rx_7_driver

please some one help its 12:30 am and i am on my way home from work, abouty 5 miles after i left work my oil light came on (thank god they have theses things) i couldn't pull over till about another mile, so i pulled over killed the engine. popped the hood and cloud of smoke came out (*note the temp never went up) after a couple of mins. the smoke stoped and i starded checking thing. first thing i check is the oil ..... 0, nada, none the stick was bone dry, so i get on the groung and look under the car and my hand touched the under neat of the driver side floor and it was covered in oil all the way to the back tires ( the passenger side was dry). so now i am freaking out get on the cell phone called my friend they came a brought me some oil. drove all the way home got a flash light and started looking, there is no oil on the engine the mother ***** is clean. so i get under it and look at the oil pan it has a little oil on it nothing out of the usual, i did a search and there r 800+ resualts so that isn't gonna help much, where is the oil coming from?????? i looks like its coming from the front of the engine but on the driver side and flowing back to the rear of the car. the most experiance i have on this car is doing a tune up and once i changed the water pump. could it be the oil lines going to the oil cooler ?? i can't tell its to dark can anyone give me some kinda clue to whats the problem is ?? please i have to try to fix this tonight i have to go to school and work tomorrow morning i will stay up all night if i have to......

ZachSpazz

Oil cooler lines. There's one hose that runs from the front cover to the oil cooler (big radiator thingy in the mouth of the car) and another line that's kinda underneath the oil filter. These lines like to burst...randomly.

The Ace

Oil lines

Yep that sounds just about right. Although the stock lines are quite sturdy, they ARE 10 years old rubber lines...

And its probably not the lines themselves, but rather their fittings. Have the same problem myself: the fittings are a bit "loose", so I lose about 1ml of oil every 100km (not much I know ). Thing is, these lines like to give up with no warning at all...

You can either buy new ones (very expensive, and still rubber), fix your old ones, buy steel-braided aftermarket ones (also expensive), or make two lines yourself (most likely). Be sure to find a VERY decent shop to make the fittings....


EDIT: DONT drive the car like that. The fact that the engine didnt overheat (or so it seemed.... ) is pure luck...

Silkworm

Tow it home.

No way you can fix that tonight, you need new lines, I agree with Zach, the only thing back there for oil is the cooler lines, Oil Pressure sensor, and oil filter..

Now that's an idea. One time on a fiero, I did an oil change but didn't check the filter seat when I removed the old one, and the rubber ring was stuck to the block. installed new filter ok, but halfway down th efreeway, it let go, spewed oil everywhere.

Maybe? <shrug>

But find a friend to get you to work tomorrow, and DON'T DRIVE THE CAR.

No oil is a bad thing, m'kay?

PaulC

rx_7_driver

ok will i be able to make it to school to fix it tomorrow???
if i keep the rpms low? because after i add the oil on the side the road i crused home doing 40-50 ( i was doing 80+ when this happened) and its still full there is a little bit of oil on the ground but i think its from earlier
my school ( an auto school) is about 40 miles away from here if i stop and buy like 5 quarts do u think it possibe to make there cause i have no tools here to do anything and no way to tow it there. (i am assuming the oil lines r leaking from the pressure of the engine here and that if i keep the rpms low enough that i will hold oil long enough to get to school)

rx_7_driver

but now i am pretty sure its the hose cause i pulled some kinda foam off of it and it flexs pretty easy, covered in oil and i can pinck it closed with a little force

rx_7_driver

ok i found replace ments for it what do think i should use stainless steel from cork sport r Direct Replacements from mazda trix??? money is not an opption i have the cash for both just wanna know which one is better

Silkworm

No no no. Do not drive this car. Tow it to school if you have to, but DO NOT DRIVE THIS CAR.

Serious. You don't want to be doing rebuilds on this motor, and that's precisely where you're going with it if you drive it.

PaulC

Angel Guard Racing Team

I yanked my oil cooler out. I replace the hose with a 3' -8 Steel Braided line. We never use that thing here, plus the other bad part is that when you change the oil there will allways be som nasty oil left inside therefore you will never have clean nice oil in the engine. Believe me it is not a great deal... I live in Puerto Rico it's about 85 plus degrees all year round nobody here uses those things...

