Just had my 85 GSLSE in the shop because it was hard to start and a big puff of white smoke when it did start as well as a pretty constant loss of coolant. They tell me she needs a new engine as the one in there now has an oil leak between the housing, a coolant leak at the manifold intake, low compression, leaking injectors and they could not find replacement parts in the area.

Now, does anyone know of a good engine shop in the Colorado Springs, CO area for a possible rebuild or am I going to have to order out (mazdatrix or something)?

My mechanic skills are a touch limited so won't be able to do this myself.

 

engine has a blown coolant seal...but if there's a coolant leak at the manifold intake then maybe the rubber o ring has gone out at the manifold and that is the cause of the coolant loss. its an easy fix..an oil leak between the housing? be more specific...low compression? did they prove that with a compression test? with a rotary compression tester? a leaking injector? your motor dident flood out did it? how do they know about a leaking injector? asking question's is key here...how do they know its a leaking injector? did they test all two injector's?

you have to be a cop here and interrogate them to the fullest.

:AA:

 

depending on milage and overall condition, a complete teardown and overhaul might just be the best option. Just get it all fixed at once. Not sure about Rotary Shops in your area, but a replacement engine shouldn't be that hard to source. Most rotary speciality shops will also rebuild your current one if you ship it to them. I realize, this isn't the most econimical answer.

 

Coolant leak at intake manifold: fairly simple fix, if you are mechanically inclined. Remove intake manifold, install new O-Rings and gasket, reinstall manifold.

Oil leak between housings: If this is not too bad, you can ignore it. If it is bad, then some members have had success with a fairly simple repair procedure, done without pulling the motor. Search for "leak of death" and you might find the thread.

Leaking injectors: Try running some Seafoam through the gas tank.

Low compression: Seafoam through the gas tank again. Then reverify the compression test if you think you really do have an issue.


Also, if you replace the O-rings in the intake manifold and still have issues with your coolant going out the exhaust, then you can do what I did (very easy, cost 4 dollars): https://www.rx7club.com/1st-gen-archive-71/engine-coolant-seal-repair-maybe-750774/

Good luck!


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Thanks for the recommendations. The engine is the original and has well over 130k. The entire problem came as a result of the engine not wanting to catch on engine start and a big puff of white smoke that was produced once it did.

In order for me to get the engine to start I have to floor the gas pedal and crank about 8 to 10 seconds then it gradually starts and a big puff of smoke comes out he exhaust. If I do not get it started within the first two tries or I forget to floor the gas pedal then I have to wait about 30 minutes and jump it.

I'll look for the manifold o rings and get that taken care of. Can using seafoam cause any other problems?

 

I've never had any problems with seafoam. You would be amazed on how much better it can make your car run after a few miles.

 

130k is nothing on a n/a rotary. Kentetsu's engine went at (correct me if i'm wrong) about 212k, and that's after a few years of auto-x every weekend. His was 12a, but the n/a rotaries are notoriously bulletproof.

If you didn't overheat your motor, then you shouldn't be having coolant leak into the combustion chambers because of a bad coolant seal. Like it has been stated above, probably the rubber o-ring between the intake mani and the block. Also, have you had a chance to smell the white exhaust? If it smells like maple syrup, then it's definitely coolant.

As far as SeaFoam, it's great stuff. Run 1 can through 1/8 of a tank, and drive the hell out of it, then put a can in when you fill up and drive normally. The sticky injectors should clear up and your car should idle better/start easier. G'luck.

 

No Intake manifold o-rings on a GSLSE. Only 12A's have them.

 

Oops. In that case, I'd say its time to look into some Alumaseal...

 

Alumaseal? what is it, where do i get it and most importantly, how do i use it?

tried the seafoam and at a quarter tank, seems to have helped a bit, need yo get back home so that i can run it more. Started up easier as the day went on but it was much warmer. Trouble all started with temps in low teens and twenties.

Looks like I have some driving to do this weekend.

 

Here is how you use it... Follow this link: https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=750774

Actually Kentetsu posted the link a few posts back. Has lets some leaky engines run thousands of miles without a problem at all.

 

A bandaid for the leaking injectors is to wire a fuel cutoff switch. Shut off the fuel just before turning off the ignition, then turn it on only after the engine has rolled a couple of times. Low compression is often an indication of flooding. I bought a GSLSE with a "Mazda Dealer" diagnosed engine failure as a result of lost compression. I brought it home, did the deflood procedure, wired up a cutoff switch and she was great. A little wet sanding, polishing and detailing of the rims and it was an instant $2000.00 profit. Ooooh, and damn I was scared when I removed the water after wet sanding as you can certainly understand, it was my first effort but I passed with flying colors. Learned how from the internet after watching Gearz on TV one day.

 

I used the Alumaseal a couple of years ago. Brought the motor back to life, no doubt. Cost me 4 bucks, and since then I've raced a bunch of races, drove from Michigan to North Carolina and back, and daily drove the car. Got about 12k miles on it since the repair, still no problems.

Good luck...

 

Seafoam seems to help, I do still seem to have coolant and oil leaks so I'll try the golden eagle products this weekend. One question though, the thread was a guy with a 12A, I assume that it will work just as well on the 13B.

 

Yes, there should be no difference. My only advice is to make certain that you use a product based on Aluminum, and avoid copper or anything else. The aluminum will be much safer for your car.

The name brand was Alumaseal, and I used the liquid form rather than the dry type that they also sell. Just dump it into the radiator and wait for it to do it's job, either idling in the driveway or by going for a drive.

Let us know how it works out for you....

 

There are 2 coolant hoses attached to the intake manifold/throttle body of a GSLSE. I would check both before using the block sealant. The hoses connect to the rear of the throttle body. One connects to a nipple on the top of the rear iron. The other runs under the intake manifold runners to a nipple on the rear of the thermostat housing. The hoses are visible in this picture. One is below the Water Thermo Valve and the other is to the right. The 2nd hose is not stock. It should run underneath the runners.

Here's a current thread about these hoses with more pictures.
https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-specific-1979-1985-18/anti-freeze-leak-hose-pic-883792/

Can you see coolant pooling somewhere? Can you be more specific about the location of your oil leak?

 

the write up says that the oil leak is between the housings. I have not been able to crawl under the car to check for sure. I'll look at the rear part of the engine compartment to see if it is in fact the hoses that 74RX4 suggested. I did have what i took for leaking exhaust that now that I think of it could have been leaking coolant dripping on the exhaust pipes. Thanks for the suggestions and for now, I'll hold off on the sealants.

I ran a bottle of sea foam in a tank of gas and the car is starting up a lot easier but I still get a big white puff of smoke. The smoke does not smell sweet and it has been in the twenties and low thirties so it could be condensation (one can only hope). I'm planning on running another bottle through the system and clean it out some more.

Is there any way of noting low compression without hooking it up to a guage? The engine seenms to run well and still has good acceleration.

Thanks for the help.