Sorry to hear that. You got lucky (keep reading to understand why I say so) and it was close to home and under favorable circumstances. Kudos on thinking through bypassing the AST. That is a valid option as well, if you want to read more on that topic, look through Articles & FAQ's on http://www.fd3stech.com (no, it wasn't written as a result of your experience).

Hopefully the water temp didn't get too high where the engine water seals weren't damaged. They shouldn't have gotten too high but it is nice to have some facts to reassure you. Generally, if the water temp stayed below the top white line on a FD, you are "safe".

Speaking of water temp gauges, do you have an aftermarket gauge or de-linearized stock guage in there to confirm that? If not, now is a good time to do that. Replace the thermostat while you are at it and do a thorough flush of the cooling system before installing the new components if you can "limp" the car through a warmup cycle with what you have in there. Make sure to run the heater to ensure you flush that out. Coolant has a maintenance schedule like oil and wears out, so write down the date, and keep an eye on it...IIRC, about 2 years is the most you'll want to run a batch of coolant. Try the Mercedes branded coolant (a little more than Prestone and is a little better but isn't Dexcool).

After that experience, I can't believe you would scrimp and NOT buy all new hoses. It is NOT worth the risk.

A major coolant leak that touches the wheels (like the main radiator hoses) could mean putting your car out of control, which might result in you wrecking your car.

I know of a car that met with a significant amount of body damage because of a leaking oil line (coolant is about as slippery in a turn) and this was a VERY experienced driver well versed in car control.

$160 in hoses is far cheaper than thousands in body work and heartache on such a nice car. If you get some of the hoses from Autozone/etc make sure you get a well known brand such as Goodyear/etc, same like for belts (Gates) -- Caroll Smith, a well respected automotive engineer, also points this out in his books. It isn't worth cheaping out.

You should take maintenance seriously before modifying your car any further. If you read the 3rd gen section, a friend of mine (TurboJeff) will vouch for this, if you think I'm "blowing smoke" or the like. I hope that you consider this seriously, as he CONSTANTLY harps on this and has owned over 20 FD's over the years, if you desire additional credibility to his reputation.

As he says: "do it once, do it right"

--Ashraf

 

thanks for the advice, Ashraf. I went ahead and ordered all of the hoses as well, as well as a new thermostat. I am going to order an aftermarket water temp gauge. shoulda had one in before. (probably going to do a oil pressure gauge too)

basically, all the things that I should have bought earlier, are going in now, before any more mods. one of the things I learned is that on an FD even if it looks like it is in good shape, it can still go at any time. maybe, after learning this I graduated from ignorant newbie to i-know-a-couple-of-things-by-learning-them-the-hard-way newbie

 

Man that's what you get for driving it in the rain!

While you're doing all that how about changing that filthy brake flluid! You know you should.

Sorry, to hear about the trouble, but sounds like you took it in stride and handled the problems. If there is anything we can do let us know. I'll join Johny and let you off the hook on dinner at Char Grill. Its the least we can do for someone with all your problems.

 

yea the new rotors, pads, lines, and fluid are going in while i have it in the garage. the fluid will be gone and so clean. also gonna put in a new fuel filter, and an oil change. I am gonna give it a full physical while its up. maybe leaving it up and install an upgraded intercooler, ECU, suspension, 5th gear synchro, etc. but that would put me down for about 6 months or longer. it would be out til the spring. when it came out it would be done, until the engine and/or turbos blow.

I appreciate Johny and Bert being so generous. I hope everyone else lets me slide, too. I just dropped quite a few ben franklins.

 

To all those that Josh owes a Char Grill dinner to - - -

Let's all be gracious to poor Josh, he is in a situation that none of us have been in, read above, but in short his car is broke and he will have to spend lots of $$$$$ to fix it. Can y'all see it in your greedy lil' speed lovin' hearts to let him off the hook and chip in with me on Saturday to buy him dinner at the Char Grill? He will be feelin' so bad 'cause he can't drive his bootiful FD ( Financial Drainer) to the Drive-In.

If we all pitch in a quarter or 2 we should be able to show our support for his situation. Sympathy cards might also be appropriate!

Bert

 

I'll pitch in some money... and i'll bring his car a get well card! If you need any help josh, i'll be more than happy to try and help.

 

well you should....it would be nice

 

HAHAHA, FD=finacial drainer, i love it.........

 

I'll throw in a buck so Josh can eat

 

capn... I don't think we have enough people for that sort of list. Have you tried the classifieds section on the forum?

Oh... by-the-way, I saw a montego blue or black fd going to Hillsborough St. tonight in the rain with me. It was dark and my windows were fogging up a little so I really couldn't tell the color or the guy. I'm pretty sure it was an older (than me) black guy (maybe mid 30's to 40's). He had the racing beat wing that Josh has on his car. Looked very good!
He was also very nice, he waved and I gave him a thumbs up.

 

Hey Taylor, just wanted to let you know that I made arrangements with RotorSports Racing about the wire set. I gave them the inof about your car and the color options you wanted, black or red. Brian replied and said he thought they may have a red set in stock.

If you see the new FD owner again you should do whatever is necessary to get him to the drive-ins, with Josh's car garaged for repairs you FD guys need more cars for the parade and you're getting dominated by the FCs.