Silkworm

both lines will work, the SS lines look cooler

PaulC

Angel Guard Racing Team

I yanked my oil cooler out. I replace the hose with a 3' -8 Steel Braided line. We never use that thing here, plus the other bad part is that when you change the oil there will allways be som nasty oil left inside therefore you will never have clean nice oil in the engine. Believe me it is not a great deal... I live in Puerto Rico it's about 85 plus degrees all year round nobody here uses those things...

rx_7_driver

yeah but i don't wanna yank it out i want it to work(oil cooler)
and it looks like i will have no other choice but to drive it there because i have no one to tow me and i cant do it here
i know yall r all saying no no no no don't drive it
but in reality if every time the oil light comes on i fill the oil back up the car should make it no problem (becides the smoke) (my friend can follow me but he can't tow cause his clutch is slipping)
my last opt. is to bring the car to a auto repair place and pay money out the *** which i refuse to do since i trust no one working on this car and i rather do it my self so i will be prepared for the next time this happens

The Ace

Well its your car, so you can do pretty much anything you want with it...

...but an engine which is losing oil FAST is not an engine that should RUN. And thats not for rotaries only. If you want/have to take that chance, then fine. Be EXTRA careful, and try to take it really easy but be quick at the same time. And dont count on the temp gauge (even an aftermarket one). Those gauges measure the temperature of the oil/water, so if you dont have any oil/water left, you cannt measure their temperature, now can you ? So the engine could be overheating and you wouldnt know it from Adam...

rx_7_driver

but u see this is what i don't get i left work sped up to 80-85 like normal 5 miles down the road the oil light comes on, pull over little cloud of smoke no oil. then i get someone to bring me some oils, fill it up, drive an additonial 15 miles home doing 45- 50 get home and the oil is still full and not leaking anymore

The Ace

Well, mysteries will always happen...

Sudden loss of oil has happened before. Its the aftermath that counts: if you dont lose any more oil for the next week or so, then you say "the world of the rotary is a mystery place" if you continue to lose oil, then you need to do something about it.

For your immediate problem, if you dont lose any oil now, then I guess it would be safe to make it to your school, but have someone follow you, and tell them to keep an eye on the road right below your car. If oil starts spilling out, they should let you know immediately. Try to clean the engine bay, so any oil leak will leave a mark, and you'd know where the leak is...

rx_7_driver

well i know its the oil lines for sure cauce i can now see the puddel of oil sitting on some bar right under it (had to dig to find it way down there) i am going to order some tomorrow and get them shipped one day shipping and by monday have them on
wish me luck

and thanks for all the help everone

rx_7_driver

ok i wake up this morning and i checked the oil still full got in the car started it up ran fine, i put my top down and put it in reverse, and i see the biggest line of oil i have ever saw, not a sec later the oil light comes on, so now i am left with no other choice but to do it here, i already put it up on some ramps (thanks to my neighbor for letting me borrow them) and i ordered the oil lines(stainless steel) and the the adapters from mazda trix . i got a haynes book but it doesn't say much on how to change the lines
has anyone ever done this before and would be willing to take a little time out of there life and tell me what i should, and should not do, about how long it takes do do this (ect....) thanks for any and all info u can give me


shawn

rotaryduck

I'm not a master mechanic myself but find the Hayne;s manual is sometimes lacking. Haven't looked at it myself, but found the factory shop manual at http://fc3s.org/ under How To's-Manuals. Hope this helps.

rx_7_driver

thanks man i will try it

The Ace

Obviously...

When engine is not running, pump is not running, therefor no pressure in oil lines. Start up engine, pump starts moving oil, pressure is rising, oil lines/fittings cannt hold the pressure, oil is leaking, Low Oil comes on

No other choice but to do this now anyway....

rx_7_driver

ok how tight do i but the new lines on??? i don't wanna break anything but i don't want it to leak

Icemark

40-50 ft/lbs.

*edit
remember on the 'verts the engine mount is larger than the coupes, so you may have to route the rear hose around or over the mount.

I also like to put a little sliced hose over/onto the mount where it sits right next to the oil cooler lines. A dab of silicon adhesive will keep it in place.

This will keep the SS line from rubbing through the engine mount supports.

BlackRx7

I've been haveing a simliar problem, but at a slower rate, I have to add 1-2 quarts every week, to keep the oil level up, where did you purchase the SS oil line? can you buy them from autozone?

rx_7_driver

thanks
i didn't get the new ones yet (still waiting for the mail to pass)
is it ok if i use wrench insted of a socket cause i don't have one that is big enough

rx_7_driver

how the **** do i get the one in the back off?????
i don't have an open end wrench that size and i can't get a socket on it cause of the gas lines. i've tried every thing i own, does this mean i am gonna have to go and by this wrench ??? will this for sure get it off???




i am not sure but i got mine from www.mazdatrix.com