So about 6 years ago I bough an 87 t2 for $800 that was pretty much trashed and disassembled. It sat for 2 years before I bought it too, and was last plated in 2006. The car came in 6 Rubbermaid containers; there was even a roasting pan (like the big kind for turkeys or whatever) full of nuts and bolts and brackets and things under the hood, the motor had been stripped as close to a bare keg as possible until the bolts he snapped off prevented him from further destruction. Literally a basket case.

It spent time as a backburner project to the ongoing Merkur XR4Ti project that I was messing with when I got it, and slowly got picked away at over the years.

Over the past month or so, I made time for it and now I have what appears to be a complete stock black 1987 T2 that runs. And I still have under $1000 into it. After spraying the garage with gas last night at 2am after putting fluids in it and trying to start it only to discover a cracked fuel line, it actually idled on it's own for the first time in 8 years. Not very well, mind you, but that's probably because as the excitement of being ready to start it got the best of me, I forgot to plug in the VAM connector. Revs really nice, until you touch the gas, at which point it abruptly dies.

I don't think I hit anywhere above 2 or 3k rpm, but I have no Idea, because the tach isn't working, but it appears my fuel and boost are. There was a blown fuse in the middle of the panel under the dash, replacing that got a bit of sporadic action on the tach; now nothing. I can't for the life of me remember what that fuse was called, but it definitely had something to do with the guages. So maybe it's blown again....i guess maybe it could be the trailing coils' grounding too. Any insight here would be great.

The car has new oil, new coolant, and new-ish gas. I have not checked the tps, or anything else sensor or setting wise. I want to have this car running in perfect stock form before I decide what I'm going to go with it. Any help and suggestions for a car that has not ran or moved under its own power before today for such a very long time is what I'm looking for here...I'm stunned that I'm not at least shopping for a rebuild kit for this engine, and I don't want to break anything by overlooking something silly.

I know I'm gonna need stuff like a fuel filter, air filter and stuff like that. I've owned cars before. But anything I should do to help wake this little motor that somehow survived up-- that would be great.

It came with some air pump contraption that I haven't hooked up. Being an 87, it is emissions exempt in Ontario, so I don't need to put this silly pump on here, right?

And there is a yellow wire with a round plug on it that looks like it may or may not be original and I can't figure out where it goes. It looks like it's coming from the part of the wiring harness under the LIM, but I didn't notice it until now.

 

If it sat for 8 years with gas it would replace or inspect as much of the fuel system as possible, send injectors off for clean/flow testing, replace the filter, the in take fuel sock, the soft lines ect. No tach is usually the trailing coil/igniter, verify first that you have spark in the trailing coils. If you dont have the AIR pump installed you may as well install a block off plate for the air control valve, but take care installing as they like to be vacuum leaks. Check out Aaron Cakes writeup for rx7 grounding, since you live in an area known for salt and corrosion as a matter of practice you should clean them up. The most likely cause of it falling on its *** or dying when throttle is applied is vacuum leaks and there are PLENTY of places for that to happen in a FC with emissions equipment. Once you have it where itll at least idea set the TPS to 1.0VDC at the ecu plug when the car is warmed up fully if you have the cold idle wax or whenever if you do not.

 

Have the injectors been serviced and cleaned by an injection shop? If not, then you most certainly have one or more bad injectors after sitting 8 years. This is the #1 problem I see when a car has sat and it's always the problem.

Also, as mentioned, the rest of the fuel system. You'll want new hard and soft lines, new pump and filters, flush the rails. The tank depends on the condition. If you have a local shop who can steam clean it then yay. Or you can use some powerful cleaners such as Super Clean / POR-15 "Marine Clean" and let it soak for a few days. Then rinse and repeat, and rattle some chains around inside to dislodge rust.

