Shrike

Hi,
I opened up the engine last week and finally had time to clean the parts a little and take some pics. I measured the step on the side and middle irons where the corner seal (I believe) makes a groove that can be up to .004 deep and it seems to be a maximum of .002 or .003.
What is your opinion on this wear visually? If the parts are visually ok to use I will measure the wear a little more.
On the irons there is some slight pitting where the forst o ring sits. When I was removing the carbon and clean it, the pitting showed up,

No history on car, I bought it with a low compression engine. It wouldn't start unless I put oil in the spark plug holes. It's a 2004 with 59000 miles.

Thanks




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28 wear on edges seems to be a bit less than .125 wide



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30 tiny crack on square coolant passage on the inside. Does not go deep, only .125 or so.

Shrike

May I ask a mod to move this to the Series I DYI forum so it might get more visibility for some much needed answers?


Thank you

Shrike

Any advice?

Steve Dallas

Unfortunately, this has become a sleepy forum, and the people who would know may not be around very often.

Shrike

thanks for the reply,
Just trying to see how much it would cost for a rebuild and if it's necessary to replace irons and housings. Housings would be ok but replacing the irons too, would make it too expensive for me (in Canadian dollars after shipping, conversion and taxes...)

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

You can't go by looks, you have to spec the parts. If you take advise from people online based on pics, you are going to have a bad time.

Shrike

Thanks for the input,
My concern was that if visually it is clear that the parts are too worn I won't spec them.
From what I read, the irons dont seem too bad.
The worry that I have is the slight pitting on the area of the first O-Ring from the inside. Is that something that is relatively normal or will it cause leaks for sure?

Did not get my Mazdatrix video yet. Shipping is really long to Canada.

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

Again, you can't go by looks unless the parts are obvious junk. These parts look marginal but again to guess is not smart at all, that is why you see so many "my fresh rebuilt engine won't start" threads.

Shrike

That's what I try avoiding to have to say: my fresh rebuilt engine won't start.
I'll mesure all the critical dimensions and see how they check-out.
I'll post back what happens but it might take a while.
On the other hand I am not sure I'd like to do a rebuild with marginal parts even if they are within tolérances (meaning close to the limit).

Kylemoodytx

Edited....
phone sent me here meant to post elsewhere ..

MincVinyl

@Shrike I always urge people to look at the pricing for what a new complete engine costs+shipping compared to the parts alone. Generally for a first time builder DIY you will not be sure what is good or bad so most people buy full 1400$ seal kits. Realistically people online wont be able to tell by pictures, it is 100x easier to inspect in person and trusting people online can always turn to ****. So consider the possibility of having to buy each iron+housings+rotors+shaft. I'd rather recommend spending 5k on a complete mazda engine vs 5k+ in engine parts that may go together wrong and be destroyed. Not to mention shipping times for individual parts +a month each time you need something.

There's a possibility that all you need is apex seals, few springs, a few side seals, and bearings. Where you'd just run the half used housings(lower than stock compression) Being up in Canada you will probably want new bearings for the rotors and Stat gears, the colder climates can cause these surfaces to wear faster.

Then again there's the possibility that one of your irons is grooved or a housing is chipped/chattered or a rotor had spun its bearing which was caused by an oil system failure that you may just end up putting back together to fail again. Where you'd have been better off getting a brand new engine and essentially having a new car.
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Were the seals stuck inside of the rotors originally? Rusted together due to sitting? The rotors may have pitting and may have issues sealing. The irons may end up with coolant leaks. The seals will be toast, 1st time side seal grinding can make or break if the engine works. I personally have not tried mazda's precut seals based on the rotor slots, but others have had no issues.

What were the compression numbers before oiling the sparkplug holes? After? Hard to believe that low mileage had bad compression, then again if the owner just left it for multiple years without at least starting it.

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

^^the note this thread should end on^^
.