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How’s it going guys? The name’s Ryan & I am a new & first time owner of a rotary. Purchased a black 1993 RX7 Touring edition, LHD. Have owned it for about 2 weeks now & this site has been a God sent for me before I even made the purchase. Read up EXTENSIVELY on what it takes to own & maintain these & I (think) I am up for it. Car came street ported with Apexi PowerFC, V Mount intercooler/radiator, tein Coilovers & a few other goodies. Car handles great and drives great, does smoke a little on start up, I was told that was normal, which I’m hoping it is. Glad to be here & apart of the community. Anybody have any tips or advice for a new owner, feel free to send my way 🙏🏽
Welcome to the forum! Do you know any of the car's history? Looks to be in great condition!
According to CarFax, she’s been a FL car from day 1, I am the 3rd owner & no accidents on the history. Not much else info from the carfax. Got tons of info from prev owner, such as work done on the car and what not. Get this, the prev owner, they own a dealership out in a very rural part of central FL! (Yea, you read that right). When I pulled up, I thought it was a dealer selling the car, but the owners parents actually owned the Mazda dealership, CRAZY! So they pretty much did all maintenance like diff fluid & seals & what not just before I bought it. Really awesome guy. The body is in pretty good shape, with the exception of one scratch/dent on the drivers quarter panel & and another small ding on the same drivers side door. Other than that, she’s a beaut, planning on fixing said damage soon.
Get a compression test. That might help with clarifying your smoking on start up concern. If premixing, make sure you get your ratios right. Make sure you have not overfilled your oil.
Looks like you have a "99" front air dam. Could use some product, like "back-to-black".
Last edited by Redbul; Apr 26, 2021 at 01:17 PM.
Reason: added info.
oh, definitely. Just maybe some feed side skirts, some better wheels, whatever paint correction is needed & that’s about it. I’m somewhat of a semi-collector, so I appreciate making the original looks of the car amplify with simple touches. Thanks
Originally Posted by Redbul
Get a compression test. That might help with clarifying your smoking on start up concern. If premixing, make sure you get your ratios right. Make sure you have not overfilled your oil.
Looks like you have a "99" front air dam. Could use some product, like "back-to-black".
Yes, def intend on doing the compression test. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’ve read up and saw that a Rotary specific compression test kit is needed to check it, is that correct? And yes, OMP has been deleted and prev owner says he mixes the Idimitsu 1oz to 1 gallon, & from what I’ve read, that’s about the normal mixture everyone is running. Btw, he gave me about 2 cases of the idimitsu premix to go with the car.
yea, I’m really in love with the 99 bumper, if I come across one that doesn’t cost an arm & a leg, I’ll most likely upgrade it. Thanks for all the help guys.
I just spent C$433 on a new 99 lip and another $50 of taxes when it came in from Japan. It is beautiful. I subsidized the purchase by selling the old one, so the net outlay was not quite as painful.
However, the old ones can be brought back to life quite easily with one of the various products available/ Same goes for a number of the other of the exterior plastics (windshield grill comes to mind).
Normally the OMP would pump a bit of oil into the chamber at start up. But since you do not have an OMP, no more, that would not likely be the source of "normal for rotary to smoke at start-up".
Could be you are running a but rich or you are getting some coolant (or condensation) in the mix. Rich would be black smoke, coolant would be sweet smelling white "smoke"..
It is recommended that "premix" oil be added to the tank when at the service station just before fill-up. The incoming gasoline will then churn up the premix oil.
I made the error of adding the premix to the tank then setting out to drive to the gas station. Running 1:1 ratio premix is not recommended.
I just spent C$433 on a new 99 lip and another $50 of taxes when it came in from Japan. It is beautiful. I subsidized the purchase by selling the old one, so the net outlay was not quite as painful.
However, the old ones can be brought back to life quite easily with one of the various products available/ Same goes for a number of the other of the exterior plastics (windshield grill comes to mind).
Normally the OMP would pump a bit of oil into the chamber at start up. But since you do not have an OMP, no more, that would not likely be the source of "normal for rotary to smoke at start-up".
Could be you are running a but rich or you are getting some coolant (or condensation) in the mix. Rich would be black smoke, coolant would be sweet smelling white "smoke"..
