So I have been thinking I can go without getting this fixed since its still half there.

I really don't want to just leave it with no bolt in it at all, and I also don't want to pay $40 to fix it if its not completely necessary.

This is one of six spots the engine is held to the tranny, its the one directly above the top bolt that mounts to the starter as well as engine/tranny. If looking at the bell housing its on the top right.


Im not sure if the head of the bolt is on this side or on the transmission side. If it can go through either way I guess it doesn't matter, I figured having the head on this side (engine) would be better.

I just want to know if this will hold the bolt fine, I think it should but I want to make sure by asking on here.

I'm using this iron because other than that break it had the least wear, which made it ideal.

Picture provided below. You can see where the broken spot is next to my finger.

 

If you use it weld a stud on there.It would be easier to fix that way.

 

Well Kevin said he could get it fixed for $40 if he has the right size tap. I was just hoping I could save some money.

Idk what you mean by welding a stud.

 

No.

Will it probably hold together without that bolt? Probably. But there are things that I won't fool with, and bolt placement is one of them. If the engineers thought that bolt needed to be there to hold something, it probably needs to be there. I'd fix it properly if I were you. That is, if it's still apart right now and you don't have to tear it apart.

 

Engines out and gonna be built soon. Maybe ill just have him do it for the extra $40. How strong will it be though? I just don't want the welds to break.

I don't mind paying the extra $40 its not that much for peace of mind

 

ive got one with the same exact broken bolt "ear", its been running fine for 4 years now

 

Do you have a bolt in it or did you leave it empty? And is yours an NA or Turbo. Mines turbo

 

I'd replace the Iron, if you're looking to make a "built" engine anyways, looking to make any kind of serious power.

If you can't do that (how expensive is it to find rear turbo irons?? At least turbo engines aren't that expensive if you look in the right places) I'd have a stud placed in the threads, and welded in place, then have the rotor surface lapped to ensure you've got a good, non-warped surface left over.

...But that's just my paranoid $0.02.

 

The iron I could of used had more wear internally, so instead of using the housing with more wear I used this one since its in better condition internally.

I might just get it fixed by the builder, was quoted $40 for the fix.

 

Pay the man to fix it. If you want to cut corners get a civic.

 

My take: fix it now or pay the price later.

 

it's not really necessary, had cars running a bit of power on 4 bolts and never had any issues(by a bit i mean closer to 500whp). that ear breaks quite often. if you really want it, run a longer bolt through and put a nut on it. ever seen a transmission fall on the ground? neither have i.

 

Holy crap.You wanna save money?Not gonna happen with a rebuild or an Rx7 Period.Get that into ya now!!
My Credit card is marked RX7.
..Weld a stud in that spot so that it goes through the trans bolt hole.When you put the trans on,the Bell housing sits on that stud.(like the stud on the top passenger side rear of housing.).
Put a nut on the stud once the trans is on.
Really..who says it needs to be a bolt to hold **** together?
That is if it can be welded on the rear housing.(metal composition?)
I'm not a welder so I don't know.

 

ive run with a couple bolts missing before as well back in my younger broker years. never had any ill effects..

ya my 87 t2 is running with that ear broken off, and no bolt in it. thinking about it its probably been well over 6 years with that motor lol...

if you really want to a washer and the bolt with a nut would work like the other guy said.

 

I'd need to figure out what size and length to get, and where to buy it.

 

1/2" longer than the factory bolt so it is long enough to get a nut and washer on it. but not so long that it runs into the oil pressure sender.

 

No, but I have seen bell housings crack before. I still think it'll be ok. The T2 bell housing is really strong; but if it's already out and getting rebuilt, why not fix it?

 

i guess it depends if it's going to be fixed right, otherwise it's just wasting money and cast iron is one of the toughest materials to fix properly. (which is why i generally just flip off the broken iron and either replace it or run it as i mentioned with a supplemental bolt or only 4 bellhousing fasteners)

i've even seen some cars come in with only 2 bellhousing bolts before, loose, driving the car on the road. i cringe over that but it still didn't show any problem signs(albeit stupid and they were both only on the bottom..) ideally keep all 5 bolts intact but 4 works just fine, even 3 would probably hold up with no problem if they were triangulated and tight(but i am not proposing this as a good idea). the engine dowels do fit well and take a lot of the shear torque stress off the bolts.

 

Kevin/rotary resurrection is who'd be getting it fixed for me.

I'm not sure who he has do the weld, unless he does it himself but I think he said he'd take it to a shop for the weld and tap it himself if he has the correct tap.

 

well it would have to be preheated and then optimally TIG welded. most gas MIGs aren't capable of generating enough heat or start the arc hot enough to promote a good bond with the base metal. Nickel works best for bonding but for this application nickel wouldn't be strong enough.

 

He told me it'd be fine without having that even bolted up since its not like my engine is making 1000ft lbs of torque.

I just want to at least have something in there, would the longer bolt with nut and washer hold fine? I just want to have something in there rather than nothing, I'm kind of a pessimistic person as well as paranoid so that's why. Lol

 

it will be fine with a nut on the end/longer bolt.