auxilary port actuator question about it's movement
 

With a properly working auxilary port actuator should I be able to move the port actuator up with my hand without much effort? I can't, so I'm wondering if it is nonfunctional.

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i dont think so, try pulling off the vac tube and blow on it with your mouth. that should be able to move it, otherwise possibly frozen post sleeve.

"post sleeve," is that inside the actuator? working properly, about how high does it move upwards?

That would be "port sleeve". That is the cylinder inside the iron the actuator moves to open up air flow into the port. The rod in the pic you posted extends enough for the pivot disk to hit the stopper. But yeah if you really want to see if its working take the vac line off the actuator and hook up an air pump and see the pump will activate it. It should only need a few psi. Just don't over do it with the pump and wreck the actuator.

If you have it off,squeeze it IN,and cover the tube or hole,(whatever),if it sticks in that position then it is good.
That tells you the diaphragm is intact and doing it's job.

Yours look like it is stuck down so you need to pull it up, if you look at the piece on the top where there is a metal tab sticking out that is the stopper.

That's an S5 actuator, so it pushes OUT to move the port sleeve to the open position. S4 actuators would be the opposite, and pull IN with pressure applied. You should be able to pull it up by hand, but they can be somewhat stiff.

You can let the engine idle, then rev the engine up to 3800+ RPM. I'm not entirely sure the ECU will power the 6PI solenoid with no load on the engine, but it's easy enough to try. If it doesn't work, then swap the relief solenoid (blue) plug onto the 6PI solenoid (brown) if it's long enough, and rev to 3500+ RPM. That should power the solenoid, and allow the air pump to apply pressure to the actuators.

its been a long day, so my brain gave up hours ago, but could you mix and match actuator/manifolds to get it to pull the sleeves open with VACUUM?

if so, that would be COOL, cause NA motors have vacuum

I think you would need to adapt some aftermarket actuators for that. Despite moving in opposite directions, both S4 and S5 actuators require pressure (~ 2 psi) to move. But other actuators like the ones used for the double throttle system move with vacuum applied.

But I think operating them off vacuum would create a problem. Manifold pressure should be roughly atmospheric when you're flooring it with an NA, so I'd think vacuum-operated actuators would just stay closed. The supercharging effect from port closing supposedly can even build a tiny bit of positive pressure. I think the best way would be to use solenoids to directly move the port sleeves. There was a writeup on globalvicinity somewhere, but I can't find it.

this is one of the actuators, it works fine, but the other one which i posted a pic of is now stuck half way up.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=966nCKEAZj4

Remove the sticking actuator, and see if you can loosen it up. But if it's the sleeve that sticking when it tries to rotate, that will mean the LIM has to come off to clean out the port.

damn, driving the car well above 3800 rpm wont have any chance of fixing the actuator will it? just to avoid the work, but the car isn't drivable at the moment since i'm waiting on a cat-back exhaust section. it runs but lounder than hell with exhaust only up to the main catalyst. it is an s5, 1991 coupe if that information is important or not i don't know but you probably already knew that :)

It should take you less than 10 minutes to remove the front actuator. Once the black plastic intake duct is out of the way, it's a fairly straight shot to reach down and remove the 2 nuts.

okay, only two 2 nuts to remove the actuator, not bad

I'm watching this thread with interest. One of the ports on my S5 sticks in the open position. I can manually push it closed by hand, and watch it re-open when I rev the engine. Does that sound like a bad actuator diaphram?

Well, they're not supposed to stick. Remove it. Clean it. Lube it. If it still sticks, replace it.

hey rotary, i tried taking off the two nuts you mentioned, which can also be seen in the picture at the top, but there's a screw and a bolt as well after you take off the 2 nuts keeping the actuator on. i don't think i want to undue those because they are connected to the linkage rod :/

There's no reason those have to come loose. The actuator will slide off the pin on that arm once you undo the 2 nuts. I just went out in my garage and took an actuator off an S5 LIM I have in a box to verify for you.

okay ill try again...

i took off the two nuts and couldn't get the actuator off, am i doing this right?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtP6W97Nklw

Pull the black plastic piece on the rod towards the shock tower. You're making it bind up at an angle by pulling on the actuator like that.

i had one that was a bear to get off because the actuator was stuck on the rod! the sleeve turned out to be totally unjammed

okay, i didn't not think of that at all when i made that video and i didn't completely understand how they came off as well. thanks for telling me that, both actuators are off and it was rather easy. both actuators seem to be similar working condition, the reason i thought the actuator was not functioning correctly is because there is something which isn't moving at and really seems to be jammed. idk the correct term but my my picture shows it. this piece will not move at all on the auxiliary port closest to the front of the car (rotor 1). the same piece on the actuator which has been working correctly and can be fully opened by me simply blowing into the hose (as shown in my video) can be moved easily with my hand now that the actuator is off.

this piece will not move at all (closest to the front of the car). i am really wondering if that auxiliary port is ruined? :/
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very simple.
I had a stuck s5 actuator pulled it off and lubed up the shaft coming out worked it back a forth and blew air into the actuator and pluged the line with my tongue or my finger to see if the diaphragm will hold while under pressure and sure enough it did.
Its vey simple 2 nuts and it off.