Speaking of FDs, has anyone heard from Matt lately, haven't seen him at our Saturday get togethers since he won the first giveaway?

 

I appreciate the offer for a meal at CharGrill, it might be the only meal I can have this month. In all serious, though, I am glad something more expensive didn't go along with it (i.e. engine)

Thanks for the offer to help Taylor. The repair is actually pretty straight forward, it is just a matter of waiting on parts. I am just replacing the radiator with a Fluidyne aluminum, a Pettit AST, and doing all those grubby little hoses.

Capn, I don't think I caught your real name, so I will continue to use your SN. I agree with Taylor. Our group isn't that large yet to have a list like that. If you are looking for 2nd Gen parts the Durham crew and Johny will probably be your best sources. As for us FD guys we kinda keep our parts as some kind of shrine to all the work that has gone into our cars. Personally, I have a collection that I will probably never let go of. Sometimes if we really like the another owner we might offer, but always hoping that they will say no. j/k

 

Hey guys, I just posted a request in the For Sale Section. I am looking for a small screw that one of you guys just may have.


https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?p=3468463#post3468463

If you have ever messed with the Aux port pumps then you know what this part is. I broke one of mine last night. Not sure why it broke, I was not putting much torque on it. So, my aux ports arn't working, not a huge deal, I would just be happier if they were

 

The water pump isn't a bad thing to do, either, if you are going through all that trouble. Generally, 60k is the service interval for it (along with the timing belt if a vehicle is so equipped).

ANY used car is subject to this rule. Learning the hard way is often times the only way human beings will learn...I replaced just about everything except the main block on the "other than RX-7 commuter" but IMHO, it's about as bulletproof as it will ever be.

It's been how long since you came out to the MSCCNC meeting and we pointed that out? As long as you can actually see that there IS fluid in there in the murky hydraulic sea...

You will appreciate the pedal feel when you do it and it isn't a very time consuming thing. You just need a helper to do it if you don't have Speed Bleeders or a pressure bleeder...

Check those wheel bearings, which are even MORE critical than the brake fluid!
(and then suspension as time/money allows)

That's a slippery slope. Keep it off the stands. One month turned into a one year+ in my case. Also, doing too many repair jobs at once isn't the best thing to do for the casual mechanic, then you end up having too many things to troubleshoot all at once if they fail...that tip applies to everything, not just cars...

By the by, I was just "brain idling" and thought some more about your cooling disaster. By hooking the two AST lines together and not having the proper elimination filler neck, you ran a closed cooling system with no overflow relief. This might have contributed to killing the radiator due to high temps and/or incorrect pressure (no pressure relief). Did you swap swap the radiator pressure cap with the filler neck cap by chance when you hooked the lines together?

Cheers,
--Ashraf

 

See post #730 in this thread:
https://www.rx7club.com/showpost.php...&postcount=730

Regards,
--Ashraf

 

After doing it and having the radiator blow. I thought the same thing. I think by doing this I did increase the pressure, therefore, causing/contributing to my radiator's failure. my dad suggested that i should have kept the cap off altogether even if it overflowed it would have had somewhere for the pressure to go and it was only a few miles to home.

I also have to agree with the tip about not doing to many mods. I think I am gonna take the time to replace any and all parts that would be considered routine maintenance(i.e. belts, filters, hoses, etc), but save the mods for later.

I know the brake fluid is disgusting. I keep telling myself I will do it when I do the brakes, but have continued to put off the brake job and therefore the fluid. It will get done before the next time everyone sees the car. Hopefully with a refreshed brake system I will see an improvement in brake feel and response.

Thanks again for the advice, Ashraf. After what just happened, I am happy to hear and act on the voice of experience. I am taking this as a positive, if somewhat costly, event; a time to do some good maintenance on my car before I carry on with the mods.

 

Hey everyone, I am about to become the proud owner of a 93 RX7 (currently sharing a ford focus with my brother, bleh! , but i do own a 04 Suzuki GSX-600R as well) and I am a student at NCSU. Just wanted to introduce myself and look forward to getting to know all you guys.

Rob

 

Gonna have the 7 by saturday? Whats the details on it?

 

Rob, welcome to the group. Congrats on the purchase. Hope to see you at the meet. I will be the one in a mustang.

 

bert, you still want the 4 piston calipers and the TII rear end? 125$ and they're yours the next meet i can come to.

 

hey rob, what year are you at state? also, where are you living?

 

Dave, good to hear from you, I'm definitely interested in the calipers but don't have a need or place to store the rear end. I guess I'll pass on that for now. But when you can bring the calipers? I'll be sure and have the cash.

 

I am gonna buy a FD from a fellow State student and member of this site, he is known as Azaka on this site. The details can be found here https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=328250 , i did manage to get the price down to $12k thankfully. Sadly i won't have it by saturday , as i have to transfer funds between two of my accounts via a check, so i won't have it till tuesday at the earliest, so i will miss the get together on Sat. unless you guys still want me to come, just won't have the car.

I am currently a sophomore at State in Aerospace Engineeing but am probably changing to some other type of engineering. i am staying on the 4th floor of Bragaw.

-Rob

 

come on down to the meet even without the seven; meet the crew. get a dose of rotary to calm your nerves til you pick up your FD.

 

thats cool. it seems like everyone, including myself, who has or will have an rx-7 at state is an engineering student. i'm a freshman staying at UT.