For radiator clearance reasons, I need to put an FC front crossmember into my recently acquired GSL. It already has a GSL-SE engine in it, but I've never had the oil pan off of it.

Do -SE engines have the same motor mount bosses that the FC engine does? I would preferably like to use the FC motor mounts with the crossmember instead of adapting a frontmount to the body. I've "heard" that -SE engines have the bosses but I've also heard otherwise.

 

i've used an FB motor mount in place of an FC mount on an FC with no problems.. not sure if this will help you or not Pete...
i can tell you that as you may know, the SE engine mounts the same same way a 12A does and that the mounting of an FC engine is completely different when using it in an FB due to the mount locations in an FC.

 

Yes. That's the question. Does the GSL-SE engine have the locations for the center plate motor mounts underneath the oil pan. I'm not about to drop the oil pan just to find out, if someone else knows. (I'm new to these late-model engines)

The strut rod mounts interfere with the radiator, so they need to go. Since I'm going to be using FC struts anyway, it seems like it'd be easier to just use the whole FC crossmember instead of making new control arms and tie-rods to use the FC struts with the FB suspension. But then there's that whole engine mounting problem.

A much simpler way of putting it, would be "Can a GSL-SE engine bolt in to an FC" given that when I'm done, the car will essentually be an FC from the firewall forward.

 

SE center iron does not have provisions for the bolt through the oil pan for the FC mount. Didn't bother to look at the other side. I have yet to figure out why the SE iron has the threaded boss in the first place on the exhust side.

 

peejay, the GSL-SE intermediate has four threaded holes on the exhaust side so you will need to come up with an alternative to the FC motor mount. The FC has three vertical bolts while the GSL-SE has four horizontal bolts or studs. The other side is the same I think.

 

I answered how to do this in the other thread in the 2nd gen forum. It is possible to do fairly easily.

 

Yeah, I realized in retrospect that there have probably been more people who tried to re-engine their FC with an -SE engine, than there have been people who swapped an FC crossmember into an FB without also using an FC engine.

Thanks again for your help. Part of my problem, is that I only have an hour or two to work on the car at a time. The plan is to hang the engine, remove the frontend, put it on casters so it can be pushed back out, then throw the new crossmember in, drop the engine, and make it steerable.

Fortunately, I am using a power steering column so it should be adaptable if not a bolt-in for the steering shaft. All bets will be off when I get the steering quickener though

 

Could one of you gents post a link to the thread rotary god mentioned?

 

https://www.rx7club.com/2nd-generation-specific-1986-1992-17/gsl-se-engine-into-fc-corroboration-725610/

 

Thank you sir. I suspected it might be able to be done. Using 2 driver side mounts makes it very simple. I like your idea of shimming both side for the weight offset. Shortening the bolts on the righthand side would also reduce potential failure rates the longer bolts would present.

 

You could always replace the front cover and oil pan with the configuration you need. I have a 2nd gen engine that I converted this way to put into an SE. I have the oil pan and front cover from the 2nd Gen if you are looking for one too.

 

He's not putting an SE engine into an FC. He's installing an FC subframe into an FB and retaining the SE engine. The stock engine mounts would be gone with the stock FB subframe.

 

Don't bother trying to explain. If he can't read it the first time then he won't read it the second or third times, too.

 

have you any thoughts on how you are going to fab up mounts?

 

Mounts for what?

The subframe is (should be) a matter of relocating the weld-in bolts, and adding a gusset in the rear.

 

So did you do anything with this project? Or abandon it?

 

It's been, what, three days? I won't be able to start work on it for another month.

Patience, man.

Besides, it's been done dozens of times before (apparently most 1st-gen rally cars in the US have FC subs) but it's done using FC engines as well.

 

Well, I don't envy your situation. Good luck coming up with a workable solution.

 

Right now I'm just trying to get fabbed to have a 13B in the car...