3rd Generation Specific (1993-2002) 1993-2002 Discussion including performance modifications and Technical Support Sections.
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View Poll Results: do you work on your own car?
you do all the work on your car.
114
71.25%
you dont work on your car.
2
1.25%
you do little things.
37
23.13%
i dont have an rx-7.
7
4.38%
Voters: 160. You may not vote on this poll

Do you work on your on car?

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Old 07-01-05, 02:58 PM
  #26  
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i can do tranny stuff, bolts-ons but i can do the rebiult yet. too scared of rippin my motor apart and not knowing how to put it abck 2gether
Old 07-01-05, 03:08 PM
  #27  
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Originally Posted by InvisibleMonkey
EDIT: i mean, it's YOUR car, you know it better than anyone else does, and on top of that, it's a rotary, and IMHO i think that they're really interesting and i think that they are/can be better than piston engines (JUST the pistons alone are 4, 6, 8, or 10 moving parts in engines that are much bigger/heavier than a rotary, compared to an engine that has only 3 or 4 moving parts and is very light) it's just that i think rotaries aren't as widely used, so there's less advances in them
Umm.... not really. Pistons weigh around 1 lb each. A rotor is about 10 lb each. That's heavy. Sure, they rotate and don't boing up and down... that's nice. But, rotaries make up for that by having a TERRIBLE combustion chamber. Rotaries have an inherent disadvantage... and it's exactly this reason that they aren't seen in anything (after the oil crisis of the early 70's) except for sports cars and other "not-so-practical" applications. The gas mileage can never compare to piston cars. THAT is why they aren't widely used...

Take care,
Shad
Old 07-01-05, 03:11 PM
  #28  
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i do maitanence on my own......pretty much all my mods were done at my buddy's shop (not really getting "raped by paying" since he's a friend of mine) and his work is always top notch so its all good. on my daily 240sx i do the work myself
Old 07-01-05, 03:32 PM
  #29  
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i work on my own car. i pay extra rent so i can have a garage to do this in as well. sometimes i have to get someone with a little more strength to losen stuff though.
Old 07-01-05, 04:00 PM
  #30  
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Originally Posted by rynberg
As far as commenting on threads on the forum....I post here to have fun and to help people. There are some definite areas of these cars that I DO NOT post about because I don't know **** about that topic-- but you can guarantee I READ those threads and learn. I certainly have stuck my foot in it a few times, but hey, no one's perfect. I've never once claimed to know everything about these cars (I certainly don't!) and I have and do regularly defer to a few members here who REALLY know their ****. But I CAN tell you that I have helped people on this forum MANY times -- just as the forum has helped me figure something out MANY times.
Well said. If nobody took the time to help others out, there wouldn't be all of this helpful information/wisdom in a nice searchable database for everyone to use.

****, this place has helped me out so much over time that I feel obligated to help others out wherever I can! The way I see it, contribution to the community is like a donation to support it.

I'm sure the people who run this place would gladly accept monetary donations instead, but I have no money as my automotive habit eats all of it...
Old 07-01-05, 04:02 PM
  #31  
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I do nearly all the work myself. There have been one or two times when I didn't want to do a certain job. Resealing the oil pan was one of them. I just didn't feel like doing it myself
Old 07-01-05, 04:25 PM
  #32  
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I've had the car about 3 months now..since then, I've been doing some basic stuff (oil change, sparkplugs, etc). I will be installing gauges and new radiator next. For the bigger projects like engine and tranmission, I won't be dealing with that yet (let shops do for now) until I have more hands-on experience on this incredible machine. Sadly though, my FD is currently in the shop for a 5th gear syncro replacement as well as similar parts around it (Yes, this is me, "efinizero," as I used to go by).

Last edited by FDZero; 07-01-05 at 04:33 PM.
Old 07-01-05, 04:28 PM
  #33  
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Originally Posted by Mahjik
I do all the work on my car (with the help of local friends); and I would have told you the same things as Rynberg.
Ditto, friends can get you a long way.
Old 07-01-05, 05:19 PM
  #34  
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Originally Posted by adam c
I do nearly all the work myself. There have been one or two times when I didn't want to do a certain job. Resealing the oil pan was one of them. I just didn't feel like doing it myself
Don't forget about that hose job, Adam...it's callin for you!

