NewTotheFBs

i inherited a 1st gen and i hated it at first. Sooo many different things kept going wrong but as time passed it grew on me, and i will keep my car for as long as i can. I love my 1st gen! . but i do however have a couple questions that im sure you guys can answer, here they are.

1- my rpms when the car is idle jump up and down and my lights dim.. why do you think that is?
2- why is it that when im racing a flame of about a foot shoots out from my car?
3- a ringing noise comes from what i assume is my tranny because it goes away when i put the clutch in.
whats that all about?
4- does anyone elses car have a hard time going into reverse? because man sometimes it just doesnt want to go into reverse gear at all.
5- my cars seems to stutter when i press the gas down all the way from low rpms is it because it requires more fuel?
6- the steering at first felt abit hard since it doesnt have power steering but now it feels far too soft... as if at times i couldnt control the wheel.. why is that?
7- ive read some of the posts about a t2? what is that!?!

im sorry if i seem dumb but i know nothing about this stuff. Im only 17 ive had this car for a year and i love it. Help me please!!

cheapasaurus REX

2- why is it that when im racing a flame of about a foot shoots out from my car?
It is called afterburn, your AAF is bad/your running too rich/your cat is blown/blah blah blah

7- ive read some of the posts about a t2? what is that!?!
Turbo II ....it is a turbo 2nd gen



and...

USE SEARCH OPTION!!!!!!!!!!!

CHEF_EG_1

First and foremost, get a Haynes manual, or if you can find one, a factory service manual (check ebay).

I'll answer the best I can.... hopefully others will chime in to add...

1. your alternator may need a rebuild/replace. Something is killing your car's charging system. After that, check the ignitors, and the battery. while you're at it, check the coils too.

2. Because rotaries do that. It's natural.

3 &4. Sorry to say it, but it's time for a tranny rebuild, it sounds like. I had this problem, and one of my synchroscame loose, and DESTROYED the internals of the tranny. Junkyard trannies go for about 250. Rebuilt ones go for about 300.

5. You *might* have a vaccuum hose that is cracked or loose, and it isn't opening your secondaries soon enough. just check the vaccuum lines that run into your carb.

6. The infamous first gen "wondersteer". It happens a lot. Here's what I did... it's probably not the most kosher thing to do, but it works wonderfully for me. I got a Energy Suspension urethane sway bar end link bushing, drilled out a bigger hole, sanded down some of the material, and inserted it in my steering linkage, that connects to the passenger side frame rail. It turns beautifully now. I can talk you through that one, if you prefer.

7. T2/Turbo 2/ TII/ Turbo II/ etc. It's all in reference to the 2nd gen RX7 Turbo model. They came with turbocharged 13B's that with minimal fab (if any), fit into the first gen body. An economical way to get boost. There's a thousand and one threads about how to do the swap, many with pictures. Just search in the first gen archives, or the FAQ.


Let me know if you have any more questions, I'll be glad to help.

--Evan

jimmyjoejoe

1 - either a bad grounding from a. the alternator, b. the battery, or c. a bad fuse somewhere . first gens are notorious for electrical demons
2 - your car naturally runs a little fat on the carb. there could be a million reasons for your flame, but 90 percent of us throw flames.
3 - the ringing noise is probably a bad throwout bearing. if you have clutch pedal pressure as soon as you hit it, that's most likely the case.
4 - reverse is a goofy position on my SA, i'm not sure about the FB's. try putting the tranny in first, first, and then put it in reverse. that usually aligns everything, since reverse is on the same rail as first.
5 - could be a hesitant ignition (my SA does the same thing because i can't ever get the dwell right on the points, but most first gens don't have points ignitions), that, or your accelerator pump is acting up on your carb. unless you're lucky enough to already have a weber, which doesn't take kindly to stomping on the gas. hey, it's a 20 year old carb... they do go bad from time to time.
6 - you have some slack in your steering box... get a haynes manual and tighten it up accordingly. should take 2 big cone wrenches to get the nuts down well.
7 - a T2, otherwise known as a tII, is the second generation RX7 turbo 2 model. why it's called a turbo 2 is because in japan there was actually a factory turbo first gen, the 12at motor... never made it to the states because of emissions problems.

