hello,
rx7 1985 in garage ~ 9 years.
(no rust) 44,000 kms
1. i was told by mazda (and some dealers) that haynes is inAccurate and they suggest chiltons however the faqs here suggest haynes (which i have)
is there any point to get chilton's also?

2. my auto iq is < 0 HOWEVER i really want to put the rx7 together (needs a starter etc. etc. etc)
is there a more basic forum than this one?

thank you in advance!

 

Hey Tanya,

Don't get the Chiltons, it sucks. Trust me. You'll learn pretty quickly that the dealers and the Mazda dealership know nothing about our cars, and just subcontract the work out if they can, or replace it with factory parts if they can't.

You won't find a more basic forum than this, but three years ago I started in on a similar project (1984 Rx7 GS, sitting for 5 years, similar condition) and came to this forum. Just take your time and read. Ask questions. Read posts even if you don't understand half of what they're saying. Even if you pick up on only 10% of the things you read, that's 10% more than you had.

Theres a *lot* more to look for on a sitting car than just the starter, but the car is pretty easy to learn and work on, so you'll be fine. Where in Canada are you? I'm near Ottawa, and would be more than willing to help if you get stuck.

Here is some info to get you started. Like I said, don't let things intimidate you, just save a copy of it somewhere and keep reading The Heynes is the best $20 you'll ever have spent on your car, but isn't much help until you know what to look for I s'pose. For basics on the engine itself (if you're interested) and other car-related things you can visit www.howstuffworks.com . For some good reading on the rotary engine, visit www.rotaryengineillustrated.com . "Howstuffworks" has articles on almost every part of a car in pretty straight-foward terms most of the time, and has helped me alot.

I posted a thread about "Bringing an Rx7 Back To Life".. it's in the FAQ, but you can click here instead to get there quicker:

https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...postid=2385473

If your engine is siezed from sitting, I suggest reading the "Decarbonizing a Rotary" article in the Archive

If you have any questions, you can PM or e-mail me at vipernicus42@hotmail.com

Welcome to the forum, fellow Canadian

Jon

 

Personally I do not care for the Chilton manual. The Haynes is very good and if you want more accuracy get the factory service manual for your specific year. By using the factory manual in combination with the Haynes you should be in good shape.

 

Well, one can never have to much information. i have every book i can find about these cars and still have questions from time to time. were here to because we all share a love for these little cars with a very different engine. they used to be everywhere, now not to many. many here's goal is to keep as many of these cars on the road and running good. this forum is a priceless source of information with some really great people. don't be affraid to ask questions and if you don't understand still, keep asking because everybodys different. you'll find mazda dealerships can't help much, but to a point then your on your own. the engine is different but the car itself is like most rear wheel drive cars. welcome aboard and may the rotory gods smile upon you,,, and us all for that matter..

iluvmyrx7.com is a great site for parts listing

mazdatrix.com is a great place for hard to find oem parts

 

victoriabritish.com has a great catalog with lots of hard to find parts and with the haynes manual you should be able to install these things yourself...treat it well and it will treat you well.

 

Check out the FAQ on the top of the forum. It has links to online versions of the '79 '83 and '85 Factory Service Manuals. Those cover most of the design changes found during the run of the 1st gen and are better than a Haynes by far. The FAQ also has plenty of info for a newcomer as well. Read up and do some homework and you'll have that beast running before you know it.

I was in the same situation as you when I purchased my first RX-7. I learned everything I know (which ain't much ) working on my car and checking in with the fine folks around here.

Welcome to the fold.

 

Dude.. I hope she comes back

I remember when I was working on my friend's civic I posted on a few forums and lost the addresses!

