which would be better on the wallet to rebuild the 12a that is sitting in my rex or to buy a reman.. I have a aas in automotive technology but my instructor hated rotory engines and never touched the basics on them, so I am not sure how different they are from regular engines. info on specality items and tools would be very helpful as well as which manuels have the most info one the whole vehicle not just the engine, and some company names that deal with RX-7 parts and supplies.
Thanks you all for the info you have given me so far.

D.

 

They are completely different than piston engines. And the best way to learn is to rebuild one yourself. Go buy a haynes manual and that'll help alot or find a work shop manual for your year of car.

 

Rotary engines are alot easier to rebuild than piston engines from what I've seen and heard.

For general info, great places to learn about rotary engines are:
http://www.rotaryengineillustrated.com
and
http://www.howstuffworks.com (search for rotary engine)

For the best information on the car, get a Heynes manual. I guarantee, it'll be the best $20 you've ever spent on your car. It has a good section on rebuilding the engine, and if you're familiar with engine rebuilding for the piston engine, it should be pretty much all you need.

Even so, you might like to know that there's a VIDEO on the rebuild of a 13b rotary engine. Since the 13b and 12a are almost identical rebuilds, the vid is great for any Rx7 Owner who wants to rebuild their engine. It can be found here:
http://www.rotaryaviation.com/overhaul_video.htm

So with the video watched, and the Heynes in hand you can set to work. Also, many people pick up factory manuals for their Rx7, which have tons of valuable information on your car, some covered in Heynes, and some not. These can be found on e-bay from time to time, and used to be found online, though the site's down right now. Your mazda dealer *may* be able to hook you up, but they haven't been in print for quite a while.

Have fun!

Jon

edit:
you asked about good companies for parts and supplies!
http://www.racingbeat.com - these guys have the best exhaust system for the 1st gen, and arguably the only one you should ever look at. As well, they have specially modified rotary-holley kits with intake manifold, which are the darlings of many a club member. Many other cool goodies

http://www.mazdatrix.com - this place is a great place to pick up parts for your car

http://www.victoriabritish.com - their catalogue is FREE and delivered to your door on a seasonal basis. Definitely worth a sign-up. Anything you can't find at mazdatrix will be here and vice-versa.

Anything you can't find at those three can either be tracked down at your local NAPA autoparts, a "vehicle recycling facility" (pick-your-part junkyard), or from Mazda themselves as a last resort

Welcome to the Forum

 

yea rebuilding your self CAN be cheaper but if you open it and the housings are flacking or have chatter marks then its gonna get expensive. also see if you can find a local that has rebuilt 1 before and have them over look your work. theres lots of little **** that can get you. making sure springs are in the right way, in the right spot, water seals in the right way ect. ect. ect. i helped out on my 1st motor and after that it was all me and ive never had a bad motor .

 

As always, Jon has pretty much summed it up for ya. If I were you, I'd rebuild it. Given your background you should have nooo problem rebuilding that 12a. Heck, anyone that can follow directions and use a wrench can do it and the Haynes manual is all you need for the job. Oh.... and when you're done.... shove it in your close-minded instructors face.

BTW, Atkins Rotary Specialties, Inc. in Puyallup, WA is one of the favorite suppliers of rotary rebuild parts. They have a rebuild video too.

Good luck!

--Bob