i have a series 5 NA with 180k miles on it, should i drive it till it blows? or should i not tempt fate and rebuild it now while it is still running? this is the original engine and it has not given me any problems, still runs fine. money is sort of an issue for me, so tell me in terms of estimated cost, thanks guys.

 

Well, is it smoking? Have you checked compression. 180K is pushing it but I would probably rebuild it.

Its cheaper to rebuild it while its running so you can reuse the rotor and rotor housings instead of waiting for it to blow. If you don't mind doing it yourself, from what I researched, it can be as cheap as $500 to expensive as $1500 depending how far you want to go and if you have all the necessary tools. Or you can get someone else to rebuild it...

 

no the engine doesn't smoke, it has no problems whatsoever and runs strong.

so 180k is pushing my luck? who else thinks i should rebuild it?

btw if i do rebuild it do i need to lift the engine out of the bay or can i rebuild it still in the car? piston people tell me you have to lift the engine out...is that true with rx7 engine?

 

Yeah, you'd have to take it out of the car (I've never attempted to do so myself - but my instincts tell me that you'd have to get a lift)

I agree with Dan H - while it's running - maintenance of parts seems to be the best route. For myself, I'm taking a rebuild on during the winter, picking up a parts car with a blown motor, but I"m going to rebuild it so I have an extra NA for my 87'...

 

It all depends... if your compression is good it still runs strong i would drive it until the first sing of anything remotely showing sings of wear.. such as smoke... whether coolant or oil... and then pull her out and get her rebuilt or do it yourself if you have the tools and are mechanically inclined!

 

how soon from when i see this kind of smoke do i have until the engine blows?
what other warning signs might there be?
thanks

 

should i rebuild?

Now that's just the kind of guts it takes.


i have a series 5 NA with 180k miles on it, should i drive it till it blows? or should i not tempt fate.....


What has your experience been with this thing you call "fate"?

and rebuild it now while it is still running? this is the original engine and it has not given me any problems, still runs fine. money is sort of an issue for me, so tell me in terms of estimated cost, thanks guys.


Well that's tricky. You could buy the atkins rebuild video that I did and see for yourself what it takes to pull apart one of these engines first. I think it cost like $25 plus shipping. Search in google for: atkins rotary.

As an example, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to replace certian parts on your running engine. Deciding what parts those are, is a process.

Apex seals can be 25.00-100's depending upon what you want.

The copper washers, which are reusable for your oil cooler lines are minimally $1 each. You have 8 of them.

Also it depends upon what you might break in the process too.

But I bet you could do it. ****, I can do it.

So yeah, I vote rebuild.