Go Back   Rotary Car Club > Tech Discussion > RX-7 2nd Gen Specific (1986-92)

RX-7 2nd Gen Specific (1986-92) RX-7 1986-92 Discussion including performance modifications and technical support sections.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 04-10-2009, 10:38 PM   #1
vex
RCC Loves Me Not You
 
vex's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Influx.
Posts: 2,113
Rep Power: 20
vex will become famous soon enough
Let me put it this way: You have a used journal bearing that shows no sign of wear. You spec it and it shows the perfect conditions for the bearing to have.

Compare it to a new journal bearing you have that shows no sign of wear. You spec it and it shows the perfect conditions for the bearing to have.

What's the difference?
vex is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 10:16 AM   #2
DJMOJO
The only DJ in RCC
 
DJMOJO's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Tucson AZ
Posts: 20
Rep Power: 0
DJMOJO is on a distinguished road
id still toss the old one. i guess you dont get my point eather, i get what your saying, and on say, a pulley bearing i totaly get and understand your point. its something that is easily accesable, and if they pulley is still up to spec and has no signs of wear then why replace it. if im tearing down an engine for a rebuild id much rather use a master rebuild kit and not have to worry about specing every single piece. just replace it and get it over with.
__________________
DJMOJO is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 11:51 AM   #3
vex
RCC Loves Me Not You
 
vex's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Influx.
Posts: 2,113
Rep Power: 20
vex will become famous soon enough
Quote:
Originally Posted by DJMOJO View Post
id still toss the old one. i guess you dont get my point eather, i get what your saying, and on say, a pulley bearing i totaly get and understand your point. its something that is easily accesable, and if they pulley is still up to spec and has no signs of wear then why replace it. if im tearing down an engine for a rebuild id much rather use a master rebuild kit and not have to worry about specing every single piece. just replace it and get it over with.

Even with new parts you should still be specing them prior to install. At no point in the rebuild process should you not be specing any part in a high tolerance location (all bearings and seals). So again, beyond a false sense of security, extra work, extra money, there is no benefit (can those really be called a benefit?) to replacing an in-spec part for a new in-spec part. If an old in-spec part does eventually fail in the engine, it's not going to be because the part was old/tired and broke from fatigue, it will occur--more likely from an out of spec, improperly installed, or catastrophic failure from a pre-ignition event. All of which would cause the same exact failure of a new part in the same way.

Now that being said, some parts are better off being replaced even if they're still in spec: Apex seals, if they're of the old 3 piece kind, can easily be upgraded to the newer 2 piece without much issue or head ache. In spec 2 piece so long as you remember which rotor they came from and which apex they came from on that rotor can easily be used for the rebuild if there's enough life in them. If however the apex seals are getting closer to the wear limit (6.5mm~7mm) One should think about replacing them with new because failure of those seals will occur sooner than a new (8mm) apex seal (for further clarification look at the ash content of oils thread in the general tech section). Apex seals are wear parts.

When it comes to bearings however there is absolutely no benefit to replacing the old with the new, unless of course you're stepping up to a 3 window, or race bearing. This is because there is supposed to be no actual contact between the eccentric shaft and the bearing, as well as the rotor bearing should make no actual contact with the eccentric shaft. The journal bearings use the principle of shear to keep wear from occurring, and as such the oil will play a much bigger role in the life of those parts than the actual time in the engine of the part.

So, if I still don't get it. Please explain it to me where the benefit comes from replacing old-in-spec parts with new-in-spec parts?
vex is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-20-2009, 08:30 AM   #4
Shadow24v
Rotary Fan in Training
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 69
Rep Power: 17
Shadow24v is on a distinguished road
Well, i towed my "new" rx-7 home this weekend. 1400mi round trip in 36 hours. Wend down with a 2.3L 4-cyl 2wd manual ranger and a tow dolly to south carolina to pick it up. Loaded the car onto the dolly backwards (drive wheels off the ground) and trundled slowly back. Couldn't go above 55-60 as i had trailer-whip when i hit 65+.

The car is the one that was for sale HERE and there are a couple pics as well.

As far as i can tell, it is in good shape. a SC car all its life i believe, virtually no rust that i saw. Its actually a 87 according to the title with 170K or so miles.

There are some small issues with it (aside from not starting/running)
1) shifter has vertical play, i think the retaining plate is wore out or broken
2) right side mirror housing is broken
3) a triangle-ish vent cover on the right of the dash is MIA (grey interior)
4) e-brake handle casing is cracked and separating
5) minor dings, scratches, loose or cracked interior pieces
6) one of the rear glass latches isn't latching
7) driver's door doesn't lock
8) clutch pedal likes to stick down at the floor (stuck PP maybe?)

As for the motor, Im planning on getting a battery and seeing what it does when i try and start it. I'll probably pump out the tank and replace the fuel filter as well as an oil change and possibly a coolant change.

I still have to change the primary injectors and see if that helps with the flooding/starting issue. I'll post up more later this week when i get a battery and a chance to fiddle with it.

It needs a little TLC but it will definitely get that now BTW, is there supposed to be an RX-7 badge on teh rear? all i have is a "Mazda" one.

And if anyone has an s4 or s5 parting out i'll be interested in parts/pieces to get this back into decent shape
Shadow24v is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 09:05 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Hosted by www.GotPlacement.com