different only because the strut housing is a different length. Many performance struts are only available for the '81-85 front housing, but the 85 stuff is better only because of the bearings.

Brakes are not easily swapped because the '80 has a different thread pitch, so you need adapters or special hoses. There's no real advantage to swapping the front calipers because they are the same as '81-85 calipers, just different hydraulic pitch. The rear drums on the '80 are superior because they don't have a self adjuster to fail. (You said it was a GS, I assume it still has rear drums and it didn't have a disc rear end swapped in, in which case the drums on the '80 are superior because rear discs suck ass)

The bra *might* not work due to the turn signals being in a different place. Then again, bras are best installed in the nearest garbage can because they do some nasty damage to the paint - grit gets under the bra and the bra grinds it in there, killing the paint, and then the bra attracts moisture and causes mildew and yes even rust after it grinds the paint down to bare metal.

How do you figure? I swapped in an '81 GSL axle for the LSD and was pleasantly surprised by the improved stopping power of the rear discs. They really helped in autoX.

Yeah but does your handbrake work? :)

I've never met a married rear handbrake that worked worth a crap. Or for that matter a caliper with a married handbrake that didn't have problems maintaining adjustment.

It worked great...

Until I broke the cable. ;) I should really get around to fixing that...

the wiring harness on the 81 and 85 are completely different. In 84 they added extra wires and ran it from the other side of the engine bay. But with a wiring diagram it isn't to hard if you decide to swap in the engine.