As rotaryrocket said, you'll have to remove the LIM and free the sleeve. I doubt it is ruined, it is probably just stuck from not being used.

On a similar line of questioning, how hard can you try to rotate them to free them up without damaging anything?

to remove the LIM do you undue the screw and bolt?
the piece which is highlighted in the picture above with the green arrows was half way open, i had to try very hard to to close it with needle nose pliers but i was able to

LIM = lower intake manifold. That piece with the screw and bolt just holds the seal in place on the arm inside the LIM, which rotates the sleeve in the port. You have to remove the manifold to get at the sleeve.

If you're not careful, you can break the piece the actuator rotates right off. I would not try to force it with pliers.


https://www.rx7club.com/attachment.p...1&d=1304715600

how much do you think it would cost for a shop to do this? i think with help from my dad, who has never owned an rx7 but has worked on cars for a long, we would be capable of doing the job but wondering as well?
to remove the LIM does the upper intake manifold needs to come off too?

You say you did move it some. So try this. Move it one way just a touch........then back the way you came from. Do this back and forth movement. The more you do it the looser the movement will be. Then when it feels it's moving easier in that small range of movement............move it just a touch further in one direction and then back to where its now looser and do that back and forth movement a whole lot of times.

If you can do this back and forth movement and it gets a bit looser ..........noticably looser....then keep at it ....back and forth back and forth til it frees up thru the full range of movement.

Don't force it. Just back and forth til you notice it loosening up.

Does this make sense to you.........or not? I'll try again if needed. I think you might try this method before having to remove the intake manifolds. It will take time but I'd guess in an hour of two it will free up. Just don't use excessive force.

I suggested this because from what I understand it that you DID move it some in the past tries. I think this is doable without removing a manifold etc.

yea i did move it a little. i was checking if both the actuators worked a couple days ago with an air compressor. as shown in a video i made "how to check if it works" the actuator for rotor #2 works fine but when i did the same thing with the other actuator it moved about half way up and got stuck and i needed to pliers to move it which i did last night into the closed position, it's a real bitch to move right now

Just back and forth only a tenth of a inch. Back and forth............back and forth til it loosens up.

NOT hard as you can one way and hard as you can the other way.

No. Just move it a tenth of a inch or less one way then back where you started and keep repeating this and sooner than later the range of movement will increase as the carbon gets ummmmm crushed into powder.

If memor serves this shaft your moving has a rubber coupler in it that might break if too much force is use. Its been a long time since I messed with one so I might be wrong about the rubber coupler part.

well i broke that piece :/
it's the piece which i highlighted with the green arrows on a previous picture. I'm assuming that piece is not by itself and is the same piece which opens the auxiliary port for the #1 port.
i'm pretty disappointed but i guess that's how you learn, once i get the exhaust i'm waiting for ill be driving around with a "5-port" rx7 for a while. and with an NA you obviously want everything you can get which isn't that much hahaha. i think i need an "auxiliary port shaft," im not really sure though :/

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well that it! how much do those go for? and tried looking on mazdatrix but couldn't find it, maybe i was searching under the wrong name

You won't find it on Mazdatrix, I'm fairly sure of that. If you call them on the phone they might be able to get you one 'cause they're a dealer.

Or go to the Wanted or For Sale section of this forum and say you want to buy one and post a picture or two. Mine is a series four and I doubt it'll fit the series five.

I'd recommend at this time to remove the lower intake when you get a new rod 'cause they mate with the sleeve/cylinder in a special way.

okay. i'm debating whether or not to have a shop perform the work for me, i'm not sure yet. if so i hope it doesn't cost more than 400$ if i can provide the part and gaskets which might as well be switched out. the shop only works on mazdas and isn't too far from where i live. I'm sure they would know how to clean the auxiliary port and make it like brand new and after that i would be sure to drive my car at around 5500 rpm for at least a minute several times a week to include movement of the vdi as well, but i've tested that with the air compressor and it fully opens with very little psi.

You might try to buy a complete lower intake manifold for a series five on this site. I'd think it would be easier to get that than try to buy just a piece of one. I wouildn't pay more than 20 to 30 bucks for a lower intake manifold myself. IF you try to buy that shaft from Mazda/dealer I'd wager it cost 75 bucks plus for no good reason at all..

I would not trust a shop to do that job unless you have proof they are experienced with rotaries. The job really isnt hard to do. Start by removing the intake system, then the throttle body, then upper intake then lower intake. Just be aware of everything that is connected to each piece you remove.

That repair has probably been done twice by now.