my son recently got gramma's 86 RX-7. the car had sat for about 5 yrs. the problem is at about 4000rpm, thick white smoke...james bond getaway smokescreen type smoke...comes from the exhaust. performance doesn't seem to suffer, but it is really embarrassing...any ideas?

 

undefined I'm new to this whole Rotary thing...And loving it but my assumption is maybe you need new apex seals?
Is it a manual?
Um.....yeah, Has to be the seals......Get a Chiltons .....I bought two....Rotary engines are the most intimidating thing in the world....lol

 

ok dont listen to the nOOb... its either a coolant seal or and oil control ring. if you can tell what the smoke smells like.. free rev it and smell it.. if it smells sweet its coolant and that means a coolant seal. if it smells like burn oil its the oil contol rings. either way you will be looking at a rebuild. is it using oil or coolant.. that would be a sign too. there is a chance that the oil seal could be stuck??? maybe a guru will chime in if that is possible..

 

how many miles on the engine? If your a DIY type of guy, this is the equivalent of head gaskets like on a V6, but it requires pulling the motor apart.

 

Most likely you're burning coolant. If you're oil ring was bad you usually have smoke when you start the car, not at 4000 rpm. When your driving your building pressure in the coolant system and that's when it's leaking. I hope you have a bad coolant seal and not a cracked end housing near the exhaust port water jacket.

 

from another thread block sealer was reccommended as a last resort...should l or not? doing a free rev the smoke started about 4k rpm, and really had no smell...also detected an exhaust leak at the header as smoke was coming from there as well

 

anybody else?

 

Ouch...I mean, I know I'm a noob but that was mean.lol
I just read the almost same FAQ and it said to check your o-rings....

 

well what do you expect when someone chimes in and tells him its his apex seals??? if it was the apex seals it wouldnt run.. for gods sake they are like the piston rings in a normal car.. lower compression wouldnt make it smoke either. well just make sure you have your **** strait before you post.... its that simple.. dont post if you dont know.. BTW welcome to rx7club

 

Thanx for the warm welcome...
I know I would be the same way if I were you....