 

Thank you guys; and no, the injectors have not been touched yet.
Tach works now, loose coil.
My oil pessure gauge shows no pressure, but I made sure the resistor ground was hooked up before I ever hooked up a battery.
AFM plugged in now, won't idle but now i can keep it running with the gas pedal.
The tank looks fairly clean inside. It had gas when i picked it up but i drained everything before I stored it for all those years.
Should I be replacing any gaskets while I'm in there? (other than obviously the o-rings on the injectors themselves?) And what size are the o-rings?

I have replaced the fuel pump and sending unit because the one in the car had been wrecked by someone at some point in time, and fire is scary. The only pump I could get my hands on for cheap was an fd pump, could that be a problem?. I was under the impression it was just slightly higher capacity than the t2 pump, and wouldn't really make any difference. There is a new sock and new gas. I should probably do a filter too, but the one in there looks like it had been replaced.

From 1800-4000rpm, it feels pretty smooth, except for a slight misfire. I haven't had it any higher than that yet. I can even hear the turbo spinning up. Good sign . Throttle response is good too. From the smell of things in the garage right now, it seems SUPER rich. So maybe it is leaky injectors. Or ones that can't close because of carbon buildup or something. I have heard this is a common problem on these cars; you're probably right.

I also have this yellow wire with a round female connector on the end coming out of the wiring harness somewhere by the driver's side of the engine harness under the intercooler. It's driving me nuts; it looks kind of like it should be attached to something, and it's one wire all by itself and really long. The connector looks oem. I haven't had time to look up wiring and figure it out, so I hope somebody knows. And I hope it has something to do with my idle problem.

This thing will not idle! It stays between 150-400 when warmed up and usually stalls after a minute, if that long. When cold it will die unless you gently rest your foot on the gas pedal.

I'll keep you posted as I get some of these fuel system components tested, and check again for vac leaks. The stock boost gauge is staying at 20 unless revved, but that probably means nothing.. I have a video of it running from tonight, but its on my tablet, and it's not getting along with photobucket for some reason. I'll post it as soon as I figure that out.

 

I believe that female bullet connector with the yellow wire is the coolant temperature sender for the factory temp gauge. The sensor is under the oil filter pedestal directly above and to the left of the oil pressure sensor. (which probably isn't hooked up either if you don't have an oil pressure reading...)

If the car doesn't idle, set your TPS, check/adjust idle fuel mixture screw if applicable, and set the timing all per FSM specs... If it still idles low, check/adjust your thermowax on the throttle body. I've seen thermowax housings that had so much corrosion that coolant wouldn't flow through them. That would probably cause a high idle though, unless the adjustment screw was set incorrectly. Again, consult FSM for how to adjust this.

 

Quote likely just a dirty connector. Loads of oil ends up on that connector due to filter changes.

Since the intake has to come off to access the injectors then you'll want to replace the upper to lower intake gasket. That's also the time to replace all the vacuum hoses which are probably dry rotted. Just grab a generic silicone hose kit and replace hoses one by one.

As for the injectors, any decent injection shop will replace the O-rings and pintle caps when they clean and service the injectors. Make sure to replace the rubber grommets they sit in which tend to stay in the center iron and manifold upon removal.

That pump will cause the car to run richer due to about 25% higher flow. The stock regulator can't bypass enough fuel to keep the pressure from rising. That could account for the richness.

A filter is cheap. The one in there could have been replaced just before it went into storage.

Temp sensor on the rear iron near oil pressure sender for dash gauge.

No point trying to go further until the injectors are serviced. Then it may just be a matter of eliminating all vacuum leaks (ie. replacing hoses when you have the manifolds off) and setting the idle from scratch via the procedures in the FSM.

 

Time for a little update.

I found where the yellow wire goes, you were right it was the temp sending unit by the oil filter.

I flushed the fuel lines and pulled the injectors. Looks like whoever put them in managed to dislodge one of the small o rings and it was wedged underneath the rearmost primary injector. Probably explaining why it wouldn't idle on its own. I'm amazed it ran as well as it did after seeing that! The front primary injector and front secondary injectors both decided to leave their hats in the LIM, so I had to pull the manifold. Not a fun job!

