teachschool

I barely had 90,000 miles on my beautiful RX-7GSL SE when it lost compression and a few days later quit. All the garage had to say was "apex seal failed.You need a new engine for $700 which we will delighted to install for you. " NO other information. Did not have 7,000. Car went from heated storage to damp garage.
Years later I found out by accident that seal failure was rampant among the Rx-7.s. No wonder the dealer said nothing. Like most women I assumed this was my fault because I had stored it for some years in the heated garage. It was in perfect condition and drove like a dream for two years before it tanked.
Salvage neighbor will give me $130 for it as junk metal. Local dealer says Mazda never solved the seal problem and it will just happen again. Also says he saw many fail earlier than mine. Yes I used the light oil faithfully which may have hastened its demise according to articles on the internet. Dealer also says gas engine will change power ration for the worse.
What to do? I feel like such a sucker. I cannot believe Mazda engineers did N not KNOW these cars would fail quickly in the US with light oil, among other things. Any suggestions? Scrap? New useless Wankel?
90,000 miles. For what I paid for that wonderful car. Sign me disgusted and quite heartbroken. Not feeling good about Mazda these days. Would like to find them blameless. Somehow.

Sgtblue

iTrader: (16)

Troll.

WondrousBread

Hard to tell if this is serious, or if it is a troll.

Also not sure exactly what you are asking?

In the event you are serious, there is no good reason a rotary engine should die in 90 000 miles. Engines like yours (naturally aspirated) regularly reach over 200 000 miles. Some members have had them reach 300 000 miles. The last one in my car reached about 190 000 miles (I didn't own it then though).

I would take it to a shop that specializes in rotary engines to make sure they are testing it properly. Also, $7000 for a rebuild, even including parts and removal and re-installation of the engine, is absolutely ridiculous. Cost will vary based on your location and the nature of the damage.

Here are two threads which illustrate what I am saying:
https://www.rx7club.com/general-rota...rotary-469046/

and

https://www.rx7club.com/2nd-generati...ge-fcs-991905/

As this post seems fake I am probably wasting my time responding. But on the off chance it is real, I hope I have contributed at least a little bit to dispelling the myth of the Rx7 being unreliable. Find someone who is going to do a rebuild for the right price. Read the FAQ in the First Generation Rx7 section and make sure to listen to all the advice from people who spent years loving these cars. If you maintain the engine well, it should provide you many years of fun.

teachschool

Not a troll. Be happy to post a photo of my once-excellent car. You have to understand the old dealership was notorious for rudeness and especially to women. Some years later they closed because of sexual harassment charges against a female customer. They were quite happy to let me assume I had somehow ruined my lovely car without actually saying a word about it, only "need new engine"
The new dealer still in Madison,WI is much better, but he also said Mazda never solved the apex problem and it would only occur again. BUT what if I used the heavy oil instead of the light?
The library here is closing. Will continue. Thanks for the help. Do not understand why anyone thinks I would waste time with a fake story? I just want my RX-7 back on the road if possible. $7,000 was the quote from Don Miller in Madison. In 2017, of course. Would have been less I'm sure when engine actually died.

misterstyx69

iTrader: (142)

The reality of it is that when someone goes "it's a seal"..the APEX seals are like the most important seal on the whole engine and they are Internal,and in order to get them and replace them you have to remove the engine,tear it down Fully,replace any bad parts and seals and then put the car back together and get it to run again.
That can run you Thousands.
The worst part is when someone buys a car that requires this and thinks 'hey it's just a seal..I scored like a bandit when I paid 700 for this Car!"
That 700 dollar car now turns into a Money pit.

NOT good for the person who has no knowledge of the engine or the car,But Great for the guy getting rid of a Lawn ornament.
Sure people will buy the car with plans of rebuilding it...Some will have the knowledge to source parts and get it going cheaply..Others?...well they get..The Lawn ornament!

Sgtblue

iTrader: (16)

This is the NEW MEMBER TECHICAL SECTION. A place for those new to the forum, and especially new to the RX7 to post a technical question. Since you didn't do that in either one of your posts, I'll make a similar editorial response...
All I've read is ranting, rambling and whining about how some owner doesn't have the money to fix a 30+ year old car with 90k miles. And in each post they also pull the "I'm a girl" card. Who cares whether you sit or stand. If you like the car, find the money or sell it.
BTW, I also labeled you a troll because not only did you start a thread and immediately start bashing the rotary engine, but your sentence structure, spelling and ability to make a coherent point doesn't seem to fit someone whose screen name suggests she's an educator.

mazdaverx713b

iTrader: (91)

First off, having a GSL-SE engine lose an apex seal at 90k miles is fairly unlikely. Those engines are known to go to 300k miles if properly maintained. I would have another dealer in your area run a compression test on it. These cars are commonly misdiagnosed and the catch all is a bad engine. More than likely not the case. What did the car do to make you take it to the dealer?

teachschool

I was asking if anyone knew of any realistic solution other than junking the car for 100-130 dollars quoted by local scrap metal dealers. Someone who could do the work themselves might be able to pull this off. I would have to have everything done at a local dealer. I've read articles on the internet that say that the light oil that had to used in order to keep the warranty in effect was the problem. The engines run hot and should have had heavier oil. I've also read that, and been told by the new dealer here that the apex seal failure was "rampant" and that he saw RX's tank earlier than mine. he said there was no way to get ahead of the problem and no solution other than another new engine, for the quoted 6,500 to 7,000, not to mention the brake lines which likely need replacement also.

misterstyx69

iTrader: (142)

You need to do some reading on here and then judge for yourself what the car will entail in order to get it running again.
The FIRST thing would be a Compression test of the engine itself.That will tell you if the apex seals are done.You can find that info readily on this Forum.
If you are not willing to put the time into it then I would suggest selling it Locally and let the buyer know what they need to make it run,or then again you could replace the engine with a used engine to save money.
That is IF the engine is no longer in working condition.
Scrapping the car would be just a shame.There are not a lot of these cars left and 130 bucks is like a McDonalds meal compared to what the value of the car is,even with the engine not working.

One last KIND note: Do not attempt to sell in this section as it is strictly a TECH section.

ALSO,The Dealer is the one that makes the parts and labour expensive.That is why the Forum exists.Guys replace engines almost every day and document their work on threads in this Forum,so take the time to search threads that involve this action.
If you are wondering why the price is high then think that the guy doing it is paid like 80 bucks an hour to work on your car..Do they want to do it quickly??..NO..they want to milk you for every cent they can get.

TomU

iTrader: (11)

IMO, most Mazda dealers don't know how to work on rotaries. There may be some, but i'd ask first about their credentials. They will be expensive, but at least you want someone expensive and competent vs. expensive and incompetant

Jacob Carey

They seem so simple! Just rebuild

misterstyx69

iTrader: (142)

I'm going to Lock this thread up as there is no pertinent question being asked,Other than What should I do with the car..and a lot of Bitching about Mazda and "they should have,could have"

I noticed you posted that you drove the car for a YEAR at SOLO events so you should have been able to get familiar with your car then..but now you blame Mazda on it's technical finesse?.
Your options are Rebuild it or sell it...and that is a personal situation that you must decide yourself as it is your car and therefore your decision.

If you have any TECHNICAL Questions Feel free to post them up..Nobody is going to give you any input or Observations on why the car decided to pop it's engine or why Mazda built a Rotary.

Good Luck to you.