Prepping a "barn find" for the track.
 

What should I replace on a car that's been left alone for a few years to get it ready for the track?

I can think of the obvious... alignment, tires, filters, fluids, pads, rotors, plugs (and maybe wires?) and anything that's loose or leaking.

But is there anything else I should replace or check before even attempting to go full throttle? Should I get the AFRs and timing checked? The car has a TD06-25G and a V-mount of some sort.

Pics, pics and MOAR PICS :bubrub:

does the car have gauges such as fuel pressure and oil temp? OEM oil pressure gauge work ok?

I'd thoroughly inspect the fuel system, from pulling the pump to inspect/replace and check/drain the tank contents to pulling and sending all fuel injectors for cleaning and flow testing.

When I bought the Stealth Bomber (10k mile BB R1) years back my buddy Theorie and I were stranded in the middle of nowhere on the side of a PA highway due to a seized original OEM fuel pump. Whacked it with the end of a ratchet and we were on our way :rofl:

Not yet. I haven't actually seen it in person yet. I'll try to remember to take some.

I'm still trying to decide whether it's worth the trouble. Gonna have to source a drivetrain and brake calipers...

you're on the right track, i'd do the first event as a shakedown, as you'll need to watch temps, and make sure stuff isn't falling off the car. after that is sorted, then you can start tuning suspension, and making it quicker.

having to find calipers is a blessing, you want to start with rebuilt ones anyways. probably also want new pillow balls in the rear, rebuilt trans is good. might as well do the brake and clutch hydraulics too. radiator is nice.

i remember this one time we were doing a 3 hour race, and the BMW that pitted next to us came in for a spark plug wire change, might as well have done the timing belt too. everyone has to pit once in a 3 hour race, but pit twice and you've lost. so pitting for a 60k service was, dumb. its avoidable and meant that they lost.

we go racing to win, and i do realize some people do it just for fun.

Turns out it's much, much better looking than I would have expected. Haven't seen it in person but I got a picture. It also turns out it still has the rear calipers and all the rotors. Apparently it was bought for the engine and only has something like 50,000 miles on the body. It also comes with a vented hood and relatively new coilovers, apparently.

Since all it's missing in terms of brakes is the front calipers, I wonder if I should get stock 17" calipers and rotors for the front... They come at a premium, so considering that and the brake balance, maybe 16" brakes are best.

Still need a diff and transmission though.

Here's the engine bay.

Full of pine needles... engine seems to have compression but wasn't able to get it on a lift.

But for 2,200 dollars I'd say it's a pretty good deal...

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...9350f2222.jpeg


https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...50a6e49dc.jpeg


https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...6c1e0a4fb.jpeg


https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx7...5493c0d4a.jpeg

sweet deal. good luck with the build!

looks good to me too, its got exactly the right JDM patina

does it have an outside? (some FD's do only have engine bays)

It's somewhere between a 96 and a 98 and it has 99-spec tailights (which actually came on everything after 96). It looks fine from the outside, but that's not what I'm concerned with. I just really, really don't want to have to replace the pillowballs and bushings.

The shocks seemed too soft for a car with 10 kg springs, but I was told by my friend who owns an FD that this was normal for street-oriented coilovers. I could push the car down by hand but it stopped moving as soon as it returned to its static position on fall four corners. But I will probably have to buy something else more track oriented if I'm going to use R-comps.

Current the interior is full of a bunch of parts... from what seems to be a resonated midpipe (but apparently not a cat.) to the driveshaft.

I'm still deciding whether or not to buy it, but I probably will since if I can get it running it will double in value pretty much instantly. Hell, the parts alone are worth that much.

Love the air pump delete method :lol:

why? the pillow balls are easy, and make the car so much better. its one of those, "why did i wait so long to change" parts

What do you mean? A lot of single turbine kits are like this, as far as I know. Unless you're referring to all those capped off lines.

Because the parts and labor are expensive.

On another note, does free play in the pillowballs directly effect handling, or is it just a noise thing? Because I imagine the car will be so loud with it's dump pipe (it's not recirculated) and no interior or sound deadening (as soon as I actually remove it) that a few clunks will seem minor.

the parts are like $300, and you can pop the pillow ball out with a long bolt and a socket, its easy.

in the scheme of FD things its cheap

They're $300 for just the rear... What about the front? How often do ball joints go out? Considering they aren't replaceable, this is a pretty serious concern...

