project88turbo
03-01-2008, 03:32 AM
Hi,
My name is Vince and I first learned of the RX-7 and rotaries junior year of high school. An engine with 3 main moving parts was all it took to get me excited. 4 years later, I owned one :-)
But let's Terrantino this a bit.
So I joined teamfc3s.org in 2003 and began to read about the FC, common problems and solutions, etc.
My first car was a 1979 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am WS6. Acquired for $400 from a crackhead in DC. With the title mind you. My dad restored old Mustangs and I just happen to be slightly gay for Burt Reynolds... So I found this car, interior was shot, but it ran and had only a slight hit on the passenger quarter. I learned a lot about working on cars with this Trans Am. Midway through restoring the interior, painting the exterior, and replacing the engine, is when I found an RX-7 I could afford.
I looked at the car, a metallic gray 87 GXL with burgundy interior and read the forsale sign:
"4 New Bridgestone Potenzas $200, Alpine CD player and Infinity speakers $200" No mention of car. Finally got ahold of the guy, and he talked about how fast it was and how he kept the tach over here (finger points towards 5 o'clock). Motor was blown, got the car for $300!
So I brought to the house and finished up the Trans Am, which was very pretty (Cameo white with silver/black/red accent bird decals) but very unreliable. Would crank with no spark, then minutes later start on the first try... No amount of testing, new parts or prayer changed it.
I assessed the GXL to make sure it would be worth putting in an engine, basically made sure everything excluding the engine worked. Resoldered the CPU which fixed the warning lights and horn. Everthing looked good.
So, I began looking for an engine for the RX-7. Found one on ebay and got it for $150. Talked to the guy on the phone, and it was still in the car :icon_tdown: Said it was an automatic that wouldn't go in reverse and wouldn't shift. Said he'd take $400 for the whole car. Bought that one too.
(Insert family drama, moving out of my parents house, etc.)
Since I knew where this would lead, I towed both 7s to my buddies house and we pulled the engines out of both cars, stuck the good engine and best interior parts into the 5 speed car, and got it on the road. All work was done in December outside in 20-40 degree weather. Everything was together, but it wouldn't start. Checked everything, and was stumped. Looked at the fuel rail from my old engine and it hit me. The fuel lines were reversed on the automatic for some reason. Still wouldn't start after that. Made a code reader for $3.69 worth of parts from Radio Shack, and found out it was the Water Thermo Sensor. Switched it with one from old engine,and it fired right up. Rotary nirvana at last.
Then I sold what was left of the automatic to a guy with a base model for $300 so he could put the 5 lug set up and LSD diff in his.
1 1/2 years later, there was the engine fire. No it wasn't the pulsation damper, an injector cracked in the plastic portion. So, I needed an ECU, Engine harness, etc. Ended up 1 1/2 hours from home on Wheel of Fortune road in Dover, DE. A guy with a pink Jeep had 4 7s sitting in his yard and wanted $200 for all of them. Being that I had no yard to put them in, I got the nicest one for $100 dollars, took what I needed to get my car running and was driving my car that night :driving:
Dragged that car, an 86 GXL, home and got creative. At this point my car was several colors as a result of everyone running into my car whilst parked... I took the best of the body panels, the fiberglass wing and aero mirrors that happened to be on it, aluminum hood, and painted it a nice coat of semi-flat black. Took out the bluish interior and spray dyed it black also. Now I was starting to get somewhere. Sold the engine from this car to same guy as my first parts car since his oil seals were long gone for $200. :icon_tup: The remains of this car went to the scrap yard as it had no title.
And then at somepoint, teamfc3s kinda died and I migrated to rx7club.
Then, I heard of a Turbo II in a chicken barn. Went to go look at it and it had already been sold :( About a week later I found out it was someone I knew who got it. He traded his street bike for two 88 Turbos, and a 90 GTU. He couldn't figure out how to work on them so he offered them to me for $1100 for all three :icon_tup:
One of the turbos is my current car, the other was mutilated/missing parts/seized engine, and the GTU was an automatic/wrecked.
Turns out the 1st Turbo II wasn't blown, it had a fried injector. Switched with one from the other Turbo II and IT LIVED!! Took the best of all the parts and put it into this car.
Sold my original GXL for $1000. Sold the remains of the 2nd Turbo II to the same guys as the parts car and engine for $200 + his Racing Beat Catback. Gave GTU to buddy who let me use his shop to do all the work.
I got about a year out the Turbo II before the engine let go, the rear bearing died and the rear rotor wobbled in the housing enough to stick the side seals and loose compression. Kevin Landers fixed that for me, street ported it and here we are today.
