New rotary guy here and new to this site. My '93 RX-7 13B JDM/RHD arrives next week. I know I need to strip down the engine and replace most / all of the seals. Question - is one brand more reliable than the other or recommended? Power Seal? E-J? Maxda OEM (if you can even still get these?), etc.?

This is a project car for me and my sons; want it to go loud and fast...but not looking to race it or put it under crazy engine conditions.

Thanks!

PS - as recommended, will start a build thread when it arrives!

 

Does the engine require a rebuild, or are you doing this preventative? Does it run?

 

It runs, but not recommended to do long term without rebuilding per seller.

 

I guess that depends on what the reason for needing a rebuild is.
Was there damage done?
Is it worn out - Have you gotten a compression test done?
Coolant seals failing?

If there's no other reason but "it should be rebuilt", then i wouldn't do it. I would thoroughly inspect it and if it still has good compression and has no issues, keep running it.
If you're worried about the engine being tired, you can buy a used engine on the side, rebuild it, and that will be less down-time for the car in the meantime while you do so.

 

Find a professional you can trust and ask them. The seller is not someone who falls into that category.

 

Have any pics of the FD, especially the engine bay? For sedate power levels (under say 350 wheel) OEM 2 piece 2mm apex seals are a solid choice. After that, I'm a big proponent of RxParts apex seals.

 

Do most dealers in North America still carry or will order OEM seals?

 

Yes, they're still parts that can be ordered over the counter. You can also order them direct from Ray Crowe for a nice discount, and he has literally every part # memorized and can put together a rebuild package for anyone curious.

 

Rotary aviation apex seals
solid corner seals
Was going to say pineapple racing hd water seals & viton oil control orings- just saw pineapple racing closed which is sad, so I guess just Mazda oem for everything else unless someone makes an equivalent.

 

Anyone ever tried power seals? I’m not going to be doing any track racing, but if good for high performance situation, then good for longer term moderated demand/performance?

ps - thanks for tips on getting second opinion on actual need. Will send pics soon but based on appearance and sound and just wanting to do the rebuild with son, will likely move forward.

 

Just be advised a lot of people make threads on here about “what do I need for a rebuild?”

Everyone always says you don’t know until you take it apart and inspect it.

I did an engine build on the side while dailying my rx7. It took parts from 3 engines to find enough parts in spec to use. Granted it was worth it doing it right in the long run.

Just don’t expect to crack open your engine and everything to be in spec, and just use a soft & hard seal kit. Budget is relative but the parts you need/want can get out of hand real fast. Throw in also trying to source these parts now a days.

 

welcome to the board.

congratulations on getting your Rx-7 and for being able to share it with your sons.

just going off of what you said above, i would say just keep it OEM. the caveat here would only be based on who is tuning it. if you plan to try it yourself (or use someone that is not experienced with rotaries), then you might consider getting a more forgiving seal at the possible expense of extra general wear.