christi

Hi all....

It's been about .. I think six years since I last owned a rotary. I finally found a good one, and purchased it on 10/28/2010. It's like my old one that I used to have [1991 'vert, black/black].. .except I now have a 1990 'vert black/black.

I purchased it for $2200, and gave the guy an extra $100 for Motegi Wheels.. as he was just giving them away, so initially I paid $2300. The engine has 98k miles on it (roughly), and runs smooth. The only issue I've been running into is a small exhaust leak that will be fixed in the up coming weeks [ The car won't be ran during winter; only to start up and make sure the car is okay... during the mornings and nights when I get home from work].

One of the things that the previous owner had done was.... He decided he didn't like how Mazda made the gears and how it shifted, so he modified the gears to where it is imitating a 6-speed, but still has a 5 speed. The reverse is directly across from 5th gear. It's weird. Per a friend whom drove the car home with me is stating that the previous owner could have messed up the tranny, and it may need to be rebuild/replaced....

Also when the clutch was previous replaced, he transmission guy that had worked on the car [Per previous owners words] had no idea what they were doing. When I checked under the hood, the bearing for the clutch assembly was loose.. and by loose.. I mean extremely where you can actually pull it out... Yeah, that was fun.

The only thing I saw tonight when I tried to start the car just to drive her around - was she wouldn't start. I'm thinking due to the cold weather here [it was below freezing]... Hopefully that is not the case in the morning before I go to work.

Also, I've never seen a convertible with a targa top. So not only is it a 'vert... you can also treat it as .. it being half-convertible.... Yeah. I so won't do that =P The top is in pretty good shape except for one rip that has recently been patched... and has a glass window... If I'm not mistaken, I think my '91 'vert had a plastic window... hmm.. Oh well

Anyway, here are pictures. The first set of five are taken from my iPhone.. the rest are the photos from the previous owner. I'll definitely be updating as time comes along

Anyhow... here ya go...


















Rest can be found here:

/

Pele

iTrader: (28)

Welcome back. If it's in good shape, that's a damn nice price, at least for my part of the country. Verts here fetch $4g easy.

Not sure how a 5 speed imitates a 6 speed.

Gearing swaps and differential swaps could all cause it to feel different, show different engine RPM versus vehicle speed per the proper gear.

It should be a 4.10:1 differential. (Turn the driveshaft 4.1 turns and the wheels should turn 1 full turn.)

Check out the Miata gearbox thread in the archives.

If she doesn't grind while shifting or make funny noises at any time, tranny should be fine.

Bearing for the clutch assembly? That should all be inside the transmission bell housing. You shouldn't just be able to reach in and get any of that if the transmission is still installed in the vehicle.

Pictures of the item you grabbed?

This is normal. From the factory, convertibles have glass with a defroster and the targa top.

tuscanidream

iTrader: (6)

Illin.

clokker

iTrader: (2)

Pics of engine bay, please?

pfsantos

iTrader: (1)

Pretty nice. So he didn't have the original BBS wheels anymore?

TrboSpdAnt

iTrader: (5)

Great grab!

I have teh original BBS, vert wheels, on mine and I HATE them... Though a ****-ton better than those S4 saw-blades

As far as any minor problems (that you've got), I wouldn't sweat it; Just be careful not to get ahead of yourself and get overly anxious to play with your new toy.

Congrats and welcome back!!

iani1.1

iTrader: (13)

sweet. get on coloradomazdaclub.com

we usually have weekly meets and what not

christi

Yep! The guy was originally selling it for $3200 with the wheels and tires; but noone would buy it on craigslist... then he dropped it to $2500 without the wheels/tires... then to $2200 after the car was on the market for 3 months.

For me being out of the rotary world for so long, I could be wrong. Two people told me that he shouldn't have change the gear box around. I personally never driven a rx-7 with a modified gearbox, it shifts decently.

Pictures will have to be when I get a chance over the weekend since I work mid-day and by the time I get home it's dark ... I was a bit exhausted last night when I typed up this thread; however my buddy who actually fiddled in there while I wasn't at his house... specified it was the throwout actuator, if you wanna call it that.

