1979 RX7 SA w/ an fb 12a Revival
04-21-14, 01:19 AM
#26
so i finally found a donor car for my 79, its an 83 gs that was sailed into a stand of trees whilst air born at around 80mph. it is in VERY rough shape (bent is a shape right?) but it supposedly has been rebuilt recently, and still runs great.
the wiring harness was destroyed in the accident so i haven't been able to confirm this, but the snow is just about gone, so im going to start removing my old motor for a rebuild today.
i also got a full seal kit with the donor car. best part is i traded a truck i didnt want anymore for it, so my driveway will be a lot less cluttered once the shell is gone.
anyone have any random part requests that dont involve the drivetrain? ill be stripping it down pretty far. but the interior is pretty much toast. (dash and guages still there and work, but ill probably keep the cluster, cause it has an oil pressure gauge in it.
the wiring harness was destroyed in the accident so i haven't been able to confirm this, but the snow is just about gone, so im going to start removing my old motor for a rebuild today.
i also got a full seal kit with the donor car. best part is i traded a truck i didnt want anymore for it, so my driveway will be a lot less cluttered once the shell is gone.
anyone have any random part requests that dont involve the drivetrain? ill be stripping it down pretty far. but the interior is pretty much toast. (dash and guages still there and work, but ill probably keep the cluster, cause it has an oil pressure gauge in it.
Last edited by prophetjohn; 04-21-14 at 01:22 AM.
04-24-14, 01:16 PM
#27
A picture is worth a thousand posts, so her you guys go!
The donor/parts car:
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and the progress of my garage.
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im trying to nibble away at it bit, by bit. so it might take a while, but i think i can get it done before summers here.
ill be swapping out the rear axle and possibly the front suspension. i really want the discs in the rear. That and my current calipers are pretty much welded on, so i plan on using the newer control arms and mount my new calipers to them if possible. new shocks and struts are going to happen too as soon as i can afford them!
The donor/parts car:
[IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG]and the progress of my garage.
[IMG]
[/IMG][IMG]
[/IMG]im trying to nibble away at it bit, by bit. so it might take a while, but i think i can get it done before summers here.
ill be swapping out the rear axle and possibly the front suspension. i really want the discs in the rear. That and my current calipers are pretty much welded on, so i plan on using the newer control arms and mount my new calipers to them if possible. new shocks and struts are going to happen too as soon as i can afford them!
04-24-14, 01:29 PM
#28
With the engine out is the only pleasant way to remove a reactor. They are very large and the upper nuts can be hard to get off. Sometimes a crow's foot or a bent wrench can be used, although I have neither and was able to take off a few thermal reactors with a regualr wrench, but it's been years so I can't recall the procedure. 14mm is thr size if you didn't already know.
04-24-14, 01:46 PM
#30
Thats a good call on the sunroof, i actually cant believe it survived the wreck! if anyone needs it, let me know! i was using it to keep rain out of the engine.
and thanks for the info on the reactor. I have a 14mm Dog bone wrench that may work for that.
and thanks for the info on the reactor. I have a 14mm Dog bone wrench that may work for that.
04-24-14, 03:12 PM
#31
Yowzers! I think the 83 will buff out ok, what do you think? 
Not much left of that thing, but if it's rust free I'd save as many rust free chunks as you can - beats the hell out of trying to fabricate pieces. I'd also save every nut, bolt, clamp, plastic wire holder, rubber grommet, and wire tie that I could scavenge off that thing too.
Not much left of that thing, but if it's rust free I'd save as many rust free chunks as you can - beats the hell out of trying to fabricate pieces. I'd also save every nut, bolt, clamp, plastic wire holder, rubber grommet, and wire tie that I could scavenge off that thing too.
04-25-14, 11:16 AM
#32
the driver side..... maybe.... and now for a brief poll.... during the short time i was driving the current setup, there was a noticeable transmission whine (not loud), how normal is that?
reason being is that im trying to decide weather or not to swap the whole engine&trans or just the engine. but since im going with the other rear end for the LSD + Disc Brakes. would the other trans be necessary?
reason being is that im trying to decide weather or not to swap the whole engine&trans or just the engine. but since im going with the other rear end for the LSD + Disc Brakes. would the other trans be necessary?
04-26-14, 07:28 AM
#33
the driver side..... maybe.... and now for a brief poll.... during the short time i was driving the current setup, there was a noticeable transmission whine (not loud), how normal is that?
reason being is that im trying to decide weather or not to swap the whole engine&trans or just the engine. but since im going with the other rear end for the LSD + Disc Brakes. would the other trans be necessary?
reason being is that im trying to decide weather or not to swap the whole engine&trans or just the engine. but since im going with the other rear end for the LSD + Disc Brakes. would the other trans be necessary?
04-26-14, 04:14 PM
#34
ok, cool! it already has an engine and trans from an 82 in it. the trans tub has been cut to accept it, but it looks terrible (see pics) i was more concerned about the rear end ratio.
but it seems that stayed pretty constant for the first gen.
but it seems that stayed pretty constant for the first gen.
