Awoken7

Hello.

Since I am required to post here, I though I might as well lay out a little bit of information about my car and see if anyone had any immediate feedback they would like to offer. (The questions I have begin below [in blue] in case you want to skip this introduction.) I am very familiar with this site and find it to be a great source for RX information.

The car I registered to talk about is my 94 Touring.

I purchased it in 1999 when I was feeling a little low and it proved to be a great pick me up! When new to me, the car had 59K miles on the ODO and now it has 114K.

I paid $15K for it back then, it had been in a serious crash and rebuilt. I would have been willing to pay more for a pristine copy, but they were very hard to find at the time.
The dealer I had look over the car was surprised at how well it was put back together. The only real problem remaining from the crash is the fact that the left front geometry is a little off - nobody notices except for me. The car will align correctly and handles like a champ, it steers straight and smooth, but it does tend to chew through left front hub bearings.

It is stock except for the following mods:

• Downpipe
• Ebay front tower brace
• efini y pipe
• Profec B Boost Controller
• A pillar boost gauge

All were installed by me except the downpipe and gauge which were on the car when I purchased it.

I used it as a semi-daily driver for about 9 years splitting the 50K mile a year I usually drive between it and 3 other vehicles. Three years ago, while on my way to an interview 250 miles from my home, I'd noticed that the secondary turbo was not providing boost. And then on the way home, I noticed smoke coming off the exhaust pipe.

I wanted to fix it right away, but I already had another car on the operating table and did not want to disassemble the FD until the other car was back on the road. Time, passes, yada, yada, and the next thing you know you car has slept for three years.

So today I grabbed the battery charger and woke it up. After spinning it for a 10 minutes or so (15-20 seconds at time) with the EGI out, I put the EGI back in place and fired it up. I was surprised to find a relatively smooth idle and no smoke out of the exhaust. After it was running, I took it first to the car wash to get the exterior cleaned, and then to the auto store to get some injector cleaner; and finally on a 30 mile round trip at low speed and no boosting to burn off some of the 2.5 gallons of old fuel. Then I stopped at a gas station to full the tank.

So, the situation is this:

• The car starts and runs OK,
• I know there is an oil leak.
• Turbo #2 was not boosting when I parked it.

The funny thing about the oil leak is that after I started and backed the car out of the garage, I could see a huge oil leak on the floor, the stain is sitting just under where the turbos are located. And even though the leak also could have come from the other car I was working on, I am pretty sure a good amount of it came from the TT. BUT I COULD BE WRONG. While driving today, I could see no signs of oil burning on the exhaust, nor could I see any signs of leaking where I parked it and let it idle for about fifteen minutes. So, maybe the leak is smaller than I think?

Anyway, the reason I am writing is to get opinions as to how I should proceed.

My plans are to:

1. Change the oil and antifreeze before I drive it again.
2. Drive it until I am down a quarter tank. Then add some more injector cleaner.
3. After I have run quite a lot of good gas through the system, I will let it boost to see what the pattern is. I will use this information later to try to decide what must be done about the bad boost pattern I had before parking the car.
4. Remove the air cleaner, hoses and such to get a look at the turbos to see if I can find the oil leak.
5. If the oil seems turbo related, maybe I will remove them to see what else I can see

This is my plan for now. Any comments or suggestions?

Aaron Cake

iTrader: (1)

I undeleted this thread after some mod I've never heard of deleted it for some vague reasons.

As for the question, was the car properly stored? If not, then you're looking at replacing most of the fuel system at minimum.

http://www.aaroncake.net/rx-7/unstore.htm

Injector cleaner won't help. The injectors will need to be serviced by an injection shop and I don't suggest you run it into boost until you do.

I hope that before you started it up, you lubricated the engine a little by putting some oil into the spark plug holes and turning it over by hand.

Awoken7

Thanks for un-deleting Aaron.

To answer your questions...

Properly stored? No. I was just shut down and not restarted.
Have already boosted (was waiting for this post to be accepted), the pattern was normal. Right now I am thinking that maybe I had lost power to the profec and hadn't noticed? Strange. I cannot claim I know what was going on, but now the car is smooth and just as I remember it. As for starting it the first time, it cranked so slow (dead or sulphated cells in the battery) at first, it might as well have been by hand.

But even though I did not start it using a more cautious method, it is running now.

