Just a quick one see if someone can help a little. Rebuilt engine installed back in the engine bay, just noticed that it seems to be pointing a little off centre. When i look from the front straight down the the transmission the engine is pointing a little to the right. Now either this is normal (which i dont think it is),, or something is mounted up wrong.
Ive checked the engine mounts and they are in the holes correctly , the transmission is all bolted up correctly.
Now the things that im thinking are 1) when ive been lifting the engine ive some how damaged the power plant frame,, maybe twisted or 2) because i bolted up the engine mounts securely before installing the engine they have been bolted slightly twisted and so they are pushing the engine over a little (im thinking of slacking the bolts and see if the engine shifts then re-tighten)

please guys any ideas??

 

If the motor mounts are installed correctly and mounted to the subframe correctly this really can not happen unless the subframe itself is twisted.

 

the motor mounts could be bad they may have been tweaked somehow. are they still the origianl mounts?

 

post a picture

 

Ill get a picture later on today,, but i swear its 100% pointing off to the right and i never remember it been like this before. Like i said the only thing i can think of is that the motor mounts might need to settle into a uniform position, so im gonna try loosen all the bolts where the mounts attached to the block , rock the motor then re-tighten and see if it sits better

Also just to confirm its not an optical illusion i tape measure from the crank centre bolt to the bulk head left and right and its like almost an inch extra to the right

When removing the engine i used a jack under the gearbox so that the engine could come out at a good angle,, theres no way ive damaged how the gearbox mounts or something???

 

Just for reference i beleive from looking that the sub frame is 100% perfect. and the motor mounts all looked fine and are original mazda items.

 

pics please check,, ive attached a 4th picture of someone else engine bay,,,and that looks slightly offset aswell so maybe its suppose to be like that??

please can maybe some one check there,, try measuring from the centre of the front pulley to each bulk head?

 

Mine's offset like that too. So was my old FD. I figured that was normal.

 

ahhh brilliant digdug,,,, can anyone else confirm that what im seeing is normal,, i figured that mazda would have had the engine bang straight in the middle ,strange.

 

Seems to me that would put a little stress on a lot of stuff....

 

I remember reading a thread a while back talking about alignment of the engine and drivetrain. Something to the effect of loosening the engine mounts from the subframe and loosening the PPF from the trans, and realigning everything. I think it was somebody with an aftermarket shifter trying to get it centered in the tunnel opening. I never bothered with this on my car.

 

mmm interesting anyone else to confirm this?

 

Mine is also off a little like that and it has newer than original motor mounts as it has been rebuilt twice since purchased in 1992.
My gear shift placement seems centered to me.

 

looks a little off, I'd look into adjusting the PPF

 

Brilliant, my gearshifter is in the middle,,,i beleive my engine must have always been this way and ive probably only just noticed. Ill leave it for now and adjust my power plant frame in the near future. thanks guys

 

i dont know about the fd specifically, but the 1st gen engine is offset to the left side of the car slightly, its for exhaust clearance on the RHD cars.

note that its offset, so the shifter is centered, but the nose of the engine points a little left

 

Just a tip:

It's a hell of a lot easier to put that motor together when it's out of the car. If you put all the accessories, vac lines, oil lines, sensors, harnesses, water pump, etc, etc on the engine before you put it in the car, you will save yourself a lot of time and busted knuckles.

 

+1 on that

and a lot easier to install it from underneath as well (with the crossmember and gearbox etc) but u need a lift

 

I believe my FD's engine is like that as well and all of my previous FCs have been like that. I think its safe to say thats normal since my buddies 1st gen RX-7 is like this too. I remember the first time I noticed that on a TurboII I had a few years ago. I was breaking my head trying to figure out why the engine was off center

 

Mine is like that too.

 

My engine is off just like the ones pictured. But I believe this is a problem.
Reasons:
1- when installing my B&M short throw shifter I had to pry the transmission over to the driver side in order to install the two right side bolts because the shifter wasnt centered. Shifter was sitting closer to the e-brake.

2- When installing my V-Mount intercooler kit from RotaryExtreme the intercooler pipe coming off of the greddy elbow was a bit too long (1/2 inch). So I had to angle the pipe in order for me to install the t-bolt clamps. This is causing the intercooler pipe to rub on the hood insulation....probably due to the motor moving around under load.

3- When installing my A-Spec turbo the space for the downpipe is very tight. Right now my downpipe is just touching the body of the car and also for the transmission shield to bolt back up I have to trim/grind off part of it to fit with the downpipe next to it.

I feel if I was able to rotate the motor just and bit to the passenger side or so that the motor is pointing completely straight that would fix all my problems. That would center the shifter making the shifter bolts accessable with out having to pry the transmssion towards the driver side. Increasing the distance from the Greddy elbow to the intercooler, so that I dont have to angle the pipe to fit because its a touch too long......thus no more pipe rubbing on hood. And last but not lease it would free up just a bit more space where the downpipe goes so that I dont have to trim up the transmission cover and the downpipe wont be resting on the body of the car.

Then again this might be normal and the motor is suppose to sit off centered. Which means A-Specs downpipe is off by alittle and RotaryExtreme's intercooler pipe is off as well. But that doesnt explaing why the shifter coming out of the trasmission is no coming out of hole in the body of the car centered. Unless B&M designed their shift slightly crooked.
Once again my engine sits just like the one pictured and with stock stuff on it I never noticed any problems. But once I started modding these are the things I noticed. I am right now in the process of try to figure out how to "straighten the motor out" so that I can fix these last issues with the car......plus I am going to be down there fixing a dented oil pan so might as well fix this "problem" while I am at it.

Sorry for the long post but need input and help from others.
Also is the front subframe adjustable?...Could I loosen it and maybe move it 1cm in any direction?

 

Since this thread started, the FDs that I have seen at our Houston Club meet were also a little off centered. It must be normal!

 

Mine is by no means that far off. I've pulled the shifter out of my car a couple times, and never had an issue like that. CJ

 

it must be slightly off center,
If it was straight and the driveshaft was straight then the u joints will not move enough to get lubrication yada yada

 

Well when I removed my stock shifter its not a problem at all. Just when removing and reinstalling the B&M short throw shifter the two passenger side bolts wont clear, do remember that the B&M shifter also replaces the top cover on the transmission as well.