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Is it flooded or dead?

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Old Jan 6, 2009 | 06:50 PM
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Unhappy Is it flooded or dead?

Drove the car home for the holidays ran perfect for the 2.5 hour drive. Got there shut it off and left the car sitting for one day, then went out to move the car around the driveway. Right before I shut it off I thought about it flooding and let it run for about 2 mins (never got hot but the temps did start to come up) Then let the car sit for one more day and on day #4 I went to start it and it seemed to spin over a little faster and never did want to fire. So I pull the plugs and yes they were wet so I spin it over with out the one plug from each rotor (Forgot to pull the EGI relay) warmed the plugs up and put them back in. Still didn't want to start so I pull out the compression gauge and got 60's 3 times on both rotors. So I figured the engine was dead and towed the car back to my work so I can take a closer look at it.

Now today (another 2 days later) when I pulled the plugs they were still soaked and I did pull the EGI relay and spun it over multiple times. I tried to count the chuffs and they aren't even but it only sounds likes one is missing (A co-worker counted 5 puffs on 2 different times) So my question is, can a flooded rotory lose that much compression and (if it sits long enough) can it also allow just one face to lose it all together?

I'm already prep'd for the worst (not the first engine to go) but it just seems odd to me.

Welcome to any input you guys have.
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Old Jan 6, 2009 | 07:00 PM
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Originally Posted by Time 4 Rebuild
Drove the car home for the holidays ran perfect for the 2.5 hour drive. Got there shut it off and left the car sitting for one day, then went out to move the car around the driveway. Right before I shut it off I thought about it flooding and let it run for about 2 mins (never got hot but the temps did start to come up) Then let the car sit for one more day and on day #4 I went to start it and it seemed to spin over a little faster and never did want to fire. So I pull the plugs and yes they were wet so I spin it over with out the one plug from each rotor (Forgot to pull the EGI relay) warmed the plugs up and put them back in. Still didn't want to start so I pull out the compression gauge and got 60's 3 times on both rotors. So I figured the engine was dead and towed the car back to my work so I can take a closer look at it.

Now today (another 2 days later) when I pulled the plugs they were still soaked and I did pull the EGI relay and spun it over multiple times. I tried to count the chuffs and they aren't even but it only sounds likes one is missing (A co-worker counted 5 puffs on 2 different times) So my question is, can a flooded rotory lose that much compression and (if it sits long enough) can it also allow just one face to lose it all together?

I'm already prep'd for the worst (not the first engine to go) but it just seems odd to me.

Welcome to any input you guys have.
Sounds to me like classic flooding symptoms. Probably exacerbated by spark plugs that have been run for quite a while, and a motor that may be a bit low on compression. You will need new plugs for sure. You may also have to follow the more extensive deflooding procedures often noted on this forum.

Here's a useful thread: https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/help-me-get-car-started-756952/

Most useful in the above thread may be post #2.
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Old Jan 6, 2009 | 07:12 PM
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Thanks for the reply, I've got it sitting in the shop with all 4 plugs out right now. Tomorrow I'll be throwin in new plugs and I'll grab alittle ATF before I try again.

Thanks again
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 08:52 AM
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Yeah, it really sounds like it is flooded. One little trick I do if the unfortuneate case occurs of having to turn the car off after it has not run for very long is rev the motor to about 5k and then shut the car off. Basically, just punch the throttle right before you turn the key off. Using that little trick I learned I have never had the car flood even after just moving the car around in the driveway (though I try at all cost to keep from doing that).
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 08:57 AM
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^^to add to this, I keep the throttle wide open as I shut the car down and the revs come down.

Also, if the car is stone cold, I might rev it to 3500ish rpms, not any higher.
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 09:40 AM
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You are fine, do the deflood procedure right before installing the new plugs. ATF should not be necessary, you will get a little black smoke on startup and maybe a back fire, when it starts just rev it up to about 3k for about 10 seconds and it should be right back to normal.
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 09:48 AM
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do what djseven said. And you can never loose just one chamber
so I'm sure there all there
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 10:03 AM
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Originally Posted by PortedRotorTuner
do what djseven said. And you can never loose just one chamber
so I'm sure there all there
Actually you can if a side seal gets carbon locked or damaged.

