Valkyrie

I only replaced the soft seals (including the front and rear oil seals), and the pilot bearing/seals, but hopefully just replacing the coolant seals will fix my problem (overheating and blowing white smoke).

And my thermostat is still good, apparently...

I just put my harness, rotor housing OMP lines (one is made out of the teflon I ordered),. vacuum hose assembly (which I'm sure well take me hours to get right), and lower intake manifold on. I hope I got the harness on there right, since it doesn't really have much flex in it if I have to get it to fit something... the FSM also kind of sucks for reassembling the engine externals...

Maybe I should go print out the Rotary Resurrection instructions like I did to take it out...

Dom_C

any progress?

Valkyrie

Well, I had to leave for college (I just now got my dorm internet working), so the car has to wait till next week when I'll hopefully be able to find a ride home for the MLK weekend holiday.

At this moment, the engine is almost totally together, except the flywheel still needs to be torqued, the middle and upper intake manifolds need to be torqued down (but they're on there), I need to check a few of the more vague hoses, connectors, etc, and I need to install the air pump, and the A/C/P/S rack, and pumps.

Then of course I need to install the oil pan, oil strainer, and engine mounts, and then put that bitch back in that car.

I also need to splice the wire to the oxygen sensor since I broke it off at the connector by accident.

At one point I did have to go back and take the middle intake manifold off to get a bolt I dropped into it out, and then I broke another OMP line. Good thing I had more than enough teflon hose and clamps to repair *all* of my lines (two originals are left, neither are probably in their correct position).

I just hope the OMP lines aren't in the way of the air pump hose... otherwise I guess I'll just have to zip tie them down.

And of course, I'll need to do the timing, and fix the idle problem...

I swear the throttle plate on the bottom must be tilted quite a bit more than the others... but I twisted one of the little screws and I think I might have gotten the clearance down a bit... (there was a bit of black gunk in there, but not enough to prematurely stop the plates I think)

I guess the throttle plates aren't supposed to be a perfect 90 degrees at idle, right?

And for the record, the throttle stop screw isn't even stopping the plates at idle...the internal clearances are (that or something else on the outside)


Another thing: I read my FSM again and for a minute I was worried a bit that I might have messed up choosing which sides the side peices go on, but I'm *pretty* sure they're in the right place... whether or not my apex seals are in their original positions (Hey, I tried, but I had my rubber bands fail on me a few times...)

Valkyrie

Well, today I'm gonna take the bus home (since I procrastinated and didn't find a ride earlier, meaning I've gotta spend 60 dollars and won't get there till 7 PM tonight...) so I can go fix my car...

Hopefully I'll get that bitch running before or by Monday, and have it insured and back up to school by Tuesday afternoon...

Hmm...gotta make sure I don't forget to torque that damn flywheel too... and to install the new pilot bearing + seal... and splice that broken wire (forgoeing the connector for now)...and find those stupid bolts for the middle intake manifold... and install the PS/AS stuff... and the belts... and fix the idle...

but hopefully that's about it.

Dom_C

get it running?

SuperRotorMan

they be lots of fun lol enjoy

Valkyrie

No... I found my oil pump key on the ground (I THOUGHT I had installed it) and basically spent one of the days of my weekend doddling about before finally taking off the front cover and reinstalling the key...

So I never got the engine in the car (ran out of time). I also need to wire brush some paint in the engine bay where brake fluid ate it up, and then repaint that spot... and then reinstall the new brake master cylinder I bought. Hopefully that'll stop the leak.

Anyway, I can't do any of this until I find another ride home from school... I'll hopefully get the engine in the car in one weekend. But then I've gotta break it in and make sure it's safe to drive (in more than one way)...

I've gotta pretty long list of things the car needs (including new suspension bushings, definately, and probably new shocks and springs, too, although most of these things can wait until I'm back at school with the car).

Valkyrie

I came home this weekend, and my engine is ready to go in the car... It's actually hanging above the engine bay right now, but I'm waiting for a family friend to come and help.

I need to get a gasket for the brake MC before I can drive it.

Somehow my dad managed to hit my car with his truck... I kept telling him not to park so close, but nooo, he goes and hits it... at least the dent is barely visible (the front bumper is just pushed in a tiny bit...).

Hope it runs correctly after I get it running.

Valkyrie

Got the engine bolted in... besides 2-3 transmission bolts.

But I'm out of time so I'll have to come back another weekend (who knows when that'll be...) and hook everything back up.

Valkyrie

Oh yeah, here three more pics I took during my rebuild that I never put online...

http://photobucket.com/albums/c337/Busted7/

I did manage to get home to work on my car about a month ago, but I was sick and the only thing I got done was hooking a few more things back up (like the harness, radiator, hoses, fuel lines, etc).

Still have a few things left to do... basically, get my car to actually turn on (I hooked the starter up wrong), plug in a few more connectors, redo some vacuum hoses that I put on wrong, re-attach my slave cylinder (which seems to be stuck open), and then do the timing when I get it starter (I'm hoping the rebuild will have fixed some of the idle problems... I kind of doubt it).