Anyways, good thing I did! I found a crack in the manifold right by the water jacket beside the EGR port where it meets the block...I just had filled it for the first time with coolant, and it seemed to be going somewhere, as I put 10l of coolant in while the engine ran and still kept getting big air pockets after if was warmed up. Also, I thought there were supposed to be O-rings around the water jacket between LIM and block, but there weren't? Or is that only on n/a? (the only rotary engine I had this apart was an n/a years ago, and I think it had O-rings, but I might be mistaken). It was clearly leaking from the crack though, there was coolant leak witness marks all around the crack, so unfortunately a new manifold it going to be necessary. I don't like the idea of welding cast aluminum.

So I have ordered new gaskets with O-rings (the dealer listed O-rings for the t2 for $1.80 each, so I hope they are correct on this one), have 4 brand-new-refurbished flow tested brown tops (that I don't want to mention the cost of, cause it was a lot) with brand new upper and lower o-rings, and have found another North American manifold for $125 that is on its way. (believe it or not, in all the boxes of parts for the rx7s I have right now, there were 3 spare t2 LIMs, and ALL of them must be j-spec or something weird because they don't have EGR or cold start assist...damn...I was told I cannot use the J-spec manifolds unless I use an n333 ECU, or the car won't run properly. I do not have one of those...)

The oil injector lines and vac lines in that area all crumbled like potato chips when I tried to take them off too, so I am going to obviously need to run a bunch of new lines for that stuff when the rest of my parts show up. Anything special for the oil injector lines, or can I just use vacuum line and 2-ear clamps for them?

Unfortunately I am on a work trip to South Carolina until January 23, and therefore won't have time to touch the car until I get back home again.

Everything to finish the job should be there when I get home, so hopefully its just a matter of putting things back together and no extra headaches this time.

But it's happening again, I can feel it, I'm getting sucked back into the rotary vortex. I hope I don't end up broke and homeless. It's worse than cocaine, I tell ya!

 

The oil injector vacuum lines are pre-molded, as I'm sure you know. I'd see how much they are at Mazda, Mazdatrix or whatever. Would be pain to reproduce with regular vacuum hose. Just IMHO to save some trouble.

 

Only the last 1/2" or so where they are clamped onto the oil injector nipples are hard, the rest of the lines from OMP to injector are still soft. Probably heat transfer from manifold to injector to lines that caused it. Perhaps I can cut them back a bit and still have enough length to reach. I'll have to wait until I am back at the car to know for sure. I suppose I could pick some up while I am here if they are available, then I'll have them when I get home. Everything I've bought from Mazda so far has been very reasonable, so worth a shot. I think all the gaskets I ordered to do this job came to a grand total of about $50, so worth a shot.

 

just re-read your post; you're talking about the black vac lines, not the oil feed lines....ok ill see if they are available. I think the biggest piece of those I have left is the size of my fingernail. They were fubar. Hopefully available....

 

That will do it every time.

The O-rings are for TII (and older rotarys where the coolant flow would keep the manifold/carb warm) to feet water through the lower intake for the turbo. If they are missing, leak city.

Welding cast aluminium is no big deal to seal a crack like this. However if you have to pay someone else to do it, then it may just be cheaper/easier to buy a used lower intake.

No EGR is not really a big deal. Mazda seemed to remove it an then add it back at will.

J-spec manifolds are totally usable. There is no cold start stuff on the lower intake. Only the throttle body. There are minor differences over all but it all fits together.

The oil lines are a hard material, can't quite remember what it is at the moment. But any hydraulic shop should have the tubing you can use to rebuild them. Or you can just buy new ones at Mazda.

All the vac lines are just standard. You can get a universal silicone vac line kit and swap them out.

 

Thanks for all the great advice. Another 5 weeks before I can get back at her, so that should give me plenty of time to collect the things I need. I can't wait; life on the road definitely has its downfalls sometimes. I will keep this thread updated so you guys can keep holding my hand as I try and get through this.