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Greetings from Virginia and welcome to my project build. Hope you enjoy and please feel free to provide any constructive feedback.
MyBackground:
I will keep my background short since we are all here for the cars, but I am a car guy born and raised. Being born in the mid-80's I was just starting to drive when F&F launched and it gave me cars to admire that weren't just the muscle car shows and drag races I grew up going to. I have been fortunate enough to own many cars I enjoyed from an '87 E30 to '90 240sx to '00 C230 and a bunch of others but no Mazda or rotary experience. Other than that I have three beautiful daughters who monopolize most of my time, and have eaten up my car budget for years do I am ready.
The Car:
All this began nearly 3 years ago when my younger cousin moved into a new house and in the neighbors driveway sat two vehicles a 1987 Mercedes 560SL and a 1993 Mazda RX-7, both in non-running condition based on what the neighbor said. The cars belonged to a former roommate of his, who had been asked to remove the vehicles on several occasions. Fast forward to this past April; the neighbor reached out to my cousin and let him know that he and his wife were moving and the landlord needed the vehicles gone, so after some quick paperwork and a few bucks for finder fees, we were in possession of a FD and the Mercedes with no keys to either (we popped the door lock and damaged the seal so look for that in a future repair post) . Note I did not say owned, the tow company who moved the vehicle agreed to file for the titles, and after several months, we finally decided to apply ourselves and the abandoned process was started.
When I purcha...errr, I mean removed the vehicles with no exchange of funds (just incase any DMV tax people are reading bahaha), the fact that we did not have the keys made things much more difficult, and it only got worse from there; trying to move the car with no key and no tow truck is a nightmare. I scoured the internet and had little to no luck finding lock sets that weren't outrageous, and with no title I expected little luck at the Mazda dealer. I work at a Ford dealer and we have a vendor who cuts keys off VIN's so he offered to help and said he would cut a key from the VIN but it would be nearly $100. That evening as I am removing the garbage that has been collecting in this car for 13+ years, my cousin and I decided to pull the door lock cylinder and take it to a local locksmith the following day, so for $35 he cut the key, and made two duplicates.
Once I had keys in hand I was stoked and immediately went and hooked cables up to the car to see how many miles were on the car, and also to confirm that the ignition was the same as the door. SUCCESS... sort of:the lights both popped up and both bulbs worked, the gauges lit up showing 93k and a windshield wiper fired up when the key was turned. Thankfully I know enough not to attempt cranking as every indication I have says the car has sat since 06 and been towed when moved, so I unhooked the jumper cables and forgot to take a picture. I also pulled the CarFax, only to discover the car was one owner, so for nearly next to nothing I came into a cleanish body, non-running 93k one owner FD and a Mercedes to go with it.
Tuesday, after weeks of waiting for the Virginia abandoned vehicle process to finish, I received the title to the car and can now say I officially own it. Now that the title is in hand I can finally justify spending money to restore this beautiful lady. The car has some mods, but I am not sure how many are salvageable, for instance as you can see in the pics, the intake needs two new filter cartridges or a new CAI all together as I can only imagine how much hot air this one sucks in. I also have a purple ecu (not the one pictured but identical), which I have found a number of people who said this ecu destroys cars. Is this due to the ECU itself or the tunes that people were loading at the time? The car also has what appear to be white adjustable coilovers but I didn't see a brand name.
Plans:
I hope to do an OEM + build regarding both the interior and exterior. I was super pleased when I got my first look at the car originally that it had the OEM style bumper and OEM wheels (although I understand I may need different wheels as I understand factory ones break under corner load. I hope to track the car at Summit Point from time to time. Can someone confirm?) When I got the car the interior was trashed but under that trash seemed to be mostly there with factory seats and gauges, but a few broken pieces and trim panels. I hope to keep the interior clean and original, maybe with some rarer parts sprinkled through out but nothing really set in stone.
For the Exterior, I would like to keep the OEM look but am still slightly torn between the 99 front bumper, or wing, or both vs leaving it with the OEM 93 style which is the route I am currently leaning toward. The body does needs some dents repaired and a new paint job or wrap. I will most likely leave the car black but may change my mind.
