Check out the speed academy wankel build Speed Academy. The videos of the rebuild are pretty good in that they have a very knowledgeable wankel rebuild expert help out...

Video

Fun!

Too bad I don't live one neighborhood over anymore! I could have come over and nodded and supervised and whatnot. We don't make it out that way much these days.

We're looking for a Beetle for me and my son to do a Meyers Manxter.

Where'd ya stop for boudin?

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:
This project made me remember reading about how people sometimes use two stroke premix in their Wankel/13B engines. I decided to do an interwebs search to figure out if the Wankel rotary engine is more like a two stroke or more like a four stroke engine. I know the premix is because of the apex seals.

The 13B uses an oil injection system, using some oil from the oil pan.
Going dry sump will negate that system & I'll have to go with premix.

quote:

Originally posted by tigereye313:
Fun!

Too bad I don't live one neighborhood over anymore! I could have come over and nodded and supervised and whatnot. We don't make it out that way much these days.

We're looking for a Beetle for me and my son to do a Meyers Manxter.

Where'd ya stop for boudin?

We stopped at Billy's on the W side of Lafayette, in Scott.

I love the idea of a car that runs premix. How much do they smoke? Is it anything like a vintage 1970’s two stroke motorcycle? I’m assuming it’s not that bad. Given how it fouls up an exhaust and plugs the tuners are probably trying to reduce that delicious blue smoke as much as possible.

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

quote:

Originally posted by tigereye313:
Fun!

Too bad I don't live one neighborhood over anymore! I could have come over and nodded and supervised and whatnot. We don't make it out that way much these days.

We're looking for a Beetle for me and my son to do a Meyers Manxter.

Where'd ya stop for boudin?

We stopped at Billy's on the W side of Lafayette, in Scott.

I could tell by your picture that you were at Billy's.
Hey the I-10 traffic is fun everyday in Baton Rouge. That bridge can be a nightmare.

About the thread title: Maybe “Simplicate” rather than “Simplify”.

“Stout is remembered for his engineering credo, "Simplicate and add more lightness." This would later become best known as the adopted maxim of Colin Chapman of Lotus Cars. It actually originated with Stout's designer Gordon Hooton.”

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wik...ushnell_Stout#Legacy

“The late Ed Heinemann was a designer at Douglas Aircraft. He was responsible for the A-4 Skyhawk, a single-seater with an empty weight of less than 10,000 pounds that served for a long time as the smallest carrier-based attack aircraft in the Navy's arsenal. It embodied the now-famous design philosophy emblazoned on Heinemann's office wall: "Simplicate and Add Lightness."

https://www.flyingmag.com/technicalities-5/

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:
I love the idea of a car that runs premix. How much do they smoke? Is it anything like a vintage 1970’s two stroke motorcycle? I’m assuming it’s not that bad. Given how it fouls up an exhaust and plugs the tuners are probably trying to reduce that delicious blue smoke as much as possible.

None of the RX7