And so after driving for a day, I am reminded of many of the little annoyances I had with the car before I shut it down:

• CEL - I used to get an occasional CEL. And it is the same now; 9 out of ten runs, no light, but on that tenth time, there it is. I will connect a reader, but it is probably an ERG warning, I'd had it before, replaced the ERG, and it was fine for 4 years.
• TACH - The tach works intermittently. It seems like the wire from the sender has a bad connection. I hope this is it as opposed to having to actually replace the tach itself.
• OIL Pressure - This gauge is also intermittent. I also replaced this sender years ago. I guess I just have to do it again. I wonder if there is an acceptable third party sender. Mazda is not good at making these.
• Fumes - With the top open the fumes can be a little heavy, I need to check the exhaust for leaks, but if I remember correctly this is really an aero problem I cannot really do much about.
• Lights - I have been driving another vehicle I have that has adaptive xenon headlights. Compared to that, driving the seven at night is like driving with no headlights at all. I need to research the latest bulb technology for the 7.
• Boost Controller - I installed the boost controller vertically on the driver kick panel above the dead pedal, close to the door. This really is not convenient. I cannot reach it to adjust it (or turn it on-off) without opening the door. I think I will move it to the glove box and leave enough cable to Velcro it to the tunnel when needed for adjusting. I have ordered a keyed SPST switch that I will install in the dead button between the fog lights and the rear defroster switches. I want to use this switch to turn off the profec (my normal driving mode) and then turn it on only when I want a little more spirited driving. The 5-7 lbs of boost that is provided in the off position is more than enough for driving around town and having a locking switch right at my elbow will allow me to keep the "power off" on the rare occasion I need to turn the car over to a valet; and will be easily go back to full boost whenever I want.
• Rear View - The mirror really blocks the forward view and being so low makes headlights behind me super glaring. I might look for an auto dimming mirror. I would like to install an in-dash GPS, but I really like the stock radio look so I can't see replacing it. But if I could install an in-dash radio with GPS and a rear-view camera display so I could delete the mirror all together (illegal?), then it might be worth it.
• I'd forgotten just how small this car is (and I got a little bigger in the last four years), I will have to go on a diet to get more comfortable in the car.
• Water Injection - When the "power key" is on, I would like to have it also activate a water injection system so I can help protect the engine. It would be nice to be able to tune out some of the heavy exhaust at the same time, but I think I would be a little chicken for that.
• I also forgot how hot it runs, maybe I will go ahead and install that dual probe temperature gauge I have laying around the house. I will make a nice mate for the a-pillar mounted boost gauge.

Can't think of anything else I have planned for the immediate future.

Sgtblue

iTrader: (16)

This is an OBD1 system. Open up the diagnositic box and run a jumper from GRN to TEN and count the CEL flashs as described here: http://www.fd3s.net/engine_codes.html
The sender is commonly the problem. But before spending the $100 or so on yet another new one, remove it, clean it well along with the single spade connection and see what you get.
Speaking of oil, after sitting so long I'd change the oil a couple of times over the next 1000 miles or so...but that's just me.
Same with transmission and differential gear oil. Your well overdue if it's never been done.
I'm only a little over 5"8" so I don't have a problem with the mirror blocking my view. But if you've ever considered having the windows tinted, try that first. I found this helped alot with lights thru the rear window.
You don't want it to run constantly with the ignition. You'd have to carry as much water as gas. A simple, low-key boost activated system is relatively inexpensive and not hard to install. Search and read in the AI section stickys for more information. This is what I did.... https://www.rx7club.com/auxiliary-injection-173/another-option-pump-location-fd-959565/
A temperature gauge is definitely needed. A dual probe is probably nice, but if you still have the throttle-body coolant line just get a single probe aftermarket gauge and install the sensor in a 'T' fitting in that line. Here's a thread on what I'm talking about. IIRC the fitting list is in post #36.... https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...ghlight=sender
I would also drain, flush and replace the coolant/distilled water ASAP after sitting that long. It goes acidic. Don't forget to use the engine block drain (driver's side, center iron) as well as draining the radiator. Consider a good aftermarket radiator if you still have the stock one...and make sure it's FD SPECIFIC....accepts the stock fan assembly; has a drain and nipple on the lower tank for the AST line. IMO stay with a proven brand...Fluidyne, Koyo, Mazdaspeed and others. Just search.
REALLY look over ALL your coolant hoses carefully, especially the turbo coolant lines. Unless they've been changed, I'm guessing your's are pretty swollen. They can be changed with the turbos on the engine. But if you end up pulling the turbos that will make it easier.

Wouldn't hurt to change plugs after so long. Stay with NGK and stock heat-ranges. Just use a bit of anti-seize when installing.

BTW, it's not worth arguing, but I disagree about the fuel system cleaner. BG44K is the best stuff IMO. Aaron Cake is right though, it would be best to pull the injectors and have them professionally cleaned and flow-tested. But it's a BIG job on the FD. It's your call.

Awoken7

Funny. Even as I wrote "get a reader", I knew there was something wrong with that statement because I couldn't think of where I would plug it in!

When I pull the intake tract to get to the plugs, I will pull this unit and check it out. I might even already have one laying around.

6' and I have to hunch down to see if I am about to knock anyone over at intersections. As for the windows, even though I am in the south, I prefer the clear glass. One of the reasons is that I can easily judge the amount of unburned gas I am pumping out under full throttle.

I think you might have mis-read this one. It is not to be switched with the ignition, but as I turn the boost controller on and off. The few times I will be producing more than 7 lbs of boost, the water injection is to be controlled by engine need.

Thanks overall for the comments. I look forward to enjoying this car again.