Thanks man Im trying

 

cool build!

 

Thanks benny92lx

 

If you used the 3m headlight restoration kit, these lenses should have turned out a lot better. It looks like you didn't get the clear completely sanded off.
I recommend going back over them with the 3m headlight restoration kit which is like $17, because they will look so much better.

If you want some tips be sure to watch the instructional video on their website.

You can see how well it works on my build thread if you aren't convinced =).

Good luck!

 

Yeah I didn't get all the old clear coat off I wasn't too worried about it at the time because before I installed these the car had no FTP lenses and installing them looked better then having 2 holes where they should be. I dont think it was a kit I just found some headlight lens restorer and I had left over sandpaper and shop towels. One day I will take them off and go over them again with better materials but theyll do for the time being. Thanks for the tip though

 

He's right. The 3m kit is the only headlight restoration kit that gets my endorsement. I've tried numerous kits, none come close to 3M.

 

One day Ill get around to them again. Im not really worried about the FTP lenses. Im more worried about getting the engine to run right but since Im broke I cant even do that.

 

Where are we at on that by now?

 

I need to re-route the vacuum lines on the throttle body and cap off 3 vacuum nipples because I just realized a few days ago that there is a major difference between an automatic throttle body and a manual one. I think that has a lot to do with the idle being so high and I still have not been able to get a multimeter. My friends are so slow its so annoying. I have to bug the **** out of them just to get something from them.

 

Yesterday I capped off the vacuum lines and switched them around to match the manual throttle body set up at the water thermo valve and tighetned up the bolts on the LIM, ACV, BACV. The car will start and do the same thing as before. Bouncing rpms all the way from 3k to idle and will continue to do it at idle. I might try to reseal the ACV. I pulled the car out of the garage today and tried to drive it around my drive way and it seems it lacks power, probably because of the open header. I STILL have not had a multimeter to set the TPS but Im about 95% sure it way out of wack.

 

Update: The car won't start now without the gas pedal being slightly pressed. I know I am low on gas so that may be the issue. The car was starting fine other then the above mentioned problems with the bouncing RPM's. I am starting to lose interest in the car but I don't want to sell it. So I am going to propose this : If anyone out there from the general area that reads this and think they can come help me figure out this problem I will pay you in the form of parts. I have 2 Garrett turbo's and misc. FC parts laying around in my garage. To name a few of the parts I have : S4 N/A ECU's, S5 N/A convertible wiring harness, S4 & S5 auto flywheels, S4 mirrors ... Who ever you may be let me know by posting here or a PM. Thanks!

P.S. If I dont figure this problem out relatively soon (even though I'm pretty sure it's something small and stupid that I can't pinpoint.) I'm probably going to list it for sale.

 

Update: The car wouldn't start when I went out to try to track down the bouncing idle. It was the solenoid on the starter not getting enough power because it was corroded. I fixed that problem so the car starts again. I tried a few things to see if I could find the problem. I unplugged the BACV, unplugged the connector for AWS, unplugged the TPS and none of them did anything. Once I had the BACV unplugged though the RPMS dropped to idle then slowly raises to 1,200 RPMS and bounces to about 1,500 RPMS. After I plugged it back in nothing changed so Im not sure if the BACV is bad. I tried looking for vacuum leaks with soapy water, today I'm going to try carb cleaner if I can find some. I need to set my TPS and possibly set the timing.

 

Update: There is no update. I hate my car today.

 

Your car hates you for not setting the TPS...

 

Lol I know, I need to set it. My multimeter is broken and my Mazdatrix tester doesnt work for some reason even though the lights on it are fine and the plug gets power. My "friends" are seriously ******** who say they want to help me but when I ask for help like borrowing a multimeter it never happens. Excuses, excuses and Im sick of it. I think I need to set the timing too. Is there any other way to set the TPS w/o a multimeter or Mazdatrix tester?

 

Update: I finally got a multimeter! Im going to be setting the TPS today or tomorrow. Its been a long time since I finished putting the engine back together but I realized I didnt take a picture since its been started. So I took one and here it is :

 

You'll love it once you can get to driving it. I hope everything works out for you!

