So it’s finally time for me to start my rx7.. and of course it didn’t start. I checked spark and fuel, so I moved onto compression. After doing a compression test my front rotor has 70psi on one face and zero on the other two... zero.. like maybe 2psi. I just want to know if by any miracle this engine is saveable. I tried the atf trick thinking it might possibly be a stuck seal but my weak starter and the atf was no match to bring back compression.

things I should mention
-the engine sat for a little over a year before I began cranking it.
- measured all side seals and apex seal tolerances
- engine has not been run since rebuild.
- atf sat in engine for 5 days before I checked compression again
- has brand new ra standard apex seals and rebuild kit

Thanks everyone!! And break the news lightly to me

 

well, it certainly does not sound good.

did you glue the seals before installing them? upon assembly, were you getting 6 pops while turning by hand?

what were the results of the rear rotor? also, you mentioned a weak starter, i know it can't kill compression, but i thought it noteworthy.

 

i did not glue the seals when installing but I was sure none of them popped out. I did get six pops while turning by hand. The rear rotor was 70 on all faces, and the starter is likely 30 years old so she’s probably tired. While cranking I also only got up to about 250rpm.

 

doesnt sound good, i would pull the exhaust off, and try to look in the exhuast ports, see if u can see all the apex seals, and feel if they are all springy, maybe sitting to long and one jammed down. also shine around in there for evidence of something getting damaged.

 

sorry I should have mentioned this. All the seals are intact and all but one is springy. This is what made me believe one is stuck.

 

ahh ok, yeah maybe try to spin the engine so that seal is facng down ward and just flood the chamber with a bunch of ATF so that it soaks around the seal

 

alright I’ll give this a shot. I’ve done some reading on stuck seals and some people have said to tow start it. Would there be any harm in doing so? Apparently if it’s so stuck the starter can’t pop it out getting it to running rpm will pull the seal back out.

 

Did you try tapping on the stuck apex seal with a wooden dowel? Had a motor that sat and had stuck apex seals. Let them sit in atf then did as mentioned and it freed them up.

 

Thanks for the tip, I have not done this. I was a little worried to tap on the seals haha. I’ll do this tomorrow evening and give an update if anything here works

 

so what's the word? I'm hanging on the edge of my seat!!

 

haha sorry guys totally forgot to update. I gave the seals a few taps. Didn’t notice much of a difference:/ I’m still waiting on an fc-hako to throw a base tune into my power fc before I tow start it. But as soon as I get it moving I’ll be back. Thanks!!

 

Well everyone. If anyone is still waiting on an update I’ve got one. I went to pull start it and it started to fire. She ran on on rotor for a second and then it started to clear up. But then she made a loud pop and the car caught fire. Fire through the firewall and all in the engine bay. She’s totalled. i appreciate everyone’s help and answers

 

Oh man. That's the worst update ever. You have my condolences.

 

are you kidding? that's horrible!

 

unfortunately not kidding. I’m going to dive into it and see if it’s salvageable, but with some of the fire being behind the dash.. I don’t have much hope. I managed to catch it before the car burnt to a crisp, but the driver side of the engine bay is pretty done. I’ll give her a rinse and pull the dash off to see if it’s within my skill to fix it. If not it’ll be a part out. Hopefully I caught it before the dash harness turned to goop.

 

I'm having trouble figuring out what would have caught fire? Neither the engine nor the exhaust manifold were hot when you tried to push start it...since it hadn't been running was it?... so what could the fuel have ignited on to cause the fire?

 

that is exactly what we are all thinking. The car was not hot and was not running when the fire started. So we have not a clue what happened. The only thing we can think of is an electrical fire. But that doesn’t explain the pop and then huge wave of smoke coming out from the hood. Really we have no idea what happened.

 

I also looked around in the engine bay to see what condition the fuel lines are in. From the firewall forward (with an exception of about six inches) is braided steel lines and all fittings were tight and together. I also checked the short rubber fuel line and both hose clamps were still tight around both fittings.

 

sounds like it was an electrical fire. dont give up.