Dan
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 10:16 AM
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Originally Posted by GoodfellaFD3S
^^to add to this, I keep the throttle wide open as I shut the car down and the revs come down.

Also, if the car is stone cold, I might rev it to 3500ish rpms, not any higher.
I guess I wasn't very clear on leaving the throttle open, I apoloize. And I definately agree with Goodfella on the temperature.
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 10:17 AM
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Originally Posted by Chadwick
Actually you can if a side seal gets carbon locked or damaged.

Dan

We'll yeah I guess your right there. I just have never seen that happen in 13 years I've been in them. But I'm sure its happened plenty.
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 08:35 PM
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Well the deflooding didn't work, Pulled the plugs ,spun it over, let it sit over night in a heated shop, spun it this morning then put in new plug and she didn't start.

Whilst spinning it toady I payed special attention to the rhythm of the motor and it's not right, something has happened internally.
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 09:01 PM
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I would suggest following this procedure exactly before assuming there is internal damage.

Originally Posted by Mahjik
The emissions stuff won't stop the car from starting. Some of those codes will cause the car to run in limp mode, but they won't stop the car from starting. I would start by trying to get the car to fire up. Here's what I would do first:

1. Remove current spark plugs
2. Remove EGI fuse
3. Crank motor for 10-15 seconds
4. Clean area around spark plug holes
5. Squirt a little ATF in the lower spark plug holes
6. Install new spark plugs
7. Re-install EGI fuse
8. Start the car

See if it fires after that. Make sure the battery is completely charged. Even with a good battery, trying the crank the car a few times will put a significant drain on it.

Also, make sure you have some decent gas in it. If the gas has been sitting in it for a while, jack up the car, undo the drain bolt on the bottom of the gas tank to drain it, put 2-4 gallons of fresh fuel in with a bottle of fuel system/injector cleaner.

Let us know what happens!
I'm not sure if you tried already but the ATF will definitely help to lubricate and build some compression temporarily to help get it started. Just don't put too much in there... Also this page has some good info on flooding prevention.
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Old Jan 7, 2009 | 11:21 PM
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Compression tester is $20.00 at a local parts store and only takes 5 mins to perform. Make sure your battery is charged as it is likely slightly drained after several failed attempts for the car to start.
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Old Jan 8, 2009 | 12:22 AM
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Originally Posted by PortedRotorTuner
do what djseven said. And you can never loose just one chamber
so I'm sure there all there
I chipped a seal and had two chambers that had 120psi and one with 0, GoodfellaFD3S and Rotary Experiment Seven (Rich and Ihor) did the compression test and built my new motor (they did a great job I must say).
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Old Jan 8, 2009 | 08:04 AM
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The car was on a charger the whole time I was trying to unflood it, and I did all 8 of those steps as well as letting it sit over night with the plugs out. I wish I knew why only one chamber doesn't have compression but I guess I'll find out after I get the motor out.
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Old Jan 8, 2009 | 09:48 AM
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First off it is damn near impossible to blow up a rotary by just shutting it off, so if it was running good before you turned it off than I doubt that is the problem. One thing I noticed in the 8 steps posted is no mention of pulling the fuel pump relay and pressing the accelerator pedal fully to the floor while cranking during the de-flooding. This does two things; it allows the motor to ingest copious amounts of air accelerating the evacuation of the excess fuel and removes the chance that a leaking injector is part of the culprit.

I suggest cranking the motor 4 or 5 times for about 10 seconds each with the spark plugs out, EGI and Fuel pump relay removed and the accelerator fully depressed. Then install a new set of leading plugs and plug everything back in that was disconnected. Before turning on the key press the accelerator pedal fully to the floor then crank the engine. When she sounds like she is trying to start remove your foot from the pedal. It may take a couple of tries before she runs.

Pressing the accelerator pedal and holding it to the floor while turn on the key and cranking shuts off the fuel pump.

If everything else is in order a rotary can start and run even if one rotor has zero compression. Don’t ask me how I know .

Hope this helps,
Dan
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