Hi everyone,
I recently purchased a 93 touring and so far i have had a few issues that i have corrected but i still need help. heres what i got....

1. clutch not fully disengaging. Know this b/c when i have the clutch pedal to the floor and i put the stick into gear, the engine bogs about 300rpm. also i can feel it grind slighty on some occasions. cant figure out how to fix. tried to adjust pedal height. didnt solve issue.

2. strong clutch smell. most likely due to clutch slipping b/c it's not disengaging.

3. after driving for a while, i get white smoke comming from the back end of my engine compartment ( about centerline) . could this be my clutch. no oil leaks anywhere. i looked hard. but i cant get under there while it is smoking..... too hot...

4. Pre-cat is RED HOT after a decent drive... dont know if its supposed to or not. i've heard alot of people remove it. If so , where should i go to get a downpipe and is there a certain kind i should be looking for??

5. when i hit about 3500 rpm while accelerating heavily, on some occasions the car gets really jerky. I think the secondary turbo could be getting towards the end of its life. I have a boost gage on order then i will be able to get some boost patterns to post. If it's toast, should i just get a new turbo , or should i just get a seal kit and rebuild mine? inputs appriciated.

6. I bought a greddy 3 - piece chrome intake pipe set to replace the old and worn rubber factory ones. the only problem with this is that the new intake elbow does not have a fitting for the hose that connects with my intake manifold like the original. What do i do? what is it for? can i just put a plug on it and say okee dokee... inputs appriciated.

Well, there we have it friends. questions? comments? inputs? I am glad to part of this great society of rx-7 owners. by the way, These cars have VERY BIG muscles. I love it.

thanks,

Jason Dean, U.S. Navy, Portsmouth , NH.

 

1 & 2. Sounds like your clutch is going if not already gone.

3. Sounds like an oil leak somewhere that is burning off.. I had something similar last year and it was a gasket on the lower intake manifold (I believe).

4. Yes, the pre-cat is basically a little nuclear reactor. Downpipe is a downpipe. There are minor differences but they all serve the same function.

5. Order a grounding kit and recheck all your current grounds. Make sure they have good contact. Also, make sure you have new plugs and filters.

6. For the Greddy elbow, take a look at Max's site:

http://www.maxcooper.com/rx7/parts_i...l#GReddy_Elbow

Good luck...

 

so is it a good idea to replace the pre-cat with a downpipe or not? Does the downpipe get red hot as well. I think that maybe thats why my secondary turbo has issues since it is right next to it. also I was thinking of putting in a fluidyne radiator and a carbon fiber hood to possibly increase the airflow and cooling under there since it runs so hot. just an idea. does anyone else have any improvements that i haven't thought of that i should think about doin? Also, should i go with SVH silicone hoses or something else. I've heard that the silicon ones sometimes dont play well with the heat under the hood. I'm pretty sure there isnt a oil leak. I've looked everywhere, but i could be wrong. I'll look again tomorrow at my rotor housing seals. only place i havent really searched hard. Compression is good. timing is good. Ohh yeah, my other problem is that i get an occasional sputter when at idle. maybe do to old spark plug cables or clogged pre-cat/ main cat.... Anyone have anything i should check that im leavin out? I wanna get my new baby running perfect.

Thanks in advance

J. Dean

 

Welcome Jaysmuuv!

A BIG YES...get a down pipe. That should be your first mod. The pre-cat is known for clogging and turning up the engine temps. That thing just sucks.

Go for that radiator, it will be a sound investment to keep your car from running hot. Another mod that will help heat issues is upgrading your oil cooler with a Crooked Willow dual oil cooler.

www.crookedwillow.com

Yes, do the vacuum hose job. That will help you familiarize yourself with the sequential setup. More than likely your boost problem is not caused by your turbo getting hot from the pre-cat but by a bad solenoid, check valve or a hose popped off. Your secondary turbo may not be to blame. Don't go buying any turbos before you check your turbo control issues.

This link should help

http://www.rx-7tt.freeservers.com/Tu...leshooting.htm

RX-7s are known to sputter a little, I wouldn't worry to much about it.

Get that clutch fixed! Man, that would drive me nuts. Find a mechanic in your area. Go to the regional section this forum and ask around for a competent mechanic. Be weary of who you choose, it could mean life or death for your RX-7.

Go to this link for information

http://www.rx7turboturbo.com/robrobinette/

Hope you get everything worked out and the beast running. You'll learn in no time how much of an experience it is to own one.

Garrett

 

thanks man, I am a pretty competant mechanic myself being that i have been a nuclear mechanic in the navy for about 5 and a half years. I intend on putting all the wrench time on this car myself if possible, but i am always willing to take a little help from others.

 

Yes, a clogged cat can cause boost problems. It's a good idea to replace the pre-cat with the downpipe. Even a non-clogged pre-cat will heat up a lot (as you'll be able to feel the heat at your feet).

IMO, don't do anything vacuum line or turbo related until you have installed a boost gauge and gotten all the fluid, filters and plugs changed out. Once you have done that, you'll know where you stand with the car and what's really going on.

 

I just remembered my other issue. I'm not even sure if its an issue but when i have the car at all stop and idleing, i can hear a tick tick tick tick from somewhere in the engine compartment area. I know, its real vague but I'm not sure of what it is either.

 

I'd recommend tackling one problem at a time. Get the boost gauge installed and then see what your vacuum/boost readings are:

http://www.scuderiaciriani.com/rx7/boost_test.html

 

Could be a spark plug wire grounding or the air pump starting to go. Could be a bad apex seal. A VERY
faint tick is normal, as is a gentle "rotary rock" at idle, although additional grounding points eliminated this for me.

I think you're just slightly overqualified to work on your car! Nuclear sub - cool.

The best advice is to read the archives and then start in one thing at a time. Mahjik has got you started in the right direction. It will take a while to sort it out...

Lose the precat immediately, see my recent thread for the reasons........

 

If you hear a ticking at idle and very light throttle and it appears to coming from the driver's side firewall, it could be a brake line vibrating against the firewall mount. There was a TSB issued for it. Do a search for this, I don't have the thread handy at the moment (at work). You basically replace the mount with a softer rubber isolator to prevent the vibrations from tranferring to the interior. It's a quick and inexpensive fix.

Welcome to the dark side.

 

Congrats on your purchase. I would heed Majik and RonK's advice - they know what they are talking about. As for my .002 cents, I would definitely pull the tranny and swap out the clutch (possibly flywheel if its chewed up). I have heard (and RonK can attest to this) that the down pipe will keep your engine temps cooler, so that is a definite must. One of the major problems with these cars is heat dissipation. I would seriously consider the radiator upgrade and oil cooler upgrade to keep your baby cool. And, true to form - I would take care of all the fluids, tune up w/new plugs and wires and talk to Mazda and see what recalls have been completed on the car.

Good luck!

 

wow, You guys are amazing, I'm excited to hear from so many of you guys so fast. I'll take that advice. I have installed new NGK performance plugs and have wires, boost gage, water temp gage, downpipe, and some nice venier calipers in the mail. I already have a handheld vacuum pump and a fluke multimeter, and i am going to check all my solenoids and do some continuity checks on everything. Where can i get this $50 kit to adapt my greddy elbow so that i can keep my AWS still running? You guys are cool. I will keep you guys updated with everything i do and any readings i get. My only limitations are time ( i work about 115hrs a week) and money. I am expecting about $3000 to come in soon from an insurance settlement. that should help me get all this stuff fixed,

Thanks,

J. Dean