Ok, here's the deal...We recently had a rotary meet here in Tulsa, Ok where I met teh owner of a performance shop. Aparenlty he has 20 years rebuilding and working with rotaries. He can do streetports, bridgeports, whatever. One thing I am not sure if he can do is tune my PFC Overall he seems like a really cool guy and I would like to have someone close by (3 miles away) that I can trust with my car.

I am thinking about using him for my rebuild. I am going to visit him and talk a bit about the rebuild and see how confident I am leaving my baby with him to perform such a delicate procedure on her.

I am not doubting he's had 20 years experience with the rotary...but how does 20 years experience with the rotary help you with the FD twin sequential system or tuning in general?

What kinda things should I ask or look for when I head down there?

 

I think the main thing would be to simply ask him how many FDs he works on a month. A HUGE point for me is if the mechanic actually owns and drives an FD himself. Personally, if I had the choice, I wouldn't pick a mechanic who didn't own an FD.

The other thing you can do is ask around your area and see if anybody else has had their FD worked on by him and what their experiences were.

 

ask him what Air fuel ratios he thinks is safe to run in boost....the answer is easy 11.2-11.5:1

tuning is not that difficult to get done fairly well.

you need nice easy baby steps as one adjusts fuel...assuming the timing maps are decent....get the fuel right down low...slowly...then move your way up...be sure to get multiple readings for each and every cel that needs to be adjusted. it can be lean at vacuum...and I left mine a bit rich up top just in case...granted I plan on tweaking that some more.

if he knows about timing and fuel ratios he can tune your car...its not rocket science if you have the datalogit and wideband....and an exhaust temp guage.

watch all the temps...intake...water...exhaust....all need to stay within normal operating ranges or your butt be toast.

do not let anyone tune without the datalogit. got me?


j

 

Yes Sir Artguy, Sir! Got You

I am going to see him in about an hour.

 

see if he can figure this out.

 

good one

 

ha uh ha uh ha...don't get it

 

No, I was just imagining me printing out your prob and saying...Fix Dis!

 

ahh ok sorry i'm a bit ssssllllloooowww, Check out his shop, you can tell alot by a mechanic by the way he keeps his shop. See what kind of special tools he has to work on rotaries. What kind of oil to run, what kind of fuel to run. See if he has basic knowledge of the sequential system (how charge relief/charge control blah blah blah works). Oh, ask him what kind of seal he uses for the oil pan

That's all I can think of for now

Jack

 

I don't know man. There is a rotary shop around here where the owner drives a turbo FD 20b and has doen a couple of conversions, always has a few Fd's ready for work among other rx7's. He's not that great but can build you a good motor. I do not take my car to him.

 

Ok, so here's the deal...I just got back and basically he knew what he was talking about...Basically I played the fool (which I am) and asked him **** like the different types of seals and why to choose one over the other. If he's worked on many FDs (mostly 2nd gen but quite a few FDs) what size injectors to upgrade to? should I bridge port or streetport (he recommended against bridgeport) what kinda oil? (redline)...

I proceeded to check out his garage (two cars at a time which means the 3-4 wk turnaround would mean my car would sleep outside while he got parts)

He quoted me $3800 for a streetport with 2mm sealse (not stock seals but some upgraded ones)

His shop is just basic with basic tools, no lift...As far as tuning he had no clue about the power FC but says his partner knows a little bit...I didn't even bother to mention datalogit. Anyway, the search continues.

Thanks anyway guys

 

What shop in Tulsa was it?

 

aagghhhh, no lift? How the hell does he work on cars for a living?

 

That's a bit high I think but not extremely. I paid like $4k a year ago but he put on all my bolt ons too...clutch, flywheel, shifter, radiator, intake, cb, hf, dp, shocks, springs, sway bar, launch kit, silicone hoses, 2 A-pillar gauges, 3 center gauges, FJO wideband, boost controller, etc. I think the actual rebuild was like $3k. I told him to go to 3 mm seals as well. I probably got a steal on the aftermarket add ons but even his base price on the engine was lower.

Dvaid

 

Fort Worth isn't too far of a drive for ya!

And think, you could have your motor almost broken in by the time you got home