Hey everybody. I've lurked in this forum for many years (since before FD purchase in 2003). I've finally decided to get involved. I have enjoyed many threads on this site and all the information that is out there is incredible. However, I do not check the site often and usually only end up here when I need some questions answered.

Now for the background:

Fell in love with the FD in 93 because one was parked in a lot that I walked by to get to school. After many hot summer days behind a lawnmower and eventually in the A/C'd Cubicle that was my summer job I had saved enough to get one. I Purchased the FD in 2002 (Stock 93 BB Touring Auto), It was @ 68K with a straight body and some new(-ish) paint. Paid just over 11K if I remember correctly. I named her Black Betty after the Ram Jam song and as a Sophomore in college I had finally gotten my dream car (but was too protective of it to bring it to school).

I got some wonderful summers out of the car went on many road trips. I eventually graduated and started to use it as a DD to go to interviews and trips around town. in 2006 @90K she popped a seal and shuddered to a halt. This was the worst possible time because I had used up most of my RE-serve money to live off while looking for a job and could do nothing but tow it to the carport and bum rides. I eventually got a job and a DD paid off. I then was able to build up the RE-serve fund high enough to bring her back to life after 3 years of sitting.

I convinced a friend to tow her out to WV and handed her over to Bret. 19 weeks and 7K later I get her back. In attempt to get on the road (legally) I took her down to Brown's for a sniff and failed. Wrote Bret and asked what the problem might be and he said that he didn't send out the injectors for proper cleaning/inspection and I should run some FI Cleaner. So I picked up a can of BG 44K and ran that through.

This is where I stand right now. I haven't had the time to take the car back to get tested since the FI cleaner. I did however try to contact CK Autoworks via email to see if they did emissions, but got no reply.

Anyways, I realize that I am getting to be a bit long winded so I'll stop here. Just want to give a shout out to all the NoVA Rexs. I'll Try and make some of the Dulles CF meets once she's legal (and you start them again).

 

Welcome.

Helluva story. What was done for $7k?

Are you running a cat? Are you running the full stock emission equipment (ACV, Airpump etc)?

 

The car is pretty much full stock (as of now, may change once she's legal). There were a bunch of little parts that added up in the price though. From sitting so long there were some things that had to be replaced and some that reliability-wise, should be replaced. I did em all.

I was going to post these on another thread to give others an example of the costs of leaving a dead car sit. Or if someone was buying a dead car and wanted one example of bringing one back. But, since you asked...

R&R + Rebuild labor: 2375
Rebuild gasket kit: 900
Silicone Vac lines: 350
Used rotor: 250
2 new housings: 1700
engine mount: 280
used downpipe: 150
Replace front brake rotors and pads: 300
And the rest was taken up by some misc labor(cleaning rust off) and consumable parts: (thermostat,belts,fuel filter,air hoses, solenoids, air filter, oil, oilfilter, spark plugs & wires, pulleys, etc...)

Remember these are current prices and I am sure they are subject to change.

I am running all emissions and the stock cat, and yes it was fully warm. If I take it in and it still does not pass it is going to be a toss up whether I pull the injectors to send them out or I replace the Cat with a High Flow. Although with the high flow I am pushing the limits that the stock ECU can handle.

 

The stock cat is best for emissions. The Bonez high flow from rx7.com is one of the best. Do some reading/searching through some of the recent emissions threads in the 3rd gen section to get some ideas on what has caused different people to fail and their fixes. Moconnor has provided some good advice in the recent threads on the topic.

The stock ECU and fuel system is good for about 10 PSI of boost. So long as you keep boost regulated to that level, you can add flow mods w/o much risk. Read the 3rd gen FAQ.

 

Thanks for the info. I have already read a bit about it (from times before) and am not too worried. As I said, I may have already fixed it... I just havent gotten the chance to take it to get tested. I was simply stating where I was at right now.

Since everything else is brand new, my theory is that the only possible culprits could be the FI or the Cat. If this doesnt pan out I'll probably start a thread asking for some guidance.

The reason for me to switch cats would only be if I feel that the old one is no longer working to its potential (could still be the original one). Instead of getting a replacement stock I was figuring why not upgrade. The comment about ECU's was because I do not have a aftermarket boost controller and was unsure if the Stocker would be able to safely control the turbos from overboosting/spiking due to less backpressure. Its been said on the forum that after 2-3 bolt-ons that you should start looking at ECUs/Boost controllers.