hmmm, I have radiator water where???
My wife calls me and says our 85 (FB-12a) has overheated and now has water coming out the exhaust. A quick internet search shows that my water jacket seal has melted??? So what all do I need to do? Brief history: We are the original owners, it has approx 190K, never been overhauled, and just did a MAJOR paint job/restoration. Plans were to upgrade the engine next. So.... suggestions?
Thanks in advance for your help! |
If this is true, the engine is toast. Replace or rebuild.
There is a reason the car overheated though. Bad fan, clogged rad, burst hose, etc. If the temperature guage had been watched, the problem would have been avoided. :) |
I was pretty sure that was going to be the answer. Who makes good rebuild kits? oh, and it was a burst hose (water heater)
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Water in the exhaust = rebuild engine.
Be very careful, lots of poor rebuilders out there. My first rebuild was toast after a year or so. The problem of water getting into the combustion chambers recurs if the there is a chip out of the edge of the cast iron seal channel; that creates a weak spot where the new seal is not properly supported and it will just fail again. A cheap rebuilder will likely not replace the chipped housing. My second rebuild was a rebuilt/exchange with a 2 yr warranty, and it has been fine since then (3 yrs?) |
calpatriot thanks for the insight. If you don't mind, who did you get your rebuilt/exchange from? I'm considering pulling (and replacing) the engine myself. I've done that on other cars but never on the rotary. If I go that route, how complicated will that be and how hard would it to bump up the rwhp to the 175-200 range. Would a13b, street ported, with headers and new weber carb get me in that range? Again, thanks in advance for the imput.
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My current engine is an Atkins rebuild. I have about 2-3 yrs on it, and it has been bulletproof except for one incident where it literally seized up while sitting. I had to tow it back 320 miles because the local shops where it was said 'new engine.' My local RX7 expert had it running again in a day (Tri Point Engineering). He said I was driving it too gently, that it needed to be tached out more, so that is what I have been doing since, and no further problems.
Mine is street ported, and I have a K&N intake, but that's about all I can get away with here in CA with our smog regs. I have not had mine dynoed, but I estimate it is running about 175-180 hp at the flywheel. I am not familiar with the manifold and weber carb options, but I understand some of those set-ups can compete with big-block V8 horsepower, but the details are not in my expertise. The mod I wish I could do is the Camden supercharger. That may be legal in your state, but it is not in mine until the car gets to be 30 yrs old. Gene |
hi 'fly
i know nothing about the quality of their work... but this shop is very close, in the dfw zone. http://www.rx7.com/index.html and they apparently do rebuilds, enhancements and so on. http://www.rx7.com/engine.html henry |
With that many miles on the motor, you will probably find that there are no reusable parts. I would recommend finding a low mileage motor to install or rebuild.
A 12a with a street port, free flowing exhaust, and a Sterling carb would probably get you the power you're looking for. You could throw in a 13b, but then you're talking a bit more work and potential for issues. Pulling and replacing these motors is pretty simple, if you've done other motors then you can do a rotary.... . |
1st gen FAQ is awesome.
+1 for kentetsu replace motor! |
Thanks to all for the information. It is garaged for now and I will be on the lookout for another engine to have rebuilt. It's not a daily driver so I have time now to do this right. I'll continue to use this forum for help though. It is a great tool!
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