Sonny
Old 07-01-05, 05:22 PM
  #35  
Slower Traffic Keep Right

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With exception of a few friends, no one but myself has worked on my car since about a week after I bought it (clutch job). Also when Steve Kan tuned it.

Doing everything yourself doesn't guarantee that you know everything, but it sure gives you experience if you ever do it again. The key is to be smart enough to know your limits and when you are in over your head.

Back to the original-original post, for those nay sayers that claim a rotary can't be run off a S-AFC, What did they do before the PFC??? Yup, played with an AFC. While I'm not arguing that the PFC is 1000% better than the AFC, saying that it can't be done is as ignotant as saying that the PFC costs too much. One blown engine trying to tune an S-AFC is worth 2+ PFCs.

DISCLAIMER: I don't claim to know much about tuning an S-AFC, or even much about tuning a PFC....but I guess that goes back to my point about knowing your limits.
Old 07-01-05, 05:43 PM
  #36  
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Early on, I took it to a shop that specialized in rotaries. I wish I had never heard of the place. Only long after they went out of business, I found that I had been sabotaged. There is no telling how much that place cost me. Now, I do everything myself. The only thing I haven’t done was the porting of the engine. I left that to an expert.
Old 07-01-05, 05:51 PM
  #37  
Rotary Enthusiast

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this past 2 years i have hated working on my car. its not fun fixing little dumb things as it is enhancing the performance.
Old 07-01-05, 06:25 PM
  #38  
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hahaha i can honestly say i do the work on my car, of course i do need help sometimes but im right there with them the entire time. like last week through last night at 5am i had to fix 3 oil leaks and a coolent leak... and we got bored and i had some cash so i decided to spice her up because she was stock. we put a greddy dual intake,greddy pulley kit, apexi BOV, torque brace, programed the greddy turbo timer all in one day. dave (my friend that helps me, wanted to convert my car into a single turbo but it got too late/early. maybe that will be tonights project
Old 07-01-05, 06:40 PM
  #39  
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i help one friend with his fd for the big stuff (rebuild, turbo changing, radiator install, etc) otherwise he does it. and i may be helping a friend build a monster fd shortly. and yes i work on my own fc.
Old 07-01-05, 06:45 PM
  #40  
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i really wanted to do my engine but didnt ahve the time at all to do it or the proper tools. I figured that by the time i purchased all the right equipment, seals, o-rings, ect. that it would come close to having someone else do it for me. I have done a lot of work on my car, maybe when im not working full time and going to school full time i might have time to tear into an engine.
Old 07-03-05, 03:50 PM
  #41  
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I love my FD i want to do all the work myself but i dont trust my skills like others say and screw it up and then havet to pay some one to fix my mistakes
Old 07-04-05, 12:20 AM
  #42  
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Originally Posted by manny34711
i do some small stuff wheres my friend Aleem who is the master guru of rx7's in my area does most of it. he did my non-seq conversion along with some other things. thanks bro!
you are most welcome. ill help anyone who come to me.. when a rx7 is working bad it just degrades the rep of the car. so if i got to work overtime to make everyone with a rx7 that i know , car run good then thas what ill do. .. for a small fee offcorse. lol .. someone got to pay for the stiff back at the end of the day.
Old 07-04-05, 01:25 PM
  #43  
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Dude, are u serious!? I just read the thread you were referring to as regards the advice you had been given. Rynberg was (and usually is) very professional on this (and all) threads). This thread seems more like an opportunity for you to repair your bruised ego.
"...getting raped by mechanics.." come on, man. Just cuz some one had to set you straight as regards rotary tuning there's no need to follow it up with some rant about "..put this thru spell check and tell me about my car!!!!!.."
None of us know EVERYTHING but thats why we're here. Also we all know of the core group of individuals who CLEARLY devote more time and knowledge to the rest of us. Are you one of those people?
Old 07-04-05, 01:40 PM
  #44  
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the only thing i dont and wont do is tune..thats what steve kan is for..

ive done everything from engine/trany swaps, suspension, turbo swaps, you name it ive done it to my RX. cause when you want somehting done right, you have to do it yourself.