I'm going home this weekend, since it's spring break... so hopefully it'll be running, and maybe even driveable (in terms of a daily driver) by the end of the holiday.

I reaaaaally want to wash and wax my car, too (and polish the taillights...). Being away from it all the time sucks, when I want to work on it...

Valkyrie

IT RUNS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Well, it won't run unless I keep it above 3000 RPMS or so... but it cranked none-the-less Funny thing is that it didn't want to crank at all (it would just "bump crank crank crank bump-bump crank crank" and wouldn't fire up) until I pressed the throttle a bit (I was actually trying to do the unflooding procedure).

Oil pressure is fine...

I've got a few problems though, first is that I've got a minor oil leak near the oil pan... it's a slow drip, but a leak none-the-less.

I also seem to have water dripping from the engine... I have no idea exactly what it's coming from but it's not the radiator at least. I hope it's something fairly minor, like the water pump housing (since I used a liquid gasket since I broke the paper one), and not something HORRIFICLY DEVISTATING like a coolant seal.

I also need to redo quite a few vacuum hoses (one of them is under the dynamic chamber, and I have NO idea where it goes... but it's just...lose), and attach the brake booster vacuum hose...

And then a few more things... like the crankcase ventilation and the broken air temp sensor.

Valkyrie

Anywho... My vacation is long over, and I finally got to drive my car, but it's not road worthy yet.

It now idles at the proper speed once it's warmed up, although it sounds rough unless it's set to about 1500 RPMs.

I've ordered a new intake air temperature sensor (broken pin), purge control valve (broken plastic nipple), and middle shift boots (since the old ones are NASTY)...

It makes a nasty clanging noise whenever I rev it and let off the throttle (sounds like it's coming from inside the engine, almost...), and whenever it's under load, it makes a rapid popping noise in the intake, and bogs down.

I don't know why it does this, but I think it is at least partially due to the fact that it's running richer than Bill Gates, because of the broken IAT sensor, and the timing not being set. I hope it's not because of some more serious, or more complicated reason.

I need to borrow or buy a timing gun so I can set the timing to spec... right now it's at full retard, since I was trying to see if I could make it stop misfiring in the intake. It didn't stop...


Oh yeah, I also washed and waxed it... but it rained two days later and now it's covered with water spots and birdcrap again.

Valkyrie

Hmm... Well the semester is over and I'm home again, so the good news is that I have plenty of time to work on my car...

The bad news is that although I've replaced the air temp sensor, it's still got the popping noise, and it's got trouble maintaining an idle (it's at about 500 RPMS and sometimes it won't die but sometimes it will. The adjustment is also as high as it will go... so maybe there's a vacuum leak).

Also, there's a bit of hesitation and extra popping when I hit the gas a bit at throttle (to keep it from stalling).

(strangely, it idled just fine last time)

Also, there's a fairly nasty grinding noise whenever I go over 3800 RPMs, although I don't know what's causing it. Never had it before...

It still revs past 3800 easily if I give it enough throttle.

The last thing I can think to do is check the timing. I figure it must be WAY off if that's what's causing the hesitation/popping/etc. Or maybe the spark is going to the wrong plugs? The wires are going to the right places through...

Once I reset the ECU, the only code being thrown is number 30...

Dom_C

It sounds like a pretty bad vaccum leak to me. . Actually I can almost geruntee it has one. And also get the timing set correctly. Oh and if I recall(I havn't read through the entire post again) this is a new rebuild. . you should take it easy on the revs for a while anyhow. . like should really be revving it much past 3800. . . but i'm glad she runs. Definetly a vaccum leak
Dom

Valkyrie

I was about to post a new thread but I guess I'll just ask here...

Does anyone have any techniques for detecting and finding vacuum leaks?

Apparently one old-school technique is to put your hand over the intake, and if the RPM's go up, you've got a leak.

I sure hope the whining noise after 3800 RPM's is a leak and not something mechanical...

Also, I took it for another drive around the block to test the brakes, which work great now since I attached the vacuum hose (thought I'd need a new one but it worked fine). It doesn't accelerate very well and I wouldn't be able to drive it at highway speed yet...

Gearbox seems to work fine (I also replaced the inner boots, although that was a pain... I sort of ghetto-rigged it for now since I couldn't fit that metal plate back in).

Also, do I *really* need to break it in for a full 2000 miles? The seals and bearings are all old (supposedly 7K miles old), and it seems to have a total compression of 90+ on at least one rotor...

My biggest fear is simply that I put it back together wrong... which at this point I doubt.

BTW, should the OMP lines be flowing just a little bit or should they be completely full of oil?... 2 of mine aren't OEM...since I made them based one that one writeup about using teflon hose.

SoontobeLS1'd

You can spray carb cleaner near some of the vac lines and see if you get a rev from the stuff being sucked into the line. Be sure to wipe residual cleaner off of good lines so it doesn't eat your rubber. It's not the best option but it's one.