that's just my take on things

high-RPM

Welcome to my world..... hehe i fell in love with my crappy 7
i'll never look back


try giving your car a service and tune-up, idle could be a simple thing like air filter fuel filter etc. give the car an injector/carb clean aswell... check the tension of your alternator belt and check the battery aswell


called a backfire and its kewl, its unburned fuel flowing down the exhaust and igniting when hitting fresh air [/QUOTE]

Check all the engine components to make sure they've still got bolts, I've had a loud metallic rattle that i couldnt pin down (realised the exhaust needed a new bolt), other than that so a search i know in auto boxes they sometimes encounter ringing not sure about manual

Yeah your gearbox is just getting old, it gets better as the car warms up, try releasing the clutch all the way pressing it down again, then try.... works for me

I forget the causes of hesitation, check your tuning and timing... use the search button to see if there are other people who've had the same issues

check your tire pressure and your shocks

TII is a fc series 4 or 5 engine, it is an efi 13b turbo makes close to 190 hp stock (140 KW) and is a reasonably cheap (and economical) upfrade for fbers

im sorry if i seem dumb but i know nothing about this stuff. Im only 17 ive had this car for a year and i love it. Help me please!!


hope i helped you out.....

any other thoughts guys?

high-RPM

i was beaten, both in speed and accuracy.... sniffle

hats off jimmyjoejoe

jimmyjoejoe

thank you thank you. homegrown 20 year old mechanic here.

high-RPM

yeah
i cant compete with a mechanic
everything i stated was pretty much from experience or from recycling forum info

so, jimmy whats your car?? stock, n/a?, 12a, 13b???

jimmyjoejoe

just a stocker 79... frankenstein motor from an 84 12a, emissionless, recovered the dash, turbo II seats, i acutally was lucky enough to find a back seat to fit my car, modified the storage bins for a seat surround... a freeflow custom exhaust from a racing beat header.

Aaaaaaaalf

about the steering, can someone shed some more light on it? my cars steering wheel feels a bit loose, its like a slight tap moves it (when its turned off). and I know this car doesnt have power steering, but for some reason i feel like the steering is a little too hard, but then again, I don't know much.

jimmyjoejoe

the bushings on your steering box wear out. what the heck are you doing having a mazda and not owning a haynes manual??? you should know no self-respecting mechanic will touch these cars. well, maybe the steering isn't such a big deal, but anyways... there's 2 big nuts on the steering tube coming out of the firewall into the steering box. you just gotta tighten them back down so there's no play. get a manual! ebay has em all day for like 5 bucks.

jimmyjoejoe

plus, a little sloppy steering never hurt no one. just don't go too fast.

Aaaaaaaalf

heheheeeee, i have a chilton's manual, or something like that, i guess it would be a good idea to read it :-\

jimmyjoejoe

would it be against site policies to actually scan the pages for this guy? oh yeah, we can't upload pics very easily. dammit

high-RPM

kewl
sounds like a nice ride, where'd ya get the back seat from

mine is black vinyl

jimmyjoejoe

some random guy from ebay... it's black vinyl with grey panels, to match the grey leather seats i got. the thing was, the 79's in america had extra bracing, so much so that they didn't even have rear storage compartments, let alone back seats...

oh yeah, and it has spec 7 suspension with konis, camber plates, and nice gummy 205's on 79 LE rims... only 3000 sets anywhere, let alone how many exist now

Aaaaaaaalf

Nah, its cool Jimmy, thanks for your help though. I'll just read up on it tomorrow myself, it'll make me feel like I've accomplished something! :-D Thanks again though

high-RPM

wow
i bet that handles reeeaaaal nice

wwilliam54

1.bad ground/bad alt
2.that means its running good
3.pilot bearing
4.reverse doesnt have synchoes, shift into 3rd and then into reverse with the clutch still in , ive had several non rx-7's like that too
5.check you acc pump
6.check you tie rods and alignment, bt the sterring box is porbly just worn

NewTotheFBs

ah i see. thank you guys. That answers all. Thanks!

lovintha7

I'm surprised no one mentioned the steering box adjust screw. There's a 14mm nut with a flat head screw in the middle of it. Loosen the nut, and turn in the screw until you have no play. Rock the steering wheel back and forth slightly and watch the steering linkage. When that moves back and forth with the steering wheel, it's adjusted right. Tighten the nut, but make sure the screw doesn't turn with it. If it's too tight, the steering wheel won't return while driving. If it's too loose, the steering wheel will feel sloppy.

My 2 cents