Really? Must have been so long since I've had my 'vert to remember. I could have sworn she had a plastic window, and not glass.. but I know she didn't have a targa lol.

christi

I will this weekend - I've got the car cover on her right now

Thank you! No, the 1990 verts if i'm not mistaken came with the silly GXL wheels. By the way, I still have those wheels, they're in a friend's garage in Longmont, CO, I just took the Motegi wheels with me

Thank you! I miss my BBS wheels, I had them on my '91. They look hot.

Yeah. My only issue is that the car is not turning over. I don't know if it's because of the weather or what. She will crank, but that is it. I emailed the previous owner and they said that it's probably the battery, as he had to charge it every day... but I'm not sure.

I'm not going to try to start her until this weekend, so I can be sure if it did flood for some reason... it'll be fine up until friday/saturday. ... hopefully. The engine is strong, so I just don't understand why she won't turn over. It's driving me up the wall.


If my memory serves me right, I seem to recall a pink or green fuse that I can pull... correct? Whereas if I do that, I can crank the engine for a few seconds, put it back in and it should start when its been flooded, assuming this is the cause, no?


Freaking sweet. I'll have to check it out

Where are you guys mainly located at?

iani1.1

iTrader: (13)

we are everywhere in colorado, there are just alot of rotaries in the springs area. the springs the rotaries out number the other mazdas here by like 8:1 lol

Pele

iTrader: (28)

I believe all Verts came with the BBS mesh wheels.

They're okay looking... What I really love is the relatively low cost of them and the extremely light weight but high strength construction... Forged Aluminum and 11lbs per wheel... I think the only lighter wheels I've found are the NON-DOT approved 9 lb per wheel Panasports I have for my 1st gen!.

On an S5, you can just put the throttle to the floor and crank... The ECU will detect this and cut the fuel injectors off. It's specifically to clear flooding.

I believe Mazda put this on MANY of the late 1980's cars. My old 1989 B2600i 44 pickup would also do this.

Putting the throttle to the floor will allow more air into the engine to help clear out the excess fuel.

clokker

iTrader: (2)

Charge/replace the battery.

If the (relatively) mild weather we've had so far affects your car so dramatically, just imagine what February will be like.
In other words, it ain't the weather.

christi

Well, good news... Battery. I tried to start her this morning before I leave for work, and it's the battery. Hopefully this weekend when I get the plates for her .. I'll get that battery.

jimmy_trader

iTrader: (4)

The vert in your post from 2003 had glass and a targa.

Welcome back. Enjoy your new ride.
Aloha,
~j

christi

Ha well I'm a tard. Six years sure does get to you hahaha

jimmy_trader

iTrader: (4)

It wasn't meant as a bad thing. The emphasis should have been on the 'welcome back' part.

~j

christi

All I gotta say is...

SHE RUNS!!

I'm one happy camper tonight. Now... All I gotta do is get plates and I'm golden.... Next fix is my exhaust leak. I took her down the street near my apartment complex -- she runs *smooth* no power lost at all....smooth like a babies bottom.. I guess I shouldn't say totally smooth... due to the leak, but STILL:!

clokker

iTrader: (2)

So, your car runs like leaky baby butt?

As long as you're happy, I guess...

christi

:P Thanks sir, I guess you could say that :P

christi

Just thought I'd update this thread from then til now..

The car went into a depression and overheated 6 times.. Seriously though... It died at 103307 miles; overheated 6 times. Since the rebuild (She was down for 4 months), and I got her up and running maybe 3.5 weeks to almost a month ago.. she now has 436 or so miles on the new motor. I don't get to drive her around much, only on weekends.

What I had done to the new motor:

- Rebuilt by Don Walker
- S4 Street Port 13B (S5 front housing)
- Removed mech fan replaced with SHO E-Fan
- K&N Filter w/custom intake
- Premix but still using OMP
- 3" Racing Beat Dual Header
- 2.5" Straight pipe
- Currently stock exhaust/mufflers
- Removed all emissions and wires
- Removed 6-ports (butterfly values)

Needing to be done:

- Re-wire car as the harness sucks, and too many wires cut/not together from previous owner
- re-wire 'vert top.. it sucks.
- finish exhaust system... and save up money for RB mufflers, and fix the exhaust leak (yet again).

Pictures of the rebuild, and a video:

RB Header:


sexy...:


& some new photos of her:







and what she sounded like this weekend warming up. Sounds horrible because of the exhaust leak & the un-finished exhaust system.