Valkyrie

Yes... I know of that trick. I think I'll try it with propane, maybe.

Another trick I've heard of is to use a peice of hose as a stethoscope, or to spray water (has the same effect as anything flammable, except in the opposite, apparently).

Sometimes I wonder if it'll idle long enough to even let me try anything... lol

Ok, if it's not a vacuum leak or something seriously wrong with the ignition (I did restab it last time, and tonight I tried advancing it a bit, which seemed to help), what else could make it hesistate so much?

I don't suppose the injector harnesses could be going to the wrong injectors, seeing as how they could logically and physically only go to one each.

FYI, I DID take off the UIM one time, and put it back on, but that didn't effect it at all (in fact that might have helped...).

Also, when I removed the old gasket (had to chip it off), I scratched the surface up a little bit, but I don't think I could have gouged it enough to cause a leak.

Perhaps I should just try re-tighting the manifolds, or using sealant on them...

I figure I should get a new O2 sensor eventually, although not because I think it's the problem, just because it's probably old as dirt.

Tournapart

iTrader: (4)

thats the cleanest 400 dollar FC i have ever seen, just thought id let you know

oh and if the timing is retarded it can make it pop and revv really funky, on my old truck i used to have, when i did the headgasket i put the distributor in two teeth retarded and it pinged and popped until i figured out what was wrong, this maybe your problem too

chinkst3r

iTrader: (5)

dude, seriously nice *** fc man, good deal, i got mine for 350 earlier this week, and it was in the same condition as yours, bad coolant seals due to overheating, white smoke coming out frm burning out coolant, dead battery that wont hold a charge, ecept mine has spiders all underneath the car and behind the wheels, also the inside was a mess. i just started tearing the interior down, but plan on pulling out the engine and tranny this weekend. any pointers/tips?

Valkyrie

the easiest way to do it would be to pay someone else

But actually I have no idea about pulling the tranny...

It may look clean but there ARE a lot of nitpicks I have about it... More than enough to count on my hands. lol.

Speaking of clean... I washed it AGAIN today. I've washed it more than twice as many times as I've driven it.

Plus, it's already dirty again because of the stupid trees.

I think I'll take more pictures tommorow...

Valkyrie

Progress! I torqued the intake manifold bolts (the ones I could find...) to spec (which wasn't all that much more), and now it idles properly (although it could be better), and makes a little less funky noises.

I found out what the buzzing noise at 3800 RPMs was... it was the AFM. WTF could it possibly be?

I took it down the street again, and it has quite a bit of lurching at low RPMs or when I let off (which is strange, since I DID adjust the dashpot...). Maybe it's still a timing problem?

I personally think my throttle body gasket is shot to hell.. I mean, it's there, but it's as flat as paper. Maybe I should use liquid gasket on it?

I listened closely to the engine and I heard a slight hissing-ish sound, but I think it might have just been the drivetrain making that noise.

The good news is that it'll do at least 50 MPH, so I can at least take it somewhere to have a "pro" look at it.

Valkyrie

Ok, I just checked the timing, and the leading IS DEAD ON (lucky me...).

I couldn't seem to find the red mark when I tried to check the trailing, but just going from the light I used (which is like 30 years old), it doesn't seem to be a very stable pulse. Is it supposed to have a consistent rythm when it's idling, or should there be some fluctations in the light (like it's skipping a beat)?... Maybe I have a bad trailing coil or something?

I'm still getting the buzzing AFM, and I've still got some popping noises in the intake (or maybe the engine?) when I give it throttle, plus it still stumbles a bit when I give it just a little throttle at low RPMs (especially after going around a corner).

A friend of mine seems to think it sounds like it's rich when it's idling (although that might just be because it's an RX-7...). He said he could see the red mark when we doing the trailing timing, but I couldn't. He thought it was a bit off, but can you change the trailing timing without changing the leading timing?


BTW, when the mark moves to the left when you give it gas, that means it's being advanced (like it's supposed to), right?

Dom_C

what rpm do you have it idling at? and have you set the TPS??

Dom_C

still sounds like a vaccum leak to me

Valkyrie

it's idling anywhere between 500 and 1200 or so, depending...

Every time I let it warm up I set it to 750, it idles great for a while and then maybe an hour later I'll start it up again and it's at 500 (like just a few minutes ago).

And it goes up a little bit if I give it throttle and let it back off (maybe it's the dashpot...I set it kind of high).

I also still get quite a bit of intake popping when I drive around the block (5th time... my mom keeps yelling at me not too since I don't have insurance yet... it's around the block FFS...lol).

The thing that bugs me the most right now is the studdering (since that's what effects driveability/fun the most).

I'll check for vacuum leaks as soon as I can go get a bottle of WD-40 or carb cleaner (we're all out...).

Although I guess brake cleaner might work...

I've set the TPS many times. It's a LITTLE high (resistance-wise) on the low side, but just fine on the high end.

I'll set it again whenever I get around to it.