Jon

 

i'm in toronto... i need a battery (was using a live car's ) but from haynes sounded like the starter to begin with.

i've read and learned LOTS from howstuffworks.com -- thanks for the rotary link!
also the below in the faqs

thanks, Jon!
i'll check the decarb. article in the archives... and i am sure to have questions...
Thanks!
sincerely
Tanya

 

i'll get the factory book too (i saw the link in the faqs)
thank you

 

thank you MarkPerez,
for the reply, tips and the links
greatly appreciated
sincerely
Tanya

 

hi and thanks for the information, sccrsteve5
i'll check the victoria Web site
thanks
sincerely
Tanya

 

i'd like to buy a service manual.......
i thank you but i still *know* that my auto iq is subZero BUT it can only improve right?

many thanks
sincerely
Tanya

 

?

 

Tanya,

Just don't forget to check that your engine will turn freely by hand before you go replacing the starter. If you try to start it and the engine is even partly siezed, you'll just end up breaking something (probably an apex seal) and needing to rebuild the engine.

Just a word of caution... I made the same mistake when I started, luckily my starter was old, and was too weak to actually do anything bad... so it blew! Better than losing an engine I s'pose! (engines *can* be unsiezed, don't listen to what mechanics say)

Jon

 

thanks for the valuable info
(plus your post on decarbonizing the engine)
sincerely
Tanya

 

From what Ive seen with my Haynes 2nd gen manual,much of Haynes diagrams and exploded pics are lifted directly from the Factory Service Manuals,which are made by Mazda.The 2nd gen FSM's are awesome,everything is very well laid out and CLEAR.
Much of the 1st gen FSM sucks,with very bad photocopies.But the spec info and proceedures are there,in very complete form.Combined with a Haynes better pictures,youll have every bit of info youll ever need to fix your car.
Ive never,ever seen a Chiltons Ive liked.

 

I also don't like the Chiltons... I believe they cram info on two or three different models of car in that book as well...

The Haynes is good in that it give you a good detailed proceedure on how to do stuff with basic tools...

The FSM is good in that it give you "The Mazda Way" on how to do things, with more specialized tools... It goes more in depth...

The poor photo work is care of the reprinters... If you can find an original copy from the 80's, it'll have better photos... Try eBay...

The thing about forums is that they range only as far as the users... If you ask how to rebuild an engine or differential, we'll go into that... If you ask how to change a battery, starter, or brake pads... We can go into that too...

Although we seem to have a slight disagreement on what type of oil and oil filters to use...

With that, the starter will be suprisingly easy to change... Remember to disconnect the battery before you start... (I had already parked the car on the lift and put it up in the air... Was being lazy and didn't feel like taking it down to pull the cable... Cable hit the frame and there was a shower of sparks... Damn near toasted the cable too...)

It's two large bolts, one from the front, one from the rear...

Be sure the cable and connections are clean when you put it together...

If you've got any other questions, just ask...

 

Every vehicle I have owned I got a Haynes manual for. Its what my dad and grandfathers use. They are the best. But there is no sense in not getting more than one book, one might have a picture of something you might be looking at fixing. And it would be a good idea to have that handy. But by far for technical information you cannot go wrong with Haynes.

 

Shiiiit man... I have Haynes manuals for all the cars I've owned... Many of the cars my friends own or have owned... And several for cars I've never even touched...

(The 83-86 Nissan Pulsar one was sitting in a car at the scrapper. Freebie!)

Anytime someone asks me to do work on thier car, I run out and buy the Haynes to judge if I wanna do the work.

 

hi steve84GS TII,

that's good to know... i find the fsm on the mazdatrix site.
sincerely
Tanya

 

hi Pele,

i found them on mazdatrix -- are these the ones that have *poor* photos?

ok...i am still at the tool buying stage and learning how to use them.

well i can change a battery... measure voltages (with voltmeters) but spark plugs not yet however i do have the proper tool (without the gapping tool)

are you referring to the starter here? or the battery?
i will and i know that i could get answers from all of you experts!
thanks!
sincerely
Tanya

 

that's good to know since mazda here stated chiltons was more accurate lol