Performance, as stated the car has some mods, but I don't know what exactly. I hope to do a 350-400 whp build. I intend to tear down and rebuild the 13b, is there a go to kit brand or level for rebuilds. I have searched but found everything from a few hundred to 2500 for rebuild kits. I also plan to look at sequentials, maybe BNR but don't plan to swap to a single. I also hope to be a moderate track suspension set-up, something that can be tracked on weekends but be comfortable-ish for a few hour short trip. I am absolutely open to suggestions but am looking to do most of the work myself, and trying to keep the budget reasonable, but understand quality costs more than junk.
The Name- this part is more personal, but I only name cars that mean something to me, and love hearing how people came up with their own car names, so I will happily share the meaning of mine. I debated back and forth regarding names, but had a few key pieces of info to work with; the car strikes me as female, I wanted something beautiful and simple like the car itself, and if I could come up with a name with Japanese heritage even better. This led me to research different bad-a** Japanese females. It was then I stumbled across the Onna Bugeisha, a class of female samurai in feudal Japan. As I mentioned earlier, I have three daughters, with each I pitched the name Ana, and my ex-wife shot down the idea. Our divorce just finalized in June so I am finally getting my Ana, even if its spelled a little different. I also figured what better fitting name, than a class of women who were beautiful, civilized BAMFs.
Nice! Looks to be an R1 car with the dual oil coolers, suede seats, no sunroof, no cruise, and strut bar.
The suspension looks like Tokico shocks, probably with some sort of aftermarket springs. Most likely not on coilovers.
The intakes are from HKS. Not sure what the exhaust is, it probably has a logo on the side if you clean it off - probably HKS or Apexi. Nice exhaust.
Sounds like the car was probably modded in the late 90s. The PFS Purple computer, which it sounds like you have, was popular back then. It's a VERY basic computer and definitely not the way you want to go. Same goes for the HKS intake - that was one of only a handful that were available back then, the foam filters don't filter well and it's not the best design. The exhaust is probably a good one from the looks of it.
Obviously the car has sat for a LONG time. You will need to carefully go through the systems of the car. Quite possibly you have a rusted gas tank and horrible gas in the tank as well. The car will definitely need a coolant and oil change. The possibility of the engine being bad is VERY high - most likely that's why the car sat so long.
Get it cleaned up, go through it, and see what all you have. Post pics if you have questions.
Nice! Looks to be an R1 car with the dual oil coolers, suede seats, no sunroof, no cruise, and strut bar.
The suspension looks like Tokico shocks, probably with some sort of aftermarket springs. Most likely not on coilovers.
The intakes are from HKS. Not sure what the exhaust is, it probably has a logo on the side if you clean it off - probably HKS or Apexi. Nice exhaust.
Sounds like the car was probably modded in the late 90s. The PFS Purple computer, which it sounds like you have, was popular back then. It's a VERY basic computer and definitely not the way you want to go. Same goes for the HKS intake - that was one of only a handful that were available back then, the foam filters don't filter well and it's not the best design. The exhaust is probably a good one from the looks of it.
Obviously the car has sat for a LONG time. You will need to carefully go through the systems of the car. Quite possibly you have a rusted gas tank and horrible gas in the tank as well. The car will definitely need a coolant and oil change. The possibility of the engine being bad is VERY high - most likely that's why the car sat so long.
Get it cleaned up, go through it, and see what all you have. Post pics if you have questions.
Glad you are saving it!
Dale
Thats wonderful! I have a pretty good knowledge of how the rotary works and the RX-7 basics, but as far as trims and stuff, I am mostly lost.
My next steps with the car hopefully are to pull the bottom plugs and put MMO in and see if I can hand turn the engine, if it turns freely. If things go well, drain the fuel, change the filter and maybe go ahead and upgrade the pump, as well as flush the rest of the fluids oil change etc, since I am sure the coolant is acidic. I have read several of these "Attempting to start an RX-7 that has set for _____ years" and hopefully check all the right boxes to make sure I am not messing anything up. Once that's done try to turn the car over.
If it doesn't turn, or if I can't hear compression, I plan to go ahead and tear the engine down. I am thinking maybe a half bridge and am curious if the first owner ever ported so opening the case would answer that question.
