Not much of an update on my end. My wife and I just bought a house (Close Mar 18th) and with the new born its hard to find any time to dedicate to my car.

I did get my engine back from Howard. I don't have many photos of what was found but here is a quick write-up:

When Howard and I tore the engine down in Oct we found that the rear rotor had an apex seal stuck and it was not making any contact with the housing. This of course made everything unbalance and wore out my rotor and main bearings. I had to have the crank shaft polished and Howard replaced all of the bearings.

Howard did think that this could be a clearance issue but also found that there was quite a bit of "build up" in the primary intake ports as well as on the rotors. I wont dive into what is causing this issue other than we suspect that premixing with E85 is breaking down the premix causing this buildup. Needless to say I will be converting to 91 pump with 100% Meth.

Howard and I did work out how much would be owed for the second rebuild as I felt it was a warranty issue as the apex seal was pinched in the groove that was clearance. I wont give details into the specifics of what I paid and what he covered, but I feel it was fair, for the most part.

The engine is back in my garage with a goal of having it back in the car by the end of the month to ensure I dont loose anything in the move. Next I will be saving for a AEM Meth kit and tuning. Fingers crossed that I can finally break that 500whp mark!

Powder coat is looking awesome:


New DEI Titanium heat wrap, double wrapped.

 

The engine is back where it belongs!

There is quite a bit to do yet. I need to remake the hot side intercooler pipes as well as down pipe for the new turbo. But its nice to have it back in ether way!

 

Some minor progress.

I have been busy moving into my new house over the past couple of months. I also had a delay due to a connection issue with my computer and the ECU. I ended up buying a refurbished old computer that had a serial port that corrected my issue.

I dropped in my v-mount and of course it was miles away from fitting up to the new turbo. So I modified the turbo and the inlet pipe of the intercooler and it corrected my issue.







Then got the end tanks of the intercooler and the compressor housing powder-coated to match everything.



Of course the car would not start so some friends and I had to load it on the trailer and push it into my new garage.


My friend and I spent about 4-5 hours last week trying to diag the non start issue. It had spark and was getting plenty of fuel... to much fuel. I did switch from E85 to 93 pump, so I am thinking it is an issue with the base map. I also wanted to make sure I didnt have a stuck injector so I sent all 4 to get cleaned and flow tested.

I have been really playing with the idea of an LS swap and this is now when I really started sourcing parts. I am still up in the air about it but we will see how thing go when I get my corrected base map and injectors back.

 

If you are serious about going LS, I'd at least consider finishing this and getting it right. You aren't far off and it looks like a nice car overall.

If it's working properly, you can put it for sale for a decent price, and while you wait for the right buyer to come along (a non lowballer) you get to enjoy the car. Then if it sells, you can buy a roller and do the swap yourself or wait for a deal on one already swapped.

I just feel like you've put too much into this car to now go and swap it. Might be easier and better financially to get it right and then sell if you want a LS.

 

I have made pros and cons lists, talked to a lot of my friends, and weighed all my options... and have to agree with you. After everything I have been through with this car I am going to see it though and make sure its right.

I want at least 400 rwhp but I am not sure that can be done without Meth Inj... which I really dont want to run for multiple reasons.

I love this car, and would most likely part out the build if I went LS and use the body I have as I have redone everything on this car other than paint.

 

Is Meth Inj really necessary for 400rwhp?

 

Thats a good question. I have my reservations about my tuner. He had a hard time squeezing 400 RWHP out of my setup with my old turbo and E85. Now he is saying going back to pump will net 350ish and would not be safe without Meth.

 

If your tuner can't get 400whp without meth then get a new tuner. Turbo's are more efficient than ever, you have a good intercooler setup. No reason why you need meth for 400. It's been done for years and years.

Does meth and/or water injection make things more reliable over the long run, usually yes. But it's not a must have for only 400whp.

 

I was about to say the same thing.

And e85 and oil don't mix .

You need to have some additive from what I've heard. It's not like regular gas.