05-06-14, 11:07 AM
#39
motor is out, AC component removed, clutch is toast on the new motor, so im waiting for a replacement off Ebay to come in on Friday if all goes well. upon close inspection it appears my old motor is an 83 + 83 trans. new motor has a working omp, and everything is on there and hooked up correctly! a far cry from the old one which had a bunch of hoses cemented and clamped off (like coolant lines! Who does that?!?!) cant wait to hear this thing spin! 
05-14-14, 05:01 PM
#43
Your distributor is a tooth off if its all the way retarded like that. I suggest restabbing it and buying a timing light to set the timing properly or it will never run right. My guess is the popping is from a combination of the timing being off and the trailing coil going out. I suspect a bad trailing coil is the culprit for your bad RPM reading. Check connections. Ohm out the coils as per FSM instructions.
The temp gauge problem could be a couple things. Make sure the correct wire is on the sending unit, make sure it isnt grounding out, replace the sending unit, and lastly check the gauge itself.
The temp gauge problem could be a couple things. Make sure the correct wire is on the sending unit, make sure it isnt grounding out, replace the sending unit, and lastly check the gauge itself.
05-14-14, 06:21 PM
#44
there is a lead out from the dizzy that is not connected (small black wire, and differences in the wiring harness prevent me from hoking it up naturally) and I'm guessing that is my lead out for the Tach, as both coils are new. and worked great with the last motor. Is the temp sending unit in the Driver side lower rad? because that's not connected at all right now (easy fix). thanks for the info about being a tooth off, i was kinda thinking that, but since this is the first time i have heard this motor run, i was skeptical at best.
05-15-14, 10:32 AM
#45
did some more poking around this morning, and it seems the temp sending unit is hooked up properly, but as i stated, once the key is turned, it slowly rises off the scale ( takes about 30 seconds) i am lost on this as far as an easy fix goes, so i think i may have to dismantle the wiring harness in order to make sense of this.
05-15-14, 11:22 AM
#46
Temp sending unit is a one prong (yellow wire) under the oil filter. The lead you describe on the dizzy sounds like a condenser. Not required for the tach. Taken from an online source...
An ignition condenser is a capacitor that is designed to hold a small amount of current inside the engine's ignition system. Its main purpose is to act as a ground for the electric charge to prevent the two electrodes from sparking with each other. By absorbing some of the charge, the condenser allows the two contact points time to move away from each other before sparking can occur. A bad ignition condenser can have several effects on your car.
Read more: Signs of an Auto Ignition Condenser Going Bad | eHow
From experience I've seen twitchy gauges, humming from the radio, and buzzing from lights from bad condensers. Although not crucial to the car, Id recommend installing one.
Normally, when the ignition is "ON" the tach acts as a volt meter. When the engine starts it trips over to a tach as soon as the trailing ignition kicks in. My guess is a wiring anomaly in the trailing circuit or a bad tach.
When in doubt, replace the METER fuse.
An ignition condenser is a capacitor that is designed to hold a small amount of current inside the engine's ignition system. Its main purpose is to act as a ground for the electric charge to prevent the two electrodes from sparking with each other. By absorbing some of the charge, the condenser allows the two contact points time to move away from each other before sparking can occur. A bad ignition condenser can have several effects on your car.
Read more: Signs of an Auto Ignition Condenser Going Bad | eHow
From experience I've seen twitchy gauges, humming from the radio, and buzzing from lights from bad condensers. Although not crucial to the car, Id recommend installing one.
Normally, when the ignition is "ON" the tach acts as a volt meter. When the engine starts it trips over to a tach as soon as the trailing ignition kicks in. My guess is a wiring anomaly in the trailing circuit or a bad tach.
When in doubt, replace the METER fuse.
05-16-14, 10:22 AM
#47
well i suppose i do have some extra condensers , ill swap them out to see what happens! thank you very much for the detailed response! also i really need to go through and clean every ground i can find. haven't had much time to work on it after the instal though. I still have to get the axle / drive shaft / front suspension swapped over, before i get nit picky about gauges.
05-17-14, 07:08 PM
#48
well, i got it to run better, by swapping the plug wires and timing it right, still stumbles on WOT.
but my big concern is that NONE of my metering gauges are working, no tach, no temp, no oil, no coolant level. i think i missed a ground somewhere, but cant seem to find it. ive read about this being caused by a missing "ecu ground", but does the sa even have an ecu? for clarification, im using an 83 harness on the engine, and a 79 harness on the body. what am i missing here.
seems that my car is having a "one ground to rule them all" moment.
but my big concern is that NONE of my metering gauges are working, no tach, no temp, no oil, no coolant level. i think i missed a ground somewhere, but cant seem to find it. ive read about this being caused by a missing "ecu ground", but does the sa even have an ecu? for clarification, im using an 83 harness on the engine, and a 79 harness on the body. what am i missing here.
seems that my car is having a "one ground to rule them all" moment.
05-18-14, 10:36 AM
#50
Check the METER fuse. The SA does have an ECU. It is for emissions purposes. Although the big bundle of wires coming through the firewall does connect to it. The on board 10 amp fuse should have nothing to do with the gauges though. It would have to be an internal problem in the unit.