It is recommended that "premix" oil be added to the tank when at the service station just before fill-up. The incoming gasoline will then churn up the premix oil.
I made the error of adding the premix to the tank then setting out to drive to the gas station. Running 1:1 ratio premix is not recommended.
Nice! Always good when you can subsidize purchases by getting rid of the older parts. Yea, the smoke is definitely white & somewhat of a “sweet” smell & it is def only on start up. After it warms up, it doesn’t smoke at all. Yea, I keep a quart of premix in the car & I only add just before filling up the tank. I usually put about 12-13oz’s before & see how gallons she takes before adding whatever balance of premix is needed.
Thank you so much for help brother, but question. If my car is getting the white smoke on start up, which indicates coolant, what is needed to fix said problem? Is it a complete engine rebuild? I’m hoping not.
My car is pretty much the same. I am hoping condensation. But maybe someone else knows the reason. 35 years ago I drove about in my RX3 with steam billowing out the back like a steam engine.
Engine seems to tolerate a bit of coolant.
Recently, friend had a slight coolant leak and the coolant was being sucked into the aftermarket air turbo intake.
Check your intercooler feed pipe from the turbo to see if any oil or coolant is blowing about.
Is their any exhaust bubbles in your coolant when the engine is running?
Some Premix oil smells sweet. Nautilus comes to mind.
Could be the premix is settling a bit and you get a higher mix in the intake at first?
Try a stinky cheap premix (Wallmart comes to mind).
Smell what happens and report, please.
BTW
8~12 ounces of premix seems a bit too much.
We go with 360ml per 75 litre tank (half if OMP is still there).. Ask Siri what that translates to.
Dont forget to allow for existing premix in a partially empty tank.
right now, I use Idimitsu & was told 1oz to every 1gallon of premix is the normal mixture. Please advise if that is too much. I know you said above that it is too much, but need confirmation please. Will try another premix and see if that changes anything, but just a heads up, I don’t daily drive this car, so it might take a while. Thank you so much for the advice & notes 🙏🏽
Petite Racing on their site has a good bible for daily running of a rotary. Worthwhile to hunt that out. I may be getting ounces and gallons mixed up in my head, I frankly don't measure that precisely, maybe because my OMP is still working.
But I have been advised to keep premixing as an OMP can silently die on you and you dont know if you are getting oil.
You can get one time use painters paper measuring cups from a paint shop. They are about the size of a child size Starbucks cup . I have never had to use a full one of those. 12 ounces sounds like a small MacDonalds coke to me.
If we use 360 ml/75 litres (75,000ml) that would equate 0.5% premix/gas ratio. (Without OMP)
If one gallon is 128 ounces then:
1/128 = 0.78% seems a bit high.
78/50 = 56% too much.
But better to check some other sources. Dont fry your motor on account of me.
Does Idemitsu smell sweet/ Like cherry blossoms perhaps?
Beautiful car and nice collection!! There is a pretty good size group of rotary folks in the Florida area. You should join the Florida group caravan up to DGRR next month... We would love to check out your ride, It is an amazing place with some amazing people and cars!
According to CarFax, she’s been a FL car from day 1, I am the 3rd owner & no accidents on the history. Not much else info from the carfax. Got tons of info from prev owner, such as work done on the car and what not. Get this, the prev owner, they own a dealership out in a very rural part of central FL! (Yea, you read that right). When I pulled up, I thought it was a dealer selling the car, but the owners parents actually owned the Mazda dealership, CRAZY! So they pretty much did all maintenance like diff fluid & seals & what not just before I bought it. Really awesome guy. The body is in pretty good shape, with the exception of one scratch/dent on the drivers quarter panel & and another small ding on the same drivers side door. Other than that, she’s a beaut, planning on fixing said damage soon.
Nice car and congrats. I love the story of the previous owner. I also live in Central Fl. Are you also in Fl?
Petite Racing on their site has a good bible for daily running of a rotary. Worthwhile to hunt that out. I may be getting ounces and gallons mixed up in my head, I frankly don't measure that precisely, maybe because my OMP is still working.
But I have been advised to keep premixing as an OMP can silently die on you and you dont know if you are getting oil.
You can get one time use painters paper measuring cups from a paint shop. They are about the size of a child size Starbucks cup . I have never had to use a full one of those. 12 ounces sounds like a small MacDonalds coke to me.