Only took me 6 FCs to find a nice one! A FD will oneday be parked alongside it when funds allow, and the best part is the wife is happy with this plan :001_005:
Vince
My name is Vince and I first learned of the RX-7 and rotaries junior year of high school. An engine with 3 main moving parts was all it took to get me excited. 4 years later, I owned one :-)
But let's Terrantino this a bit.
So I joined teamfc3s.org in 2003 and began to read about the FC, common problems and solutions, etc.
My first car was a 1979 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am WS6. Acquired for $400 from a crackhead in DC. With the title mind you. My dad restored old Mustangs and I just happen to be slightly gay for Burt Reynolds... So I found this car, interior was shot, but it ran and had only a slight hit on the passenger quarter. I learned a lot about working on cars with this Trans Am. Midway through restoring the interior, painting the exterior, and replacing the engine, is when I found an RX-7 I could afford.
I looked at the car, a metallic gray 87 GXL with burgundy interior and read the forsale sign:
"4 New Bridgestone Potenzas $200, Alpine CD player and Infinity speakers $200" No mention of car. Finally got ahold of the guy, and he talked about how fast it was and how he kept the tach over here (finger points towards 5 o'clock). Motor was blown, got the car for $300!
So I brought to the house and finished up the Trans Am, which was very pretty (Cameo white with silver/black/red accent bird decals) but very unreliable. Would crank with no spark, then minutes later start on the first try... No amount of testing, new parts or prayer changed it.
I assessed the GXL to make sure it would be worth putting in an engine, basically made sure everything excluding the engine worked. Resoldered the CPU which fixed the warning lights and horn. Everthing looked good.
So, I began looking for an engine for the RX-7. Found one on ebay and got it for $150. Talked to the guy on the phone, and it was still in the car :icon_tdown: Said it was an automatic that wouldn't go in reverse and wouldn't shift. Said he'd take $400 for the whole car. Bought that one too.
(Insert family drama, moving out of my parents house, etc.)
Since I knew where this would lead, I towed both 7s to my buddies house and we pulled the engines out of both cars, stuck the good engine and best interior parts into the 5 speed car, and got it on the road. All work was done in December outside in 20-40 degree weather. Everything was together, but it wouldn't start. Checked everything, and was stumped. Looked at the fuel rail from my old engine and it hit me. The fuel lines were reversed on the automatic for some reason. Still wouldn't start after that. Made a code reader for $3.69 worth of parts from Radio Shack, and found out it was the Water Thermo Sensor. Switched it with one from old engine,and it fired right up. Rotary nirvana at last.
Then I sold what was left of the automatic to a guy with a base model for $300 so he could put the 5 lug set up and LSD diff in his.
1 1/2 years later, there was the engine fire. No it wasn't the pulsation damper, an injector cracked in the plastic portion. So, I needed an ECU, Engine harness, etc. Ended up 1 1/2 hours from home on Wheel of Fortune road in Dover, DE. A guy with a pink Jeep had 4 7s sitting in his yard and wanted $200 for all of them. Being that I had no yard to put them in, I got the nicest one for $100 dollars, took what I needed to get my car running and was driving my car that night :driving:
Dragged that car, an 86 GXL, home and got creative. At this point my car was several colors as a result of everyone running into my car whilst parked... I took the best of the body panels, the fiberglass wing and aero mirrors that happened to be on it, aluminum hood, and painted it a nice coat of semi-flat black. Took out the bluish interior and spray dyed it black also. Now I was starting to get somewhere. Sold the engine from this car to same guy as my first parts car since his oil seals were long gone for $200. :icon_tup: The remains of this car went to the scrap yard as it had no title.
And then at somepoint, teamfc3s kinda died and I migrated to rx7club.
Then, I heard of a Turbo II in a chicken barn. Went to go look at it and it had already been sold :( About a week later I found out it was someone I knew who got it. He traded his street bike for two 88 Turbos, and a 90 GTU. He couldn't figure out how to work on them so he offered them to me for $1100 for all three :icon_tup:
One of the turbos is my current car, the other was mutilated/missing parts/seized engine, and the GTU was an automatic/wrecked.
Turns out the 1st Turbo II wasn't blown, it had a fried injector. Switched with one from the other Turbo II and IT LIVED!! Took the best of all the parts and put it into this car.
Sold my original GXL for $1000. Sold the remains of the 2nd Turbo II to the same guys as the parts car and engine for $200 + his Racing Beat Catback. Gave GTU to buddy who let me use his shop to do all the work.
I got about a year out the Turbo II before the engine let go, the rear bearing died and the rear rotor wobbled in the housing enough to stick the side seals and loose compression. Kevin Landers fixed that for me, street ported it and here we are today.
Only took me 6 FCs to find a nice one! A FD will oneday be parked alongside it when funds allow, and the best part is the wife is happy with this plan :001_005:
Vince