I know this has been discussed many times in this forum but wanted to ask again - looking for some help and advice in picking a good option, recent personal experiences etc

My engine has low compression in one of the rotors - just below Mazda specs (2006, MT, 57.5k miles). Also I autocross the car a lot and I notice lower torque as the engine heats up. So far here is what my search leads me to believe:
* Mazda OEM remanufactured engines are not great - compression all over the place and I even heard accounts of improperly assembled engines.
* Rebuilding my engine seems a better option - I want the peace of mind of a high quality build (does such a mythical thing exist). After reading through several posts - I identified Pineapple racing to be a good candidate. Mazdatrix is close to where I live but I can't find any engine build references. Any other options in SoCal or elsewhere?
* I am assuming that most parts will be new (except the core bits) - rotary housings etc.

Any comments will be really, really appreciated - I am not mechanically equipped to do the build myself and willing to spend a bit to do it right - rather than have to deal with a poor second engine.

(I have tried my best to keep the engine in good health over a period of time - regular plug changes, new coils, premix etc)

 

rotors, housings, and irons can be reused but only if they are in good shape which you wouldnt know until the keg is torn down. 9k used pineapple and seems happy (hes boosted). you could also look at rotary resuriction or mazmart

 

I just had mine rebuilt by pineapple. So far very happy at 1100 miles. I'll be on track and probably get it on the dyno next month. Mine is NA, I had it balanced, with a mild port and some oil mods for better reliability. If you are tracking yours, I would recommend getting it balanced. I think the other mods are optional.

I spoke to both rotary resurrection and Mazdatrix when I was shopping around as well. Both seem solid choices, it depends on what you want.

 

I have been racing a pineapple engine for 5 years. Probably 5-6 weekends per year. It makes within 2HP of the power it made right after breakin.

Rob is a great guy and builds fantastic race and street motors.

While you can save some money reusing housings I would never do it. It's worth the extra money. You have the engine apart spend the extra cash to get a known quantity. Used housings will never be as good as new.

Guys will argue this to death but i would submit from my 10 years owning and racing rotary engines that new housings will always make more power, last longer, and make better compression than used ones.

I also have a turboII rx-7 engine built by pineapple that has been running strong including lots of track use for 10 years. It still makes great power and has good compression.

 

Mazdatrix is fine. If they're near you that would be a convenient option.

 

the more expensive option, but the end result is well proven and it spends a day on an engine dyno being tested & broken in. So you know exactly what you're getting plus just bolt it in and go ...

Drummond Engines 541.761.5520

IMO nobody else has as much Renesis experience/knowledge ... SpeedSource would be my 2nd recommendation, but they're in Florida


.

 

Arvind, contact Tri-Point Engineering. If you want to explore some options we can chat at the SD.

 

Not sure if you made a decision yet... I just posted my first UOA here and everything looks very good:

Used Oil Analysis - Post Them Here - Page 34 - RX8Club.com

 

I also recommend Pineapple Racing, I have about 25,000 miles on my Pineapple engine (balanced, street port, stage II oil mods, Pineapple HD coolant seals, etc) and it has been boosted since day one. As of a few months ago compression was still solid and there are no signs of it failing. I had a low mileage 2008 engine rebuilt but I too would recommend using new housings.

But if you don't plan on keeping the car long then you could just get a cheaper rebuild from some of the other builders. I talked to almost all the builders (with the exception of the likes of Drummond and Speedsource) and Rob at Pineapple was one of the only ones who seemed interested in explaining exactly what he does and the process went perfectly smooth, no BS.

Mazdatrix, Pettit, Racing beat, and a few others just seemed annoyed by being questioned about everything and really did not, or could not explain how the rebuild would go or exactly what they would recommend.

 

Thanks a lot for all the great advice ! I will post my updates once I get it done. I definitely want to keep the car for a while - I don't think there is a very compelling alternative option.