...and im not knocking any rotary shops.

brandon
Old 07-06-05, 12:42 AM
  #45  
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Originally Posted by rynberg
There is a WORLD of difference between wrenching, knowing how to rebuild a motor, etc., and knowing about tuning or the components necessary to properly mod a car. They aren't even the same thing. I didn't see a single post by anyone in that thread that was negative or condescending toward you. If you were offended by my posts in that thread, I don't know what to say. I gave you good advice without any attitude at all so I don't know what else I could have done.

The attitude that you HAVE to work on your own car to own an FD or know anything about it is absurd. Wrenching on a car takes tools, time, and a manual (or experience). I don't have a plethora of the first one and I definitely don't have enough of the second one to do all my own work. There is nothing wrong with paying someone to fix something if you have the money. I know a lot of very experienced wrenchers on this forum that wouldn't dream of rebuilding their own engine. Why? Because other people SPECIALIZE in that and would do a much better job.

As far as commenting on threads on the forum....I post here to have fun and to help people. There are some definite areas of these cars that I DO NOT post about because I don't know **** about that topic-- but you can guarantee I READ those threads and learn. I certainly have stuck my foot in it a few times, but hey, no one's perfect. I've never once claimed to know everything about these cars (I certainly don't!) and I have and do regularly defer to a few members here who REALLY know their ****. But I CAN tell you that I have helped people on this forum MANY times -- just as the forum has helped me figure something out MANY times.

Good luck with modding your car.
i want you to know that this thread wasnt a shot at you at all. however you did cause it. i didnt agree with what you said on how i didnt have enough knowlege to mod my car to that power. the reason i wrote this post was to prove i have knowledge of this car. And like you said i certainly dont know everything about these cars either and one aspect i dont know is tuning. but i am trying to learn about it. and saying that i cant mod my car to that power because i dont know it just isnt true. this is one aspect where i will pay someone who is more experienced and i will steal knowledge. i deffanatly appreciate your input and your right i will get a pfc. i would rather pay now then swap my motor again.
i also think that it is very imporatint to know your car and work on it. i have a good friend who has an r 32 skyline and he knows nothing about the car or anyother car for that matter. he takes it to a shop that charges like $125/hr when something happens and its not even that he cant do anything he dosent even want to learn. he would rather pay? he barely drives it because hes afraid of something happening to it. i think that this is wrong. our cars were made for people who know them to own. thats what sets us aside from the rest. im not saying that if your not a mechanic you shouldent have one, but it will deffanatly help your pockets.

P.S. those of us who have knowlede of this car have an obligation to teach about it to newbees. they need the knowledge too. these cars are too tempermental to pay for the work.
Old 07-06-05, 12:57 AM
  #46  
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the best way to learn is to teach others what you know.
Old 08-10-05, 06:31 PM
  #47  
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i started doing all the work on my car except tuning/rebuild/electrical/porting. the majior things.

Right now the only thing thats stopping me is having a garage like the most of you! since i sit on a hill im limited to what i can do!
Old 08-10-05, 08:03 PM
  #48  
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I do most of the work on my own cars, but for mayor repairs (like replacing the clutch or changing out the engine), I take it to a reliable shop.

Why? (1) Because I have been wrenching on my cars for many years and I get tired of it. Maybe in I had my own personal lift things would be different. (2) It is more cost effective for me to have a reliable shop do the work. (3) I like having a warranty [such as it is] when major expense is involved.
Old 08-10-05, 08:06 PM
  #49  
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I do little things myself (the hose job is a good example). I haven't HAD to do anything major yet.
I would probably not do my own rebuild, even though I've rebuilt piston engines.
I'm lost when it comes to electrical. I can do gauges, but nothing that requires a voltmeter or ohmmeter, for example.
HAving said that, wrenching your own stuff is not that tough. You just have to work at understanding how things work and why they're built the way they are.

A digital camera and Internet access provide a liberating experience for amateur mechanics who work alone.

Nothing replaces having a mentor, though.
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