Just bought an 83 Rx-7 GLE. Outstanding condition, 119,000 miles.
The only thing wrong, is that the engine clicks and I cannot locate the source. It sounds as if it is coming out of the top-front portion of the block. The clicking speeds up in pulses and in volume as you rev the engine. Could it be the alternator, rotor, or is there something inside a rotary engine that clicks when there is trouble. The engine runs great. Very smooth, good power, no oil or smoke.
Just to give you an idea what it sounds like: Imaging a if you had a plastic bread-bag tie glued to the alternator so it slapped something metal each revolution. Sorry for the lousy analogy, but it's difficult to describe a click over the internet.

Help???

 

Congrats on your new purchase and welcome to the forum!

I haven't heard of this problem before. Chances are really good that it has nothing to do with the internals of the engine. (breathe a sigh of relief now) Top front could be alternator, water pump, distributor or maybe the airpump. Can you get ahold of one of those stethoscope thingys to help pin-point the sound? Good luck!

--Bob

 

Could be a belt.

 

Have you checked your cap and rotor????

I bought a cap and rotor that were out of round or something, and the rotor was hitting the contacts inside the cap. Made a clicking sound like you are describing.

 

My 82 made the same kind of noise. Turns out I was leaking antifreeze from a seal into the exhaust. Does you car smell like burning anti-freeze but it's not dripping at all?

 

Thanks for all the input.
Doesn't smell like antifreeze, but I did take the rotor apart. There is a metal plate that sits just under the rotor that covers the points. It is a bit loose. I'll tinker with that and see if that is catching. I stopped at a non-mazda mechanic shop just a while ago to ask if they could figure it out. He poked around with his stethascope and said it sounded like it was coming from the front of the engine, but he admitted that there wasn't really anything inside that could be clicking. I'm thinking it must be somewhat distributor related.

 

I'll bet it's the radiator shroud!!!!

 

Ok. Took your advice and took off the distributor cap and pulled off the rotor to have a look. Not being much of a mechanic, I don't know by looking if it is normal or not. But, I did wiggle things around in there and was able to generate some metal on metal clicks that, if sped up, sounded a lot like what I am hearing. I think it's coming from somewhere deep in the distributor, below the rotor. Anything down there that could be the culprit?

 

Sounds like the hamster might have lost a shoe...

You should just buy a new JDM Hamster.

 

Good one Cody!

Certainly! There are the vacuum advance mechanicals in there. Do you have a junk-yard nearby? Maybe you could swap in a distributor off of a junked 1st Gen to see what happens. Or.... you could brave it and try tearing it apart. Just so you know, there is no such thing as a dizzy rebuild kit for our engines. So you're on your own with the tear down. Good luck!

--Bob

 

Try taking off the all the belts and then start it and see if its any of those before the distributor deal. WATCH THE TEMP DONT LET IT OVER HEAT ! !