As far as the intake, I will look into a nice quality CAI. I also noticed I didn't attach ecu pic but yes it is indeed a PFS Purple. I look forward to resurrecting her, and figured I would be in for a full rebuild of everything after sitting for 13 years, so I am prepared but can always hope for the best lol. I definitely want to keep the car close to the way it rolled of the line, minus the power level of course.
Do you know how long the car has sat? Also, can you get up with the previous owner to learn anything about why it sat? He may also have other information about the car.
I would start with trying to get the car to run. Drain and refill the oil, gas, and coolant. Pull the fuel pump assembly and check it and the gas tank out. Get a NEW battery for the car. Disable spark (usually pulling EGI fuse will do it) and crank the engine over with the starter until you have oil pressure. Put the EGI fuse back in and see if you can get it to start.
At some point you should do a compression test - doesn't have to be a fancy one, just figure out how solid the motor is. If you are wanting to really build the car up I'd just plan on pulling and rebuilding the motor, but it can help to see if you can get it running as-is - that will give you a chance to go over everything, see what it needs, see what works and what doesn't, etc. That way you have a starting point of reference and aren't trying to figure out if the problem you're troubleshooting is from pulling/reinstalling the motor or if it was already there.
Keep at it! There are a LOT of resources out there to help you out.
Do you know how long the car has sat? Also, can you get up with the previous owner to learn anything about why it sat? He may also have other information about the car.
I would start with trying to get the car to run. Drain and refill the oil, gas, and coolant. Pull the fuel pump assembly and check it and the gas tank out. Get a NEW battery for the car. Disable spark (usually pulling EGI fuse will do it) and crank the engine over with the starter until you have oil pressure. Put the EGI fuse back in and see if you can get it to start.
At some point you should do a compression test - doesn't have to be a fancy one, just figure out how solid the motor is. If you are wanting to really build the car up I'd just plan on pulling and rebuilding the motor, but it can help to see if you can get it running as-is - that will give you a chance to go over everything, see what it needs, see what works and what doesn't, etc. That way you have a starting point of reference and aren't trying to figure out if the problem you're troubleshooting is from pulling/reinstalling the motor or if it was already there.
Keep at it! There are a LOT of resources out there to help you out.
Dale
Dale, thanks for all the help. To be honest, my understanding and all of the little clues (last registration, inspection, and mileage reported etc) point to the car having sat since 2006, which I understand was due to a blown motor. The previous owner has been much less than helpful since it was an abandoned car that he refused to come pick up, and I was the one to get the abandoned title, so I doubt he will be much help. When I took possession of the car, I expected the worst and for the motor to need fully rebuilt, which I am confident I can most likely manage.
My next plans were very much in line with your advice, so hopefully I should get some answers sooner than later. Based on everything I have seen in my research I am lead to believe that if I can get the car to turn over by hand, I should be able to hear compression as I turn the rotors, would you be able to confirm?
If I am able to hear the strong puffs of compression, I am going to go ahead and run through your list and try to get the engine to turn with the starter after replacing the fluids, spark plugs etc.
If I don't hear compression, if I hear uneven compressions from the rotors or if I hear weak compression, I will most likely go ahead and tear the motor down to inspect the seals, housing, rotors etc. and begin the rebuild. I have seen a few video examples and it seems like you can hear the difference, would you agree?
Lastly, based on most of the things I have seen the fuel pump seems pretty easy so when I pull that would it be best to go ahead and upgrade to meet future needs? I have seen several people say Supra pumps work well, but I don't know if this is still relevant advice or not?
Thank you in advance for all this. Its amazing to have so many resources and helpful people, I was on the Mercedes forum and those guy were nice enough but getting actual advice was sometimes difficult.
To be honest with you, I would probably just go ahead and pull the motor to start rebuilding it. Evidence points toward it being blown and that's why it was parked and with it sitting for so long that even if you did spend the time to get it running you'd just be trying to get a blown motor to start.
For the fuel pump, I'd go with the Walbro. Banzai Racing sells them, they are reasonably priced and easy to install and have a lot of headroom for mods. Fuel pump is pretty easy to get to, it is accessed from the top, you don't have to drop the tank or anything.
If you don't want to go the rebuild route you can get a new Mazda crate engine for a fair price. If you've never rebuilt a rotary before I would probably outsource the engine, either buying a new short block or sending yours out to be rebuilt.
09-19-19, 02:49 PM
