Jim Rothe's Mazda RX-7 Page
This document last modified October 7, 2007.
Body Restoration of my RX-7
And more Body Restoration.
Page 3 of my body restoration saga.
The last (and final?) Page of my body restoration saga.
But wait -- there's more!
My new, 1985 GSL-SE. I owned a 1984 GSL-SE for
about three years. I did most of the work on it myself, including removing
and reinstalling the engine after it blew an apex seal in October, 1998.
Mechanically, that car was perfect, but the body had significant rust and
was in need of a restoration. That would have required new doors, front
fenders, a valence, and some professional quality welding and painting.
Those were skills that I didn't have, but I did want to restore that car.
So I started looking around for a parts car. Take a look at what I found....
Stacey's RX-7 , stolen and recovered...
The absolute first thing that you should buy
after you get an RX-7...
Further Reading for GSL-SE Owners
The 1984 Mazda Training Manual is an invaluable
supplement to the 1984 and 1985 Mazda Shop Manuals.
RX-7 Parts Catalogs for all years of the RX-7.
1985 Service Bulletins for the first generation RX-7.
Mailing Lists are probably the next best place
to get technical help on maintaining and modifying RX-7s. If you're brand
new to the rotary scene, though, please make a point of exhausting the
other links below first. The General Information, Personal Pages and Club
Web Sites, and Vendors sections of this page all have excellent technical
information and FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) pages. I've even got a few
tidbits of my own in the Tips section.
General Info about Rotary Engines and Mazda
1984 and 1985 Mazda RX-7 Sales Brochures
-- scanned images of the original dealer literature
March 1984 Car & Driver Article
on the RX-7 GSL-SE -- a great article on the culmination of the first
generation RX-7
Personal Pages and Club Web Sites of RX-7
enthusiasts all over the world
Tips from my own experiences.
Vendors for parts and performance add-ons.
Mailing Lists
The descriptions of the lists below and instructions accompanying them have
all been taken from e-mail messages from the list administrators themselves.
If any information contained below has changed please let me know -- JR.
First Gen RX-7 (SA22C) FB Mailing List, formerly known as the RX7-FB
mailing list
If you have a 1985 or older rotary-powered vehicle (RX-7, -4, -3, etc.) this is probably the best support group out there. Suscription information is here.
Team FC3S - Second Generation RX-7 Mailing List
This group has their own web site, with online instructions for subscribing
to their mailing list. Click here.
The RX-7 Mailing List
Frequently referred to as "the Big List" among the Rotary Cognoscenti, this
list is for *ALL* Mazda Rotary engined vehicles and anything that operates
using the Wankel type rotary engine. The list's main purpose is to discuss
related matters concerning these cars whether it be technical or not.
All opinions and postings are welcome.
To subscribe, send a message to:
rx7@rx7-world.net
With the following line in the body of the message:
subscribe rx7 [email address to subscribe]
You will automatically be sent further instructions when your message is
received.
MARRS RX-7 Mailing List
The Mid-Atlantic Road Racing Series (MARRS) is the SCCA championship road-racing
series that some of my friends have run in for the past few years. The Spec
RX-7 drivers have their own web site and mailing list. Details about their
mailing list are all spelled out
right here.
General Info:
Besides these links, make a point of checking out the "Autocross and
Racing" section of my "Car Stuff" page.
Wankel Rotary Combustion Engines
Motors and Vehicles The RX-7 doesn't have pistons and cylinders.
It's a rotary engine. This site has some techie stuff about how these
engines work.
Mazda History pages from
Mazda's Japan web site.
How Rotary Engines
Work from the Howstuffworks.com web site.
The Rotary Engine Pages is a nice site, including more history lessons
and pictures.
The OS Engines
.30 cubic inch Wankel is more than just an engineering curiosity.
Model airplane builders that I know say it's the smoothest running engine
they've ever used.
Moller International has developed
their own rotary engine for use in aircraft and powerboats. If you're into
planes, check this out. Their two aircraft are amazing.
Rotary Recycle specializes
in maintaining older rotary powered motorcycles.
Citro�n�t
has nothing to do with Mazda, except that French-made Citro�n was
one of few other manufacturers that produced a Wankel-powered automobile.
Site author Julian Marsh has a nice history
of the Wankel engine in a series of web pages.
Personal Pages and Club Web Sites:
Tri-State RX-7 Club , covering
New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
Mazda Sportscar Club of Washington
, DC has some great events. I've run in their Mid-Atlantic Driver's School
at Summit Point Raceway -- an excellent event!
Bay Area Rx7 Club Home Page also has
a nice vendors list.
The Southeast RX-7 Club.
The Peritrochoid -- Paul
Mullen's page includes some excellent tech-tips.
Wankel Net is Tim Schuh's baby.
Mazda Rotary. Jon Booker
did a great job on this site. Includes a first-generation FAQ.
David Randall has one of
the most extreme GSL-SEs that I'm aware of.
Bruce's Modified Mazda
RX7 Page by Bruce Crawford. Bruce is the first person I had ever
met that races these cars. Does pretty well, too.
Todd Hornsby is another
RX-7 fanatic.
Project X-605, by Dave Girvan,
is another great one.
The RX7 Files
tell the real truth about the origins of the RX-7.
