Okay, so I killed my front rotor. I realize this is a topic that is posted a lot, but it's a big decision and I'd like direct input for my situation. (all prices in CDN funds)
I bought my car last year for $4500. It had a new J-Spec installed a little before that, the owner hardly put any miles on it after that. I need a custom midpipe and single catback from the mechanic too.

Option 1: The mechanic I'm dealing with knows a guy who works with Mazda doing factory remans. This guy will do my engine on the side for ~$2200 and at even better quality. He will take 30 days. Labour would be ~$350. Factor in cost for rental of a beater. (I don't know few hundred?) +15% sales tax.

Option 2: Get a J-Spec, hopefully S5. ~$1200 for S4 or S5. He will use my intake manifold & endplate /w mechanical oil pump to work with my S4 ECU. I get a better engine, turbo, wastegate. I can sell the left overs including S5 oil pump and everything left on my S4. Figure ~$400 for S5 install. +15% sales tax.

Problem with #1 is that it's bloody expensive. By the time I'm done I'm practically at the price of a new car! There's a guy on the Canadian forum trying to sell his S4 TII with newish J-Spec for $4200. Then again, at that point I'm back to the J-Spec problems. Problem with #2 is that there are few guarentees. Basically the cost is 2:1.

What should I do?

How can I get more guarentees for the engine?

Thanks guys.

 

best bet is to go with a full rebuild. jspec engines are nice and all, but in the end, you're just getting a used engine. and we all know what happens when you buy used. if money is a big issue, i suggest going with a discount engine builder...you at least know all the seals and gaskets are new...anyhow thats my take on it. my 7 is in the shop getting a full rebuild right now. i could have gone with a jspec and saved at least a grand, but the comfort of a rebuild is worth it.

 

heh, im in the same position as you, i bought my car which had a jspec just swapped in it, and the coolant seals went 3 months later. im definitly going to rebuild it, figure another jspec will just be more problems. search around on the forum, noone really has anything good to say about jspecs.

 

except that SOMETIMES they come with some goodies on them

 

Used is used. I plan to invest in tools and teach myself how to rebuild, starting with the spare 12a.

In your guys's cases, I would probably do the rebuild with warranty and add in as much engine-safety mods as possible.

 

What about using a S5 J-spec engine for the reman instead of getting new rotor housings?

 

Jspecs make great cores for rebuilding, but at 10+ years old they all are getting to be wasted from sitting around and generally not worth the trouble of installing unless you don't plan on keeping the car after you put it in.

But again, rebuilding them before installing is a great choice that you may want to consider.

 

JSPECS are Japaneese JUNK!
What do you think, there are all these PRISTINE FC3S's sitting in a lot, properly stored and maintained, waiting to be sent to the US? HAH They are 10 year old(min) engines pulled from JUNK/WRECKED cars. They are decent cores but that is it. They are not a magic bullet

 

wheres a good place to find remans, and jspecs?

 

haved you tryed to find a j=spec engine?? good luck, nobody else can. the docks have been closed for like 4 months. nothing from japan has been unloaded since then. nobody has any in stock that I'm aware of.

 

J-spec engines are good for getting housings.

I thought mazda did all the remans down int eh states now... they closed shop here in canada, and all the remans are done down south i hear.

also the good thing about remans are that it is gaurenteed to work. It may also contain new housings too.

If i were getting a J-spec i would have it rebuilt before i put it in... who knows the history of the j-spec...

and scott is right good luck finding one right now.

 

I got a J-spec motor in august and am just about to wire it up and see how it goes. The only reason I decided to go J-spec is becausae I did an N/A to TII swap and figured a complete motor would be the best start. It lived its previous life as an automatic so it proably hasent been beat to bad........I hope!

 

I tried to rebuild my 13b, and didn't have enough compression to start it by itself. It would start with a push and run poorly.

I said skip it and installed a jspec that has run perfectly.

If I had it to do over again, I would just go with a Mazda reman. The parts cost to rebuild is really high, and there is no guarantee it will work. The reman has a warranty.

 

I bought a Jspec motor last year and it runs great.

 

I am going through the same thing you are. But I said **** the jspec and went for a factory remans. Better quality, plus you know it hasnt been bagged on. You know everything is going to last. I paid a grand for my tii (needed a motor..) and its costing me 2500$ for that motor. But in the end its only money. I dont plan on selling this car for a LONG time so I am willing to dump that kind of cash into it.

 

Yeah I will just rebuild my j-spec when it blows up but im glad at least a couple of you have had some luck with them! I supose im in a different boat tho cause if I got a reman I would have had to find every thing to go on the short block

 

Trust me man.. once you start seeing problems rebuild it then. Do NOT wait till it blows. Thats when the rebuild costs more than a reman short block because you are replacing rotors/housings and possibly a turbo if an apex seal flys out the motor and goes into that. Thats when it is to the point its not worth rebuilding. Its cheaper to buy a reman and part out the old motors good parts.

 

this may be a dumb question but what is a good way to tell if an engine is on its way out? I mean my N/A motor just wouldnt start one day unless I push started it soo............

 

JPEC engines are more of a draw of luck. some engines are good and most are bad.
With a Reman you will at least have a guarentee and backed up by warranty most of the time.

I said Reman if you aren't feeling too lucky these days.

 

Reman for peace of mind. J-Specs are a gamble that I'm not willing to take with my money. Reman may cost more initially but in the longrun its usually cheaper.

 

Exactly. So if you buy a jspec and it blows after 50k, and have to buy another one that blows after 50k thats like 2600$

If you get a reman that blows after 120k thats 2500$ Plus less of a hassel, no ripping motors out again and all that bs.

Compression test it. Make sure its in good running condition, doesnt do any funky things it shouldnt be doing. Make sure its not leaking anything, smell the oil make sure it doesnt smell like gas. No irregular consumptions of oil and coolant etc.

 

I would like to apologize for this question. I'm new here and can't seem to find anything on this.
I have two 7s (both NA) and one needs an engine. I have been looking at remans and it seems to me that Atkins Rotary has the best-looking deal. They are about $500 less than the dealer and are $550 less on the core charge. Even with the $160 in shipping from Atkins, this is still a money-saver. Also, Atkins gives double the warranty and claims to use better-performing modified parts in some of the engine.
What are your opinions on the Atkins engines? Anyone had any experience with these people. They seem very knowledgeable and helpful on the phone.

 

allenbillings -
Atkins is good, so is pineappleracing.com

Note: atkins is a rebuild not a re-man. A re-man is an engine rebuilt by Mazda. They take a core, measure the parts to ensure they are within tolerance and reassemble with some new seals and such.

An Atkins or Pineapple rebuild will give u more new stuff (like new housings - very impt IMO) and a better quality job. The price is only a few hundred $ more...its worth it.

 

Only Pineapple automatically uses new housings, last time I asked Atkins, new housings were XTRA! John

 

Yeah I would like to get mine rebuilt by atkins one of these days when my car is back on the road, shouldnt be too bad cause I live like 30min away from them :P im not too worried about my j-spec tho it was compresion tested before it was sent to me and I picked it up for $900 shiped.....kinda nice to know people sometimes even the inter cooler looks damn near perfect on it