chris1188

the fc went pop.

always allowed it to warm up/cool down yada yada yada, driving home from class fully warmed up so got on it a little in 2nd gear, 11.8 af ratio like always at full throttle boosted to 15ish psi instead of 14 but settled down right away then "ping ping ping" i let off the gas and the idle fell to 600-750 rpm and almost a complete loss of power. limped the car home


symptoms.

a. rough/low idle and dies out if it idles for more than a min or two

b. as if the car didnt have any torque before; it could bairly make it up my driveway

c. vac. on the autometer boost gauge is about 9-10 and under load 2



so wtf did i do?

Parastie

You blew an apex seal. Do a compression check to verify and say hello to your first rebuild.

bcool

you'll also probrably have uneaven compression sounds when you try to start it. Sounds like you ran lean.

chris1188

if i didnt have the aem a/f and see it stay at 11.8-12.3 tops under full throttle i would think that to, could a bad tank of gas contribute to this? always ran shell in it and filled up at bp because it was closest or am i just freaking out.

daum, i still dont beleive this now i can either a. sell hte car to some guy whos been making me offers for the same that i paid for it because he wants to do a 20b swap.

b. rebuild/replace, get a little more agressive street port, 2/3mm apex seals and repeat down the road.

c. ls1 swap, the power loving part of me wants to do this, pick up a z06 engine/tranny out of a wrecked one; but then what fun is a rx7 with out the 13b


apex tuning is 17 miles away, should i attempt to limp it over there and just leave it there and let them do their thing or have it chill in the garage till i can get a tow over there or i decide exactly what im going to do.

javrosario

iTrader: (5)

you ran 11.8-12.4 afr's at 15 psi? i usually run mine at 11.2 to be safe, 11.8 is pushing it at 15 psi.

chris1188

it was only usualy at 13/14 psi; but randomly it will spike to 15/16 depending on weather.



all i have to say is this ******* sucks and aspec isnt answering their phone so i can ask what they think i should do. beautiful.

oh well, in the 2 weeks i 100% understood why you guys put up with this **** from your cars; and now i have no clue, oh well.

Parastie

LoL
it's not the end of the world. In fact this is where the real fun begins!
It's possible that it was just time for the apex seal to go and there's nothing you could do to stop it.

chris1188

what im pissed about is that it "has a new motor with 20k miles on it"

20k miles just seems way way way to low for this to happen, i dunno im sure its just because im a rotary nub.

C-Murder

I remember that happening to my NA, worst feeling ever. But now I have a new engine.
It sucked beause I just spent so much time putting in an LSD and a VDI intake; all rendered useless in a split second.

chris1188

so if i do decide to keep her and rebuild, 2 or 3 mm apex seals, new engine or see if my current one is salvagable, and from who? the engine that is in it now is from rotor works or something like that out of flordia.

should i just order up a new engine and swap it my self, or drop her off at aspec and have them deal with it.

chris1188

any suggestions as to where to get my engine rebuilt/replaced from?

Parastie

www.rotaryresurrection.com is the best by price.
You really don't need to 3MM seals.

chris1188

seems like im looking at 2k give or take to get this bitch up and running again, i just spend 5500 on the car.

If i felt this were just an average every day car i probilly wouldnt be so worked up over this; but being my first car and imo a hell of an example of a well kept fc i want to keep it but i dont have the funds to get her back up and running with out going into debt with my parents; and even after that that engine can go and so on yada yada yada.

dare i say it, but how much would a complete ls1 swap run me? :x

skir2222

Thats what happened to me bought a supposely 526hp rx7 for 5500 and im puttin a motor in it right now~!

DREYKO

dude dont do a ls1 swap, its stupid and the rotory can make an amazing amount of power with simple mods.
my advice, find a junkyard with a turbo engine that has a dencent number of miles on it and swap it in, then start saving for a awsome rebuild with ported intake exaust ect. thats what im doing now. my coolant seals gave up on me and i found an engine with 100,000 miles on it for 300 bux, put it in for 375 and im now saving up. its a great way to stay out of debt, and be sure to keep you car running till you yourself throw in the towel

NOPR

i say you get 3mm apex seals, it will help prevent detonation which appears to be a problem of yours.

Sideways7

iTrader: (7)

From what I have heard from a reliable source, 3mm seals can have chatter at high rmp's and dont seal as well at low rmp's. Assuming you tune the car right 2mm's are all you will ever need.
Also, 3mm seals dont prevent detonation, they just stand up to it better.

cds00bsmg

iTrader: (1)

an LS1 swap is going to cost you more than getting the TII engine rebuilt. Work more hours, or just save save save until you have the funds to rebuild it. If you can't, or don't want to, then sell it and get another car. Plain and simple.

chris1188

thats my delema though. i know if i let it go ill regret it down teh road, but i just cant stomache spending 2k after i just spent 5500.

DREYKO

like i said, junkyard!

chris1188

so how should i do **** this time around? where should i get the engine rebuilt from? 2 or 3 mm seals? 3rd gen corner springs? the oil mod or what ever it is for 15?

my engine already has a mild street port, will i still retain that?

i have basic automotive skills, installed my fair share of exhuasts, intakes, pulled a few engines in autos but that you dont have to be careful just kinda rip that **** out; is there a site with a walk through of pulling the engine?

my 2nd gear when i downshift has to be properly rev matched and engaged slowly otherwise it grinds/crunches; should i try to find a jdm tranny for cheap?

and for tuning i have a safcII, i already added 2 fuel points through out the whole rev range, what a/f ratio should i tune for this time around since the old owner i guess had it to lean.

lovintha7

3mm seals don't help prevent it. They are more resistant to it, meaning they'll take a little more abuse than a 2mm, but by no means do they reduce it.

NOPR

i didnt mean prevent detonation i meant prevent the engine from blowing after it detonates...

Sideways7

iTrader: (7)

another option is to get a j-spec engine from corksport or something. While its true that you dont know the condition of the engine, its pretty much garunteed to be better than what you find in a junk yard.
As for rebuilds, rotaryressurection.com does good budget rebuilds. Atkins rotary also does good rebuilds, but are a little more expensive.

cds00bsmg

iTrader: (1)

however you can spend the 5k or so for an LS1 swap? Anywho, you can rebuild it yourself, you can have Kevin Landers rebuild it (or someone else), you can get a J-spec. motor, or you can sell the car for peanuts. As far as what to do wtih the motor seal wise, Id go with 2mm still, go for the 3rd gen. corner seals, and I personally would use Rotary Aviation apex seals, but whatever floats your boat on that one.

Also, if it were me, I would opt to have Kevin do the rebuild, this way you get 3rd gen corner seals, and etc. Since your motor is already ported, you won't have that additional cost (unless you jacked up a plate, or housing, rotor, etc.)

Lastly, I would opt for getting the RB oil pressure regulator, oil pump, and oil baffle pan. Also would probably do the shimming of the Eccentric shaft thermowax pellet since your already tearing the thing down.

Its up to you, and how much you have to spend, and want to spend. Whatever option you choose (except LS1), you should have at least 2K set aside IMO.

~Chris