TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

Yet another slight hang up with the new engine. I was bolting on the oil line that is on the very front of the engine with a banjo fitting. Then i noticed on the plate behind it there is another place for a an oil fitting which is not on my old engine. check out the picks, it looks like the old engine has this plugged off, but the hole is a few inches up from where it is on the new engine. and the new engine does not have a hole where the plug would be on the old engine. weird. should i just swap the plug?

front view, oil line to the oil cooler, further back on the new engine you see the shiny bolt which is capped off.


view of the capped off bolt on new engine


new engine, dead center is where the plug is on the old one, but you'll notice no hole in this one.


old engine, dead center is the plug, but no hole down below like the new engine

DaleClark

iTrader: (55)

That is weird! I'd just swap that plug in and be done with it. Take your time with that plug, if it leaks later it'll be a BITCH to deal with in the car!

Dale

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

i swapped that large plug, antifreeze came out of the old engine when i removed it. now the problem is that there should be another plug, if you look in the last picture (the old engine), in the middle towards the top is a stud next to the spark plug wire, directly above that is another spot for a hole, the new engine actually has a hole there instead of being sealed up. So now I have to go find a new plug that fits, as the old engine doesnt really have a plug, its just sealed in from the factory.

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

does anyone know why the cover is different? the top hole is really giving me trouble. I can't find a plug or bolt that fits, and whatever i plug it with needs to sit flush b/c the plate that the power steering pump bolts through covers it. THere is no plug on the old engine (last pic, top of the black cover, above the stud, its just molded over) and its an open hole on the new engine which def needs to be plugged.

Has anyone else had this problem?

IRPerformance

iTrader: (41)

I replied in your other thread. There is a modification that involves machining the oil galley in the front iron and using it as an oil source to get oil to the rear of the engine. This gets the oil there faster on cranking and cold start to help reduce wear. It appears that is what was done to your front iron where that large plug is. Your front cover (aluminum and at frontmost of engine) looks fine from what I can see. See if that line you depicted in your other thread will screw into where that plug is. Otherwise you can leave it plugged and ditch that adapter that is under your oil filter pedestal. Also, it looks like a paper oil pan gasket was used. They will ALL leak. Pull off the oil pan and clean off all the old gasket. Reseal it with "the right stuff" silicone made by Permatex and install an oil pan reinforcement brace.

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

Thanks for the info, a post with my solution for a plug for the top hole is coming soon.

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

Here are the pics, i ended up using a 1/2" bolt with 20 thread, i thought it would be metric, but M12 - 1.75, 1.5, and 1.25 all didn't go in at all. the 1/2" went in quite a ways. i cut it, slotted it, put orange permatex on and screwed it in as tight as possible.

alexdimen

iTrader: (13)

Did you try 1/2" NPT? It that's pressurized oil and you have the wrong fitting, it's gonna leak.

IRPerformance

iTrader: (41)

Good attempt, but its probably going to leak. That galley can see 120 psi of oil pressure. I would have tapped it for an npt plug or used jb weld. Don't weld the actual iron as the heat can warp it.

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

oh , well that sucks i didn't figure on it having that much pressure. If i take it out, will it hold if i through a bunch of JB weld on it instead of orange permatex?

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

and why the heck would someone drill a hole there?

IRPerformance

iTrader: (41)

There is a modification where oil is sourced there and a line is run to the rear iron. The theory is it gets the oil there faster and reduces wear during cranking and cold start. I don't think its worth it. Take out the bolt, and try getting the nest closest size NPT plug and tap it for that. That would be a better solution that jb weld. Or use a bolt of the correct length and a copper crush washer so when the bolt is tightened down, the crush washer seals against the side of the iron.

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

I can't use a normal bolt and washer, this goes behind the piece that holds the power steering pump. it needs to be recessed or flush, the stud you see is what holds the bottom of the plate down, so the rest of the plate covers the hole completely, which is why i don't understand why the hole is there, it would have to be for a pure race application with no power steering.

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

you'll see in the second pic, the large fitting with a cap and crush washer was used on the bottom hole, which i think is what you are referring to. I just used the plug from the old engine there, which sits in flush and did the job at least on the old one (even though the location was a few inches off, weird)

alexdimen

iTrader: (13)

That's odd. could it be a FC turbo II iron?

I was actually suggesting it might have been NPT to begin with rather than tapping it NPT.

Regarding the fitting that came out of the modded front iron: did it use a crush washer seal or did it use a tapered pipe thread that gets tighter as it is threaded into the iron?

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

it had a crush washer, but it obviously wasn't an original plug. the old block had the same size hole with a plug an inch above, i took that out it fit perfect and the threads tightened as soon as it was flush, so i think that one is fine.

i'll try to find a 1/2 npt fitting tomorrow, if i can i'll just use my plug with JB weld and tighten it as much as i can.

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

The new fix, it was 3/8 NPT thread. i cut the head off a plug and made a slot for a screw driver, went in all the way and flush and tight. too bad the oil pan leaked when i started.

alexdimen

iTrader: (13)

Nice. search for "mythbusters+oil+pan" for a good thread on sealing oil pan leaks.

For future reference, they make NPT plugs that are allen drive, so you can get proper torque on them. That may or may not work... you'll know soon enough.

BLUE TII

iTrader: (9)

You bought an engine with an improved oil system you should look into using it instead of disabling all the improvements.

First, that large capped -10 AN fitting that is on the lower part of the front side housing is your new oil outlet to the oil cooler.

Use that and plug the old factory outlet on the front cover. That eliminates two 90 deg turns and replaces the banjo fitting right out of the oil pump so that the pump can flow at lower pressure drop.

Second, that smaller 3/8 NPT hole above it is the new oil inlet for the front stationary gear bearing, or "loop line" mod.

You put an adapter under the oil filter stand that has an outlet port and run a -8AN line from there to the new front stat gear oil inlet. This two 90 deg bends into the front stat gear bearing helping reduce pressure drop to the bearing.

The engine builder has probably also done other internal modifications that will work in conjunction with the above modifications like-

race 120psi rear oil regulator, windowed the bearings, drilled an additional oil inlet on the rear eccentric shaft journal so it has two like front journal now that flow is equalized, ported e-shaft oil passages, put on a pan baffle to de-foam the oil and other modifications.

TwinCharged RX7

iTrader: (14)

I agree and would have liked to of kept the improvements. I could have kept the large one on the bottom, but the smaller 3/8 hole i couldn't have. I like power steering and a/c. if i wanted to keep this hole i wouldn't be able to attach the plate that holds the a/c and the idle pulley. I'm hoping pineapple can track down the number on the engine to tell me exactly what was done to it. hopefully i can get it to run right after i fix the oil pan again.