Dave Disney has
been a mainstay in rotary-dom for years.
Felix Miata
has a ton of good information about all things rotary.
No Rotor, No Motor. Jason
Wiles' extensive site.
RX-7 Land. Mark Tsai
has a nice site, including tips for starting a flooded RX-7.
Also, see Rotary Performance's tips, in the vendor's section, below.
Efini.net is Wael El-dasher's 3rd
gen site. He's a Tri-State RX-7 Club member, and has the most outrageous
3rd gen that I've ever seen.
Mazspeed --
Mike & Numerik created this nice little site.
The CSP RX-7 Project , by
Jenaro Rodriguez, covers setting up the 1st gen RX-7 for autocross.
The 2nd
Gen FAQ page -- Justin "Tuck" Cordesman did a really nice job on this
page, including a photograph/html-map of a 2nd gen engine compartment with
clickable descriptions. The 6 port second gen engine is so similar to the
GSL-SE that I include it here as a reference.
Yaw Power Products
-- Paul Yaw makes his living making things go faster. His Technical Articles
are must reading for any rotary engine enthusiast.
My own experiences/tips:
Replacement Fusible Links for the first-generation Mazda RX-7
ECU Sensor Monitoring Project
Upgrading Wheels and Tires on a GSL-SE
Enhancing the GSL-SE Stereo System
RX-7 First Generation Steering Gear & Column Replacement
Exhaust System Upgrade for the GSL-SE
Torsen Differential on a GSL-SE
Adjusting the Over-Rev
Buzzer -- this one's not my creation, but my tips section seemed to
be the best place to put it. Credit should go to James S. King on "the big
list."
Abandoned Project: 2nd Gen Air Flow Meter
upgrade for my GSL-SE -- There are so many technical obstacles to
making this work, that I'm going to give up on it. I've come to the conclusion
that if you want to put more air molecules through a GSL-SE air intake, you
need to squish 'em together. In other words, turbocharge! As such, I've sourced
a Cartech turbo kit on E-bay, and that kit will be going into my car soon.
Regardless, others have asked about the feasability of such a project, so
I'll leave this page online indefinitely.
Replacing a Power Antenna
Bleeding or Flushing Clutch Hydraulics
-- how to do the job in 15 minutes
or less, not 8 hours like I once did!
My Engine Parts
Order from when I lost an apex seal on my '84 GSL-SE.
Replacement Battery Cables -- how, why,
and exactly what to buy. This should be standard maintainence on your 18-24
year old sports car.
Running a Rotary Without Oil
-- this is hardly a tip, as I don't advise trying this
at home, but it's an interesting little story about a very durable engine.
Vendors:
Mazda Competition Parts
is Mazda's factory race team support program. You must do some form
of racing to qualify for these discounted stock and aftermarket parts.
( Autocross
, anyone?) There are some brief details about how to sign up for the program
on this page
-- click on "Team Support Program."
Jim Hull's Rotary Restorations business is for sale, and he's selling off his huge inventory of parts.
The Rx-7 Parts Trader is
a great site put together by Brandon Colvin. It's an online database of
cars and parts available from private parties. Covers other import brands,
as well.
Mazdatrix sells racing (and
street) parts for RX-7's. If you don't have their printed catalog, get it!
For $9 plus shipping, there's enough good technical information in there
that's it's worth the money even if you never buy a thing from them.
Racing Beat also sells aftermarket
speed equipment for the RX-7. They also have a great catalog/tech manual,
for the same nine bucks as MazdaTrix. Get that too. BTW, many Racing Beat
products are sold by MazdaTrix, above, at the same price that Racing Beat
sells them. The difference is that the salespeople at MazdaTrix will answer
questions and treat you with respect, whereas the folks at Racing Beat don't
seem to have a clue about how to keep customers.
KD Rotary has quickly proven
themselves to be the most thorough, reliable and inexpensive tuners and mechanics
in the northeast. Not exactly next door to me (2 hours away), but worth
the trip for those special jobs that I can't/won't do myself.
Rotary Performance of
Manassas, VA is arguably the premier 1st and 2nd gen race car builder on
the east coast. Owner Bret DePedro did the rebuild of my street ported
13B engine in my '84.
Rotary Performance of Garland Texas
is one of the best known rotary tuners in the country. Also, they have an
excellent tech tips section
on their site. Check it out.
Precision Import Products
has a guy named Mark Schroeder who really knows his stuff about hi-performance
exhaust systems for rotary engines.
Mazda Auto Recycling is
another used parts source.
Mazmart. Same deal.
Quality Mazda & RX-7 Parts. Ditto.
Roebuck Mazda -- many folks
have recommended them for great discounts on OEM parts. I haven't worked with
them yet, though.
The Tire Rack. These folks have
given me good prices and prompt service on all kinds of tires and wheels.
You just have to get your local mechanic to mount and balance 'em for ya.
Bridgestone/Firestone,
Inc. makes the Bridgestone RE-71. When I bought them, they were arguably
the best tire available in sizes for the 1st gen RX-7. Unfortunately, they've
discontinued my size. That just means that I'll have to upgrade my wheels.
:)
Diamond Racing makes
some really cheap road racing and autocross wheels.