OneRotor

iTrader: (3)

Right now my plans are to buy a 3rd gen with between 60,000 and 100,000 miles. If the compression is bad, but i can get the car for a steal, how hard is it to re-build a rotary in a garage? I dont' have many tools, but i'm willing to buy what i need. would it be worth my time to re-build it myself and use the money that i would have spent on paying someone to do it for me on upgrades, or should i have a professional shop do it so they can replace anything that they break while dissassembling the engine/re-building it?

FormerPorscheGuy

Your best bet as a beginer is to purchase the car and intall a remanufactured engine.

Seriously consider having a professional shop install the reman if you have never turned a wrench before.

OneRotor

iTrader: (3)

do you think buying a car with a blown engine, and then buying a reman engine and having it installed, and then use the stock blown engine to learn on would be a good idea? i want to find out as much as i can about these beasts as fast as i can when i buy it so i can perform most of the maintainance myself in the future.

Sonny

Usually you need to give the stock engine back to the supplier as a core or they nail you with a $900-$1000 core charge.

Just remember that when you replace the stock "bad" engine, there are a lot of things that you should also consider doing while the engine is apart:

1) Vacuum hoses
2) Fuel injection system (pulsation damper, injectors)
3) Cooling system
4) Ignition system

That's a short list. You'll also have the opportunity to inspect the condition of the turbos which may or may not be ready for a rebuild.

Sonny