Nasty oil leak between front side housing and front rotor housing
 

So i just went about replacing my dirty old radiator with a brand new ebay special. :blush: It all went fine. but while i was in there, i went about removing the AC system since it hasn't worked as long as i've owned the car anyway. (i cut the belt off long ago even). After removal of the AC Compressor and brackets, it seems ive developed a pretty terrible leak. Like i was able to see the oil flowing over Mazda logo. After cleaning it up a bit it looks like there was a leak here before that a PO smudged some sort of epoxy over the split. Has anyone seen this before? Im sure the solution is to pull the engine, (which i planned on doing anyway pretty soon for a cleanup + carb rebuild.)


https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...b2e1e7dfc2.jpg

dowel pin o-ring, fairly common, perfect time to redo the soft seals or whole rebuild, your choice

Ah i thought dowel pin problem was at the rear of the engine. I should have searched harder. I would like to rebuild, but I'm not sure i have the funds for it. I believe my engine to be in good condition, but until i crack it open i wont know.

Sorry for the double post I can't find the edit button on mobile.

I just looked up a rebuild kit from Atkins. I see one for 300? Had anyone got that kit before? Recommendations? Is it worth it? The "best" kit is 1100 bucks. What are the differences?

the best thing to do is take the engine apart, clean and measure like a madman, THEN order the kit you need

I've worked on rotary vehicles for vehicles for three years now, but I've never rebuilt an engine before. I've watched a ton of videos on it, and I feel like I understand the concept, but in still a little scared.

There's also a fear of shot housings or irons because they are so hard to find now. :/

What special tools will I need? I know the flywheel bolt is huge. I suppose I need a really good set of digital calipers? Anything else?

I'd never rebuilt an engine and did my first rebuild last summer. My failure was misplacing a small screw and it ate up a rotor and housing. The engine ran and worked until the the screw came loose and made it's mess.

​​​​​I say this because I rebuilt an engine, begin to end, with common tools and minimum automotive experience. There are lots of good videos and information on this forum that would support and answer any question you had along the way.

As mentioned before, take it apart and see what you need to replace before buying anything. Maybe all you need is a soft seal kit and it's an easy $400 rebuild.

Only special tool I got:
54mm socket for the flywheel
Feeler gauges to clearance the side seals (you might be able to reuse yours)
magnetic micrometer to measure endplay of the ecsentic shaft.

Engine goes together with basic socket set and torque wrench.

Good luck on your rebuild!

If you piece together the right parts/kits, you can do a full rebuild (minus bearings) for about $500. That includes...

-apex seals
-apex seal springs
-viton oil control ring inserts
-front/rear main seals
-soft seal/assembly kit is about $200 -/+
-new corner rubber buttons (might come in kit... don't remember)
-FD corner springs

500 bucks isn't too bad. I guess I'll just have to tear into it to see really. I'm going to try and put some jb weld or something similar over the split and hope that holds for a week or two. The car is my daily driver, but I don't want to drive it leaking that much oil

Chances are slim you’ll get it clean enough to get a type of sealer to seal it off, but hey, anything cheap is at least worth trying lol

If it s running fine otherwise, I would just carry extra oil and top it up when
you check the gas. :)

Another option is to put some Lucas oil treatment in the next oil change to
see if it helps slow it down. You can take your time gathering rebuild stuff
in the meantime. You will at a minimum need the soft seal kit.

Then you can tear it down, see whats out of spec and just order those parts.

FWIW I had the same prob with my 90K mi original 12A and figured with nothing to lose but a rebuild, I added some Stop Leak. Others here have mixed reviews on this, which I respect, but since you a re game to rebuild at some point, I would recommend it as at least a band-aid. For me this was 3 yrs ago and the reduction of the leak was DRAMATIC -with (so far) no down side...

As to a build - I did one as well (on a 2nd 12a), and my advice, which you seem to have already gathered is, watch and have standing by any and ALL rebuild videos. The basic process is, as stated, pretty straight forward, with minimal special tools, but there are enough little "rebuilders secrets" these videos cover that will save your butt and maybe your motor ;)

Stu Aull
80GS
AZ