this is probly a dumbass question but i dont know anything about rx's

i blew my trans in my 86 rx and i got one for free out of an 88 convertable and now it doesnt run right or start right, is there a difference in the trans? everything seemed to be the same when i was looking at the. any help/input is greatly appreciated

 

You may need to explain more!

Like when you turn the key... nothing happens? Or does it crank over? Whats more specifically going on. I wonder if maybe it has to do something with the clutch switch thing. Where you have to have the clutch down to start maybe you didnt connect that up or something of the sort? Just an idea, shot in the dark.

 

i got it to crank once and now it just clicks like my battery is dead but its brand new, i dont have to push my clutch in to start it, i havent had to since i bought it

 

Are you sure you have voltage on the battery? You are being really terse.. can you provide some more info? The transmissions SHOULD be the same, however. there were some differences between the 86 and the 87.5-88's, so perhaps something is messed up there. However, it sounds like you f'd something with the starter. Maybe you messed up the gear mesh on the starter/flywheel?

 

what are the diffrences? i just put a brand new starter in after the trans, and after i put it in my gauges are all messed up to, when my key is in the ''on'' position and the motor is NOT running my oil pressure gauge is pegged out and some yimes my temp gauge too.

yes i have voltage

 

oil pressure sender is probably not connected. Its right down by the tranny. you probably bumped it. Thats pretty common. Just get down there and make sure.

Stop being terse! Does it crank? When it cranks, does it fire? if it fires, does it stumble? Do you smell fuel? If it starts, can you drive it?

 

did u ground your starter? battery charged? remember its the amperage that turns it over not the voltage so even if the voltage looks ok u might want to charge it

 

the starter is grounded, its been doin it even the first day i put in the battery, i jumped once and it worked, dont know if that tells you anything or not

 

The only thing I can tell you for sure is that you should never try to fix anything else.... ever.

 

im not stupid i just dont know **** about rotory engines, and im not sure if i blew it or not

 

Okay dude... start from the beginning.. tell me EVERYTHING you did... step by step.. then describe IN DETAIL, what is happening.

Take your time. Use punctuation and capitalization. It isn't going to kill you. And just might prove that you aren't stupid.

 

i am also lost. provide a more detailed explanation

 

i disconnected the battery, jacked up the vehicle and placed it on jackstands, then removed the exhaust, and driveshaft, and diconnected all wires to the trans and removed the speedo cable. after that i removed the clutch release cylinder and then the starter.
after i had the starter out i put the jack under the trans and removed the crossmember bolts, after i had the crossmember loose i removed the bolts around the bell housing, once i had all the bolts out i move the trans straight back and then lowered it. i then jacked the up the new trans into position, and had a friend rotate the output shaft until the input lined up with the engine output, i then slid the trans forward and put the bottom bolts in, then i bolted on the crossmember about hand tight, then i put in all the bolts for the bell housing and tightened them down, then tightened the crossmember.
i then reinstalled the clutch release cylinder and starter, i reconnected all wires with their coresponding conectors, and reconnected the speedo cable.
i reinstalled the driveshaft and exhaust, then filled the trans with fluid.
after filling it, i connected the battery and tried to start it, it would not start and i did not want to bump start it with out the gears being lubricated so i jumpstarted it, i drove it to the gas station to put gas in it, but once i got there i decided not to incase the battery wasnt charged, so i was on my way home when it started cutting out violently, as if one of the rotors wasnt firing, and it was making my tachometer go crazy and then the car would beep like it does when its not running even though it was. i then replaced the battery and starter and took out all the spark plugs and cleaned them with a wire brush then replaced them. i bump started it and it was still cutting out, but now it idles fine and cuts out very bad when ''under load'' .

like i said i dont kow very much about rotory engines, im learning as i go. i dont know if its an obvious problem and im dumb, maybe bad injectors, or maybe i just blew it.

thanks for the help dude, i hope this explains enough

 

are you in fountain hills AZ?

 

yes i am in fountain hills

 

First of all..... THANK YOU! That is how you post on the forums... perfect. Lots of info, very detailed... good job!

Second, how well did the car run before you swapped out the tranny? How many miles on it?

 

it ran perfect before i did the swap, it started first try everytime

its got 115k on it, probly needs a rebuild

 

The oil and water temp gauge senders are just below the oil filter pedestal. The wiring to them is also part of the harness that attaches to the starter solenoid. So I'd assume those wires are off their senders and touching the bare metal somewhere shorting out the gauses which causes them to ped out.

OR, worst case scenario..........somehow those small wires got attached to something else duing the swapout. Not realistic though since the connectors are peculiar to those senders.

IF the battery is good, the cables are attached good to the batt and the gnd for the batt is indeed attached real good to the long bolt on the starter, and the positive cable from the batt is attached real goooood to the starter solenoid, then if you hear a click each time you go to START, then I'd say your ignition switch isn't capable of carrying the current to the starter solenoid anymore and it's only capable of making the solenoid click.

So to prove me wrong, jack the car up and put it in neutral. Now get a screwdriver and bridge the gap b/t the small blade connector on the starter solenoid and the large wire on the starter solenoid. The starter will spin the engine over when you do that proving the solenoid and starter are Jim dandy fine and good to go. And that it is what I say it is.

The bucking of the car sounds like the power from the batt to the car is intermittent. Who knows.

I chuckled at the detailed description. Right down to the last nut and washer.

 

If it idles good the problem isn't the engine causing the bucking.

The engine itself has zip to do with the thing not starting and just going CLICK when you go to START.

 

i did the screwdriver thing and no luck, it just clicked again.

any other suggestions?

 

So... to me, it sounds like the engine is jammed (carbon lock?) or you have the starter gears meshed too tight with the flywheel (didn't know that was possible on rx-7's). See if you can turn the engine over by hand.... grab the belts... pull. Should turn it over.. does for me. If it moves freely, your starter is probably bad.

 

it moves freely.

i just dont see how the starter could be bad, cause i just bought iy like a week ago

 

could be because the trans is out of a convertable

 

Coupe/Vert trannies are the same. AFAIK.

Was the starter a remanufactured one? or was it brand new? Should say right on it. Remanufactured crap always breaks or doesn't work. Alternators and starters expecially... Have you bench tested the starter?

Now, because I know you are going to ask me how to do that........... Take your starter out.. put it on.. say.. your bench. Then apply 12v from a car battery. If it spins, it might be good.. if not, bad. Caution: when it spins, it has a tendancy to jump and kick.... hold it down real good.