well after 8000 miles of happy motoring on the engine i built for the RX7 i had the misfortune of coming across a very cheap black one with a blown engine (had you all going there didnt i? haha)

Here are the pics from day 1

The start:



the end



and what happens when you dont have an impact gun and have to remove a free spinning pulley:



Next is drain fluids, disconnect coolant and oil cooler pipes, exhaust, pull ECU cable, undo engine mounts and trans and out she comes.

 

had me going...how much was the black one?

and DAMN son, 8000mi!!! I rebuilt mine two years ago and only have 13k.

 

i dont get it ??? that was urs u blown or u found it and are just rebuilding it?

 

looks like fun

 

...and then think about the price of fuel over there...DAMN son!!!

 

I paid 1600 for the black one, so i guess a touch over $3000. My red car i rebuilt over the winter and have done 8000 since - do you remember my rebuild thread or am i confusing you? lol

So yeah, this one is still going strong:



And its the black one im now rebuilding.

Mind you, i do need to remove the engine from the red one AGAIN (sump leak, engine mount and check wear on my eccentric shaft bearings...i know i know shoulda done it a rebuild time)

 

RIGHT HAND DRIVE!!! i like

 

Whats the obsession with RHD man? lol i don't get it! I Don't drool over LHD cars - what is it?

 

Probably because it's different and not too many about. I don't get it either.

 

Which is why you should zip the pulley nut off before you remove the belts

My engine removal goes like this:

Remove battery

Remove p/s pulley nut with impact gun

...everything else.

 

I tried that one, it still doesnt come off - the belt doesnt hold it tight enough. I tried an oil filter strap wrench (how i did it with my first rebuild) with a leather strap to stop the chain cracking the pulley, it bent the darn tool! So next i put bolts on the place for the factory SST and locked it with a long screwdriver agianst the inner fender, it snapped the screwdriver. Then i locked it with a breaker bar and it snapped the plastic pulley lol. The pulley then came off the metal insert, i grabbed that with some mole grips, jammed it against the tensioner and finally got it off that way.

 

Sounds like an over-night soaking of a good penetrating oil would have been your best bet.

 

Yeah your right. But im too impatient for that :P

 

Well i tried to take some pictures of my day 2 action, but taking photos of a black car in a dark ish garage REALLY doesnt make out well. The photos are so shitty im not even going to upload them. But basically yesterday i got the car jacked up, drained fluids, disconnected coolant pipes, oil pipes, fuel lines and then pulled the ECU.

Cant be bothered to do anything on the car today, i have a date tonight so don't want to dirty up my finger nails! But should be back on it tomorrow.

 

That's what work gloves are for...

 

Jam a rag on the right side of the pulley so that if you spin the belt (obviously leave attached) counter-clockwise it will grab the rag and create more resistance. If you don't have an impact, use a wrench with the longest handle you have and 'hit' it with your hand with quick slaps to simulate the impact gun. Or just go buy an electric impact.

 

Never thought of that dude, good tip!!

more today, havent had chance to work on it since day 2.

Auto's are different to manuals and a bit of a bitch to get the engine out!



took downpipe off with engine in car this time, much easier!






Torque converter

 

I've enjoyed the chronicle of your first build (the red car) and I look forward to seeing this one. Thanks for taking the time.

Considering the tight confines of your work space I think your work is admirable.

David

 

Thanks man for your kind words Dont often get alot more space than that in england!

 

Wow, I guess I'm glad things didn't work out with my ex, because I definitely wouldn't be happy with a confined work area...

 

Todays works...im pleased with todays progress reall, i managed to get from a complete engine to this:



In only 3.5 hours!

Heres how it happened...

First victim was the turbos:







Play in the shafts is minimal












then the coils and rats nest:





after that, the AC brackets, various pipework etc etc...





Leaves me with a garage that looks like this!:








I also broke one of my OMP lines Does anyone know a good place to get an alternative? does anyone also know what this is? My 92 manual doesnt have this sensor...Its on the coolant neck



Tomorrow i might crack on and tear the engine down completely, or clear up what i have right now. Depends how i feel to be honest!

 

P.s would you believe ALL of the above photos came off my camera phone? (just the last update) Its a sony ericson K800i. 3.2 mega pixel camera, its awesome!

 

That sensor on your coolant neck (I'd call it the thermostat housing) looks to be aftermarket. My 1994 doesn't have any sensor there:





Nice camera-phone, by the way.
-s-

 

Thanks for the diagrams dude, my 92 doesnt have that sensor - however this is an auto, is yours? It may be just an auto thing...

Thanks for the compliments on the camera phone :P

 

I like your approach! Just looking at the pics gives me ideas on how to work my engine swap in my very small garage.

Since you already have an FD I'm wondering if you considered putting an LSx motor in this one. Although I don't know how available LSx motors are in the UK. Flame me if you want, that's not why I asked; if you've ridden in an FD/LSx you know why so many ppl are doing that motor swap.

Either way you go with your project -> Good Luck!!!