drittens

Im new here, I just joined last night, and I dont actually have my car yet, but I will soon have my rx7.
I think it might have been ran out of oil, and I was wondering what does that do to the engine. I dont really know anything about rx7, my aunt is giving me the car.
How screwed is the car if it has been ran out of oil?
Thanx, Mary

drittens

its a 78

nevarmore

A 78? Are you sure because the first RX-7s came out in 79.

At any rate, bad things happen when you run a 7 out of oil. A little bit of oil is dripped into the intake to keep the combustion areas and seals lubricated on top of the regular use of oil to keep bearings and such lubed. What this means is that if you run out of oil you run the risk of seizing the engine like a normal car, but that you also chance damaging the apex and side seals in the combustion chambers.

I would suggest going to the First Generation forum and reading the FAQ thread there. Its right at the top. Read up on the basics. RX-7s are not difficult to maintain, but they do a few things differently than other cars.

drittens

thanx, see the car is being given to me, and im not sure what year it is really.. we are just going to have to figure out when we get it. its more then likely a 79 though thats what most of the people i have talked said the year is, but ill just have to wait and find out.. thanx again... mary

Midwest 7's

iTrader: (4)

a lot of people have cars that were made in 78, thus they call them 78's, technicaly they are 79's though. but if i were you i would call it a 78

Aviator 902S

Yup, these cars were first sold in the spring of 1978, but designated a 1979 model. Was this car ran completely dry of oil, or was it only down to the bottom of the dipstick? The issue is not only about the metering system lube mentioned earlier (which uses oil from the oil pan to lube the apex seals and is the reason for the need to top up the oil every 2nd fuel fill-up), but also that these engines are 1/3rd cooled by oil. If the oil was run dry for a period of time the engine may have been overheated.

Does the car run? If so, does the temperature guage when warmed up read approximately 1/3rd of the guage face? Does the car have a big cloud of white smoke billowing out the exhaust that doesn't go away once the engine is warmed up? A cloud of whitish smoke on start-up is normal, but if it doesn't dissipate once the engine warms up you likely have a ruptured water jacket seal (the result of overheating, likely brought on by running the oil dry), and this would require an engine rebuild.

These engines are very good powerplants, but some common-sense maintenance is in order. Proper care and feeding of these cars include:

a) Never let them overheat. If you burst a radiator hose or coolant hose in any other car you may be able to limp the 10-minute drive to a service station without doing too much damage to the engine. Do not try this with a rotary. If you do, the overheating will warp the housings (aluminum portions of the engines) and cause the water jacket seals to fail. Instead, pull over and call a towtruck. Your engine will love you for it.

b) Keep the engine oil topped up. As already mentioned, these engines are designed to use about one quart of oil every 1000 miles or so. This oil is metered directly into the carburetor and mixed with the air/fuel mixture to lubricate the apex seals inside the engine. This oil is not retrieved but is burned with the air/ fuel mix and then expelled out the exhaust.

c) Change the oil AND OIL FILTER every 5000 miles maximum, or even every 3000 miles. Even though these cars use oil and therefore have to be topped up from time to time, this new oil DOES NOT constitute an oil change. The engine needs a fresh supply of oil in order to get rid of contaminants just like any other engine.

d) DO NOT use Fram oil filters. They may be the least expensive and most plentiful oil filters around, but they're poorly constructed and have been known to come unglued and deposit bits of cardboard and paper inside engines and clog vital oil passages, killing the engine. This can happen to any engine, not just rotaries. Spring for the extra couple of bucks and get an AC Delco, Purolator or Wix filter.

There's lots more info we can provide here so feel free to ask. Hope this helps.