2nd Generation Specific (1986-1992) 1986-1992 Discussion including performance modifications and technical support sections.

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Old Sep 28, 2005 | 09:46 PM
  #1  
TrevorsTII's Avatar
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ThatRotaryGuy
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Fire!

so ive heard that turbo'd rx7s catch fire easy and i was wondering how and what usually causes it?..
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Old Sep 28, 2005 | 09:50 PM
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The Pulsation Dampener. Replace it every 100k miles, and you wont have a problem.

oh, and Search next time.
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Old Sep 28, 2005 | 09:51 PM
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Little nasty gremlins and I heard all RX-7s catch fire easily, that's why I two of them.

Seriously, they all have the potential from what I've read. Pulsation damper leaks, engine is hot, fire. That's why we all carry a fire puter outer thingy.
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Old Sep 28, 2005 | 11:30 PM
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Originally Posted by Turbo II
That's why we all carry a fire puter outer thingy.
I gotta get me one of those....
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 01:00 AM
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masao's Avatar
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https://www.rx7club.com/2nd-gen-archive-72/pulsation-damper-failure-victims-read-60160/

Read this!
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 01:05 AM
  #6  
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Get an S5 primary fuel rail and you'll virtually eliminate the possabillity from PD failure.
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 02:13 AM
  #7  
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From: sofla-this isnt naxxramas
all cars could have some part fail and turn on fire....seen a F150 start smoking today on the way back home and saw him go out of control...
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 09:04 AM
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Originally Posted by Teamredline
so ive heard that turbo'd rx7s catch fire easy and i was wondering how and what usually causes it?..
An engine, by definition, uses highly flammable liquids/gasses to make power.

Most of the other things in the engine that keep this process working (oil, coolant) are also flammable.

An engine is very zerking hot, especially a rotary engine's exhaust manifold.

Leak of flammable fluid onto hot manifold = fire.

The pulsation damper is the primary cause, though fuel lines, oil lines, and coolant lines can all be responsible. Replace them *before* they fail, and you should be fine.

-=Russ=-
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 09:14 AM
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is there a sort of "check list" for those problems? certain areas to check for failures before the show up?
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 09:51 AM
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Also make sure you replace the hoses that go to the fuel rails and all when you replace the pulastion dampener. Mine were quite dry rotted and one was dripping some at cold starts. I replaced all my stuff so i have nice peace of mind now.
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 10:00 AM
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Originally Posted by Teamredline
so ive heard that turbo'd rx7s catch fire easy
That's not entirely true. RX-7s really don't catch fire easily. It's not something that you should drive around in mortal fear of.

and i was wondering how and what usually causes it?..
When it does happen, it is generally due to the fuel pulsation damper, or old dry-rotted fuel lines. Both have been already covered in this thread.
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 01:33 PM
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Originally Posted by Alex6969
is there a sort of "check list" for those problems? certain areas to check for failures before the show up?
To significantly reduce the risk of a fire:

Replace the pulsation damper with a new one.
Replace the soft fuel lines in the engine bay (there are quite a few - I count 6 off the top of my head, but there may be another one) with new fuel injected rated line (expensive, but won't burst under fuel injection pressure).
Replace all the coolant hoses with new ones.
Replace all the fuel injector o-rings & grommets with new ones.

You may also want to replace the oil cooler lines. A leak here generally won't cause a fire (because it's on the "cold" side of the engine bay, down low), but a leak can make for a not-so-fun day.

Once you do all that, you've replaced basically every old part that can easily cause a fire with a new part that should last for quite a while.

-=Russ=-
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Old Sep 29, 2005 | 05:07 PM
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ThatRotaryGuy
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From: Ft. Eustis, VA
well i was just wondering i bought a 87 TII and the guy that owned it had it for like a month then it caught on fire and destroyed the engine then he bought a j-spec and put that in there and now i own and dont want it to happen to me..haha..

thanx for the imput..

Trevor
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