KFelkner02

I have finally got my FC running, it is an 87 N/A, and It was sitting for 4 years, put some ATF in there, and it fixed the problem. My question is, how do you know when an Auto tranny is bad. I would put it into gear and it would move a little bit, and then stop, in both drive an reverse, so we thought it was the brakes, maybe were seised so we jacked back end up, and took both tires off, and inspected brakes, the rotors barely turned when it was in neutral, but we finally got them loosened up, we started it, and put it into gear, and what do you know, they turned, but then I stepped on the brack to go in the opposite dirrection, and it stalled, it doesn't matter what rpm's you have it at it wants to stall, it seems that when you put a load on it, it doesn't like it. Also another thing when I start the car it is also, hard to start, I sometimes have to unplug the fuel pump, and crank it, and then you hear it firing, and about to start and then you plug it in, you also have to give it gas to get fully started, so it really, never does what you say it should by reving up, and then slowing back down. I was told, that the tranny was bad, when I bought the car. Also another thing, when it is in reverse, the right rear wheel does not spin, my buddy said that it was probably normal, but it does spin when you put it into drive or gear, 1 or 2. Thanks for helping me out, in an advance. This is my first car and I would like to get it back out onto the road as soon as possible.

MechE00

If it was sitting for 4 years, hows the fuel? the fuel could very easily have gunked up in that time..

I'm not really sure what you're trying to describe regarding the transmission..

Anyone on this board have some suggestions on what to do about gunked fuel? I'm not sure what you'd need to do to clean out your system.. I'd worry about getting the engine running well before futzing with the tranny. If you were told the tranny was bad, I say believe them at least until you get the motor running well. If you're going to have to replace/rebuild both, it's probably better to just drop back and punt -- get another car.

KFelkner02

Well I drained out the old gas from the tank, and put new in, I don't think that much of anything got up to the engine itself, except what was left in the lines, because the pump was dead when I bought the car, and I replaced that and the fuel filter. Also once it does start to run, it runs great it runs real smooth all the way up to 4500 rpm, I haven't taken it any higher yet, just in case there is not anything else wrong.

MechE00

Fuel injectors clogged? with the bogging under load and flooding and the gas.. umm.. I dunno. Honestly I'm new to 7's, so I'm just basing on general knowledge.

As for the tranny, regarding one wheel spinning and another not, I wouldn't worry about it. If you are jacked up and idling in gear (don't forget jackstands and chock blocks of course), You should be able use your hand or something (with appropriate safety precautions) to slow down/stop one wheel and speed up the other if you don't have a limited slip differential. Anyway, the differences in the speeds of the different wheels is a matter for the differential, not the transmission.. they're separate on the 7.

Do you mind explaining again what the symptoms are that have you worried about the tranny? do you mean it did this while the car was jacked up? If it's jacked up, the engine runs fine, and the car stalls when you put it in gear, it seems like you may have a dead tranny (though I don't know enough about slush shift transmissions to know what might have locked up like that).

You'll have more fun with a manual anyway, just do the swap!

(sorry to not be very helpful)

KFelkner02

quote:
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I would put it into gear and it would move a little bit, and then stop, in both drive an reverse
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By this I meant that when I had the car and wheels on the ground, it would only move a few inches forward and backwards then it would stall, I even tried higher rpm's and it still stalled out. That's why my dad thought it was the brakes, but it might have been, we haven't had the car wheels back down on the ground after that, but it seems to the exact same, when it is jacked up in the air, when the brakes are applied while in gear. Such as like when you put your foot on the brake pedal, usually to put it in to reverse or another gear, it would instantly stall out.
Thanks again, for your help.
I too, am new to RX7's, when I bought the car about three weeks ago I didn't know anything about rotaries, or even these cars, but, ever since, I have learned a great deal from, this forum.

MechE00

Actually, in my experience with auto trannies, they won't stall the car like that. A common technique for getting out into a small spot in traffic is to keep your foot solidly on the brake and press the gas to rev the engine a few seconds ahead of time, and when the opening gets there, you finish flooring the engine and pop your left foot off the brake. Now, this puts extra wear on your drive train, and all that warning/disclaimer stuff. But I'm saying this to point out that the auto trans normally does not bind up with sufficient resistance to stall the engine, even if the brakes are locked..

I don't really understand what you're trying to describe.. you say it stalls out a few seconds after you put it in either drive or reverse? Why is it still running for you to put the brake on to change from forward to reverse? or is it stalling when you put the brake on even when the car is out of gear?

I'm still not 100% certain of the health of your engine... does the air conditioning work? does turning it on cause the engine to stall?

If putting the car in gear is stalling a mostly healthy engine, the tranny is definitely seized/bad.. I don't know if it could be fixed (I'm ignorant about much of auto tranny details/repair/maintenance). If the engine is dying under load any particular load (like running the compressor for air conditioning), your tranny might not be the main culprit.

I guess I'm a bit confused about the things that are causing the engine to stall, and how well the engine works--
First quote you said you can see wheels spinning, is this spinning only for a few seconds, or indefinitely so long as the car is jacked up?
Second quote you say "stop" and third you say "stall", does "stop" mean "stall" or does sometimes it just stops and sometimes it stalls?
So once you get it started, it "runs great" even though you don't have that higher-rev warm-up period.. this means blipping the throttle causes no bogging, you can apply the brake, turn on the AC, etc.? The engine won't stall or have any trouble until you take the transmission out of Park?

KFelkner02

By this I meant that, usally when you go to put the transmission in to gear, you would normally put your foot on the brake. But when I do this, while shifting it into gear (forward or reverse), it just stalls(or stops however you want to say it.) But if you put the car into gear with out stepping on the brake pedal, it will move the wheels, (still jacked up in the air.) The wheels will stay moving until you put your foot on the brake, and then the car stalls. But if you put your foot just on the brake while car is in park it will do nothing, it doesn't stall the engine.

Well when I bought the car someone had taken the belt off the airconditioning compressor, so I can't try and see if it stalls it out. I figured that I might as well get the car running before I do any of the not so important things.

KFelkner02

Actually, could someone tell me on an automatic transmission, what exactly is suppose to happen when you step on the brake pedal, is it suppose to downshift? or what. Or if anyone could direct me to a website. My engine is running fine. because I can take the car and push it out to the street, and run it up and down it but once I step on the brake pedal while in any gear, it will stall out. So it is not practical to run car, while it is having this problem. I also would like to know, what tells the transmission to down shift is it electrical, or by the vacuum. Also I was told there is a Transmission computer, could this be the problem, and where is it located.

MechE00

http://www.howstuffworks.com/automatic-transmission.htm

http://www.howstuffworks.com/torque-converter.htm

I really can't think of any reason the brakes would stall an automatic with a healthy engine...

I can't think of any single point of failure that would cause the torque converter to allow a drag on the engine strong enough to stall it, but allow the car to continue functioning normally in reverse and changing gears.. hmm.. the only thing I can think of is if the RX-7 auto tranny has a lockup clutch and it's jammed on somehow.. I guess that _might_ match your symptoms..

actually, I just checked the Service Manual I have.. it seems to indicate that the 7 does have a lockup clutch for the torque converter.. so I'd say that it's malfunctioning, and that's your problem.. if I had to guess at one particular thing..

Sorry, I'm really not smart or experienced enough with automatics to be of any more help..

good luck..

Edit: Disclaimer! I am not an automotive mechanic-- I am ignorant of transmissions, and just making guesses.. please investigate things for yourself in an appropriate and prudent manner before expending money or effort or putting your safety at risk on the basis of anything I say..

KFelkner02

Thanks, that is exactly what I was looking for.