Decent deal for $2200, even if the motor is bad. Looks like it has a lot of old-school Greddy parts. One of the first things I'd do in the engine bay is replace every one of those hoses routed over the turbo and route them away from it. It is a terrible idea to run anything over the turbo, especially the oil feel line. Even if it is stainless there is still rubber inside. It will fail and possibly cause a fire.


The stupid clear silicone hose Greddy provides with their separator tanks and intercooler kits isn't rated for pressure so I'd replace them. 3/8 push lock hose is relatively cheap and can be found at any hydraulic shop.


The brake booster hose looks done too. If it fails you will lose your brake assist.


I don't like to cap anything that sees heat or significant pressure. Pick up a blockoff plate kit and properly remove the split air pipes that have the blue caps on them.


Oh and I don't know why someone would set up the coolant system that way. You have an aftermarket filler neck with an integrated ast, yet they put in another ast by the brake booster. It looks like they are running the coolant front the rear iron to the throttle body, then to the ast, then back to the nipple behind the water pump. Get rid of that whole thing and loop the coolant hose from the rear iron to the nipple on the back of the water pump housing. Run the hose from the filler neck to the overflow. Use 3/8 push lock for all that.

As long as the current owner can find the paperwork. He's still looking for it... It will double in value as soon as I get it running, and a friend has offered to donate his used transmission (high mileage but usable) and his spare PPF. I think it comes with the stock torsen, but I wonder if I should go ahead and buy a used 2-way.

It's a TD06-25 with at atmo-vented wastegate. Apparenty the kit doesn't have that many miles on it. It also comes with all the extra gauges (Defi) I'll need, and Power FC... The V-mount is a custom unit done by a local shop (well, local to the owner... it's 2.5 hours from here).

If I spend a good $1200 on an RE Amemiya catalytic converter and whatever tuning it took, I could get it to pass emissions and get it registered even with the dump pipe (since it will never open during the test) and no air pump. Japanese emissions are pretty lax... If anything removing the roof and door liners and using pillowball suspension links are a bigger problem. As is ride height...

By over the turbo, I assume you mean routed over the turbine housing? Because the oil line has to go over the turbo at some point, right? I can probably afford to reroute things away from the hot side.

Hadn't even looked at that. I'll put it on my list.

Blockoff plate for what? The ACV?

I thought it was weird that it looked like it had two ASTs. Can I just use the filler neck with the integrated AST?

You mean regular coolant hose, right? That's not too expensive. EFI-rated hose is a lot more, of course...

BTW, is it feasible to install a diff and transmission with just jacks and jack stands? Or do you absolutely need a lift?

Finally getting around to buying this thing tomorrow. Hehe.

I'm not much of a tech guy, but an FD rolling shell for $2200 seems like a really good deal, even if it needs a new motor and transmission Have fun re-building it!

Frankly if I only wanted a rolling shell I could have got one for less than half this price, this being Japan. But if I get it running it should be worth more than I paid for it... I don't even want to think about what prepping this will actually cost. Or what it would have cost to build from the ground up (v-mount, turbo, etc.).

So I took delivery today. I'm starting to think this is going to be...costly. My racing mentor was looking at me funny for paying so much for a car that doesn't run. Oh well, as long as it's fun.

Any ideas on what I should do before even trying to turn the engine over once I get the driveline in place since the car hasn't been driven in 3-4 years? Should I inject some oil into the plug holes to keep the apex seals from marring the housings? I have heard that's a thing... Or should I just tear it down and see if anything is wrong?

It became apparent that there's no coolant in the system because the drain plug (sensor bung?) on the bottom of the radiator isn't there. I will also need to buy or build an under-cover before trying to drive it at speed, and build some stays for the bumper since support seems to have disappeared.

I thought I'd be able to use the rear calipers and rotors, but they seem to be frozen shut and rusted.

On another note, is there a way to start the car with just the transmission in place?

Note that the block may still have coolant in it. Drain is at the bottom of the middle iron on the driver's side. I'd check on that and drain if needed.

You can pull the EGI fuse to help prime the system and pre-lube everything before attempting a first start.

i would put some oil in there. and then i would spin the engine over now. put the leading plugs in, and you will hear pulses from compression, make sure there are 6 of them. if there aren't, then just pull the engine now.