If we use 360 ml/75 litres (75,000ml) that would equate 0.5% premix/gas ratio. (Without OMP)
If one gallon is 128 ounces then:
1/128 = 0.78% seems a bit high.
78/50 = 56% too much.
But better to check some other sources. Dont fry your motor on account of me.
Does Idemitsu smell sweet/ Like cherry blossoms perhaps?
Sorry for the late response, I appreciate all of the help you guys have been giving, really do. I will check out the petite racing handbook & see what they say in regards to the premix ratio. I also believe someone told me that Idimitsu has a recommended ratio as well, so I’ll see if I can find that.
Got to drive her last night and I really mean DRIVE her. Took her sideways, as well as, through some pretty awesome corners, it was amazing. I’m not really a quarter mile or drag race type of guy. I’ve always loved circuit racing & feeling what a car can do through some nice corners and what not. By all means I’m not a pro of any sort, but Feeling how ridged the car was with nearly no body roll & amazing suspension rebound, the RX7 did not disappoint.
I’ve driven a LOT of cars from Lambo’s, McLarens, Porsches, you name it(none of them my own, lol), and I still say my R33 GTR is a beast in its own realm, given the AWD system & the all wheel steering system, but the rx7 really impressed me last night, I see why you guys love these cars so much & I’m happy to have joined the community. Not only does the car have the looks, but it sure does give some ppl a run for its money.
Beautiful car and nice collection!! There is a pretty good size group of rotary folks in the Florida area. You should join the Florida group caravan up to DGRR next month... We would love to check out your ride, It is an amazing place with some amazing people and cars!
Hey man, thanks for the invite, really appreciate it. I will def check it out, if I can make the drive, I wouldn’t mind. And mind you, I’m a first time rotary owner, so tell your peeps to go easy on me for not know all the info about said car lol.
Remember, racecars are often rebuild after every race.
Very True. I'd like to think I'm pretty proactive when it comes to maintaining my vehicles. But always room to improve. Appreciate the info very much!
Ryan,
1oz premix to 1 Gallon gas is correct if your OMP isn't hooked up.
I bought a bunch of 12oz plastic bottles off ebay (clear PET plastic, same as soda bottles) and keep a few filled with premix in my car. When I get down to 1/4 tank I pour the whole 12oz bottle in with about 12gal gas to top it off (16gal tank in an '85).
The bottles have never softened, leaked, cracked, anything. In fact I've had one filled with premix and one with gas on my shelf for 2.5 years as an experiment and they both look and feel new.
Premixing is a PITA but you know your engine is getting clean mix oil instead of dirty oil from the motor, AND it's a great conversation starter at the pump. "Is that car a 2-stroke?"
Ryan,
1oz premix to 1 Gallon gas is correct if your OMP isn't hooked up.
I bought a bunch of 12oz plastic bottles off ebay (clear PET plastic, same as soda bottles) and keep a few filled with premix in my car. When I get down to 1/4 tank I pour the whole 12oz bottle in with about 12gal gas to top it off (16gal tank in an '85).
The bottles have never softened, leaked, cracked, anything. In fact I've had one filled with premix and one with gas on my shelf for 2.5 years as an experiment and they both look and feel new.
Premixing is a PITA but you know your engine is getting clean mix oil instead of dirty oil from the motor, AND it's a great conversation starter at the pump. "Is that car a 2-stroke?"
Awesome! Good to get that clarification on the premix. That 12oz bottle is a good tip. I have been using the Idimitsu premix that come in quarts, which are 32oz and have the transparent measure on the side in 4oz intervals, so that helps a lot. Yea, I was kinda happy the prev owner deleted the OMP after reading up on it, cause spending and extra min at the pump to premix is not a problem at all for me. And yes, I mean the car itself is already a conversation piece, but I’ve only filled the car up once since I’ve owned it (not my daily) and I’ve already been asked a ton of questions when premixing. “Is that racing fuel?” “is that a 2 stroke?” “Can you 2 step it before you leave?” Lol, it’s so disappointing to them when I tell them it doesn’t 2 step. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a LITTLE disappointed myself lol. Anyways, I appreciate the info very much.
A few things.