 

I honestly cant wait to have it out! thanks man Im trying my best to get it road worthy asap i just need to find out whats up with this idle issue. hopefully its the tps

 

Tried to put 1 of the 2 tops on the car the other day and it was so dry rotted the drain pockets just tore even more. That means back to the original top, so there was really no point in taking it off in the 1st place. Kind of upsetting but Ill patch it and deal with it until I can afford to buy a new or newer used top.

 

Yeah but did you set the TPS?

 

Nope still havent set the TPS. I have been bummed on this car and other **** right now so I really havent been working on it that much. Ill set it this weekend. What is the laughing face for? Do you honestly think I dont know I need to set my TPS?...

 

It's just funny that it's been over a month since agreen first said it had to be set. An accurately set TPS is absolutely critical for these things. Doing any diagnostics with a miscalibrated or unknown TPS is an exercise in futility. You didnt say if the DMM you got was new or borrowed but you can get a DMM for IIRC <$20 at Walmart or $5 at Harbor Freight. If you're going to have a 80's tech car you need your own DMM and it doesnt need to be anything fancy.

Nobody has mentioned it but in light of your corroded starter you might want to go ahead and do Aaron Cake's grounding procedure first. All the sensors measure voltage drop which means if the grounds are degraded (and after 20 years they are) the readings will be off. It's simple and costs almost nothing.

For your top you're probably looking at several hundred dollars if you install it yourself to around a grand plus if you have it done. If you're lucky you might find someone parting out a vert with a serviceable top. Unfortunately tops are a wear item so as you found buying a used one is like buying used brake pads.

Diagnosing these engines can be frustrating but it mostly comes down to being systematic, methodical and thorough. On the 25th you said "I tried a few things to see if I could find the problem..." and that is just going to end in you being "bummed on the car". We had all kinds of frustrating issues when we put the JDM Tii into the vert so completely understand.

btw, when you tested for vacuum leaks with soap water were you pressurizing the intake system with a compressor?

Good luck

 

Yeah it has been a month or more but I have other **** going on in my life and sometimes my car to be on hold. I am broke ... that means 0 money. I need to get a new job but its kind of hard when you dont have a car. Im setting up classes to go back to school and I do a lot of other things with my time so staying at home all day isn't really an option every day. I have a multimeter that is borrowed from my friend who lives like 500 feet from my house. He just likes to **** off and beat around the bush with stuff so it has taken this long to get the damn multimeter. You dont really have room to tell me if I should be bummed on my car or not. I didnt pressurize the system I just had the car running. I know and knew before I even started the car the TPS would have to be set. This is my 4th Rx-7 so I know pretty much about the car Im not a know it all like some of the people try to be on this site... Ill check out the re-grounding thread then. Im just going to patch my top with this repair kit I found that people claimed have worked good for them. Im going to buy a brand new one unless someone parts theirs out and its a brand new replacement. Im going to do it myself. I need money for 1 and for 2 I need time to diagnose ****.

 

Thanks for your input though. Ill try to clean up more of the grounds. I have cleaned a few but not all.

 

To do the soap bubble test you have to pressurize the intake system and then spray bubble juice on all the joints. Then where ever there is a leak you'll see bubbles. you can also put a three foot 1/4" ID hose to your ear and listen all along the intake track. It's amazing how easy it is to hear air leaks like that.

The starter fluid or carb cleaner test works when the car is running because it gets sucked in thru the leak and the RPMs will rise as the spray burns.

Here is a video of us doing a pressure test on the Tii in the vert. You can see the PVC adapter we made that feeds in air where the AFM would be. We also have a PVC bypass tube so we could take the intercooler out and get access to the UIM/LIM.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cFiOfUFofo&feature=plcp

In this video we experimented with dry ice to see if we could see the leak since no one here smokes. Didnt work (and dry ice is expensive) but was fun. On the Tii the UIM covers many of the likely leak suspects so we removed the UIM and plugged the 4 ports with rubber corks from HD. Then we pressurized the LIM and "poured" the dry ice vapor over the engine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5Glu...hannel&list=UL

Good luck.