 

This was the reason for my switch from E85 to 93 pump. I had about 900 miles on my engine and already had buildup in the intake ports from an issue with Premix and E85 not mixing.

I also agree that 400hp should be no issue at all with my setup. I have always just build E85 cars in the past so I never worried much about detonation. Switching to pump scares me.

 

Well I'm glad it sounds like you've decided to keep the rotary in until your build is done. It would have been a shame to somehow miss seeing your car before you go LS. I'm another one who doesn't have anything against LS swaps, but I too wanted a chance to play with the rotary first.

You should come down and get tuned with us here in April/May, it would be fun to meet up.

 

Lord Bro, are you going to Elite Rotary to get tuned by Nelson?

 

I sure am.
It sounds like it should be a good time what with all the cars and meeting new people. Maybe I'll get a chance to see how people's bucket seats fit in the car...
Word is there will be a BBQ going with hot dogs and burgers too. I did verify that anyone is welcome to show up to hang out, it's not just a closed event only for those getting a tune.

 

I had an appointment set to get it tuned but have my sons baptism on Sunday so I will have family in town. I am working with Nelson on getting a basemap so I can at least get my car started. I am really pissed that I can make it, Sal sounds like a great guy and it would be a good time to meet other people.

What day are you going?

 

Car is looking beautiful. I'm excited for the pump gas results.

The blacked out motor in a red bay looks so sexy and aggressive (but I may be biased haha)

 

I am signed up for April 21st, which is a Thursday. I believe he's tuning the 21st-23rd, but I wanted to make this happen as soon as I could
Depending on how busy I am that weekend I'd still like to go to the session on the 23rd for fun.

 

I was thinking about the 21st as well so I could get it done prior to my family coming to town... then I got the pricing. Its a bit rich for my blood right now after closing on my hours 3 weeks ago!

 

Thank you! To be honest, when I was considering the LS swap, every morning when I walked out to go to work and looked at my car with the hood popped I questioned if I wanted to do it. All the blood, sweat, tears, cursing, and money I have sunk into that engine bay would have been for nothing! I LOVE the look of the wrinkle black powder coat with the red bay.

 

Well its official, I am staying rotary... at least until this engine lets go.

I spoke with Sal at Elite Rotary Shop in Chicago and set up a tuning appointment for the 21st. Honestly he got me excited about my build again and I can not wait to see what the results are.

On another note, I worked on the car over the weekend and was able to get it to fire up for about 30 seconds while nursing the throttle. It died and I have not been able to get it running again. I was messing with the Startup map when this happened which confirms what I thought, Beyond Redline Performance base map is garbage.

It is like pulling teeth to get anything out of that shop so needless to say they will never be seeing another dime of my money nor any of my friends.

I have a friend that is great with RB engines that is coming over on Thursday to see if he can rework my map to at least get my car started before the tuning session.

Wish me luck!

 

What ecu do you have. I'm sure someone could send you a base map for at least starting the car. You don't have anything too far out of the norm. I'd call a couple well known shops and see if they'll send you something. No reason to struggle with getting the car to start and idle.

 

good to hear and good luck

 

Indeed , glad to hear

 

That would be awesome! I run AEM V1. I have a half day from work tomorrow to try to get it started or I have to push it on the trailer as they are pouring my driveway Friday. Nothing like coming down to crunch time!

My email is KJBlack2367@gmail.com

Thank you!

 

Wouldn't Nelson be able to get you a base map?

 

Well I wont be needing that anymore.

Yesterday my friend and I were working on the car and he found (on this forum) a thread stating that RX7's need 15-25 degrees of timing on startup... We added timing (It was set at 10 degrees) and it fired right up. After some tweaking to the startup enrichment table it idled like a dream. So needless to say it was a tuning issue and after 2+ days of checking and rechecking everything it came down to adding so advancement to the startup map.

I cant wait to get it tuned next week!

All tucked away at my shop waiting to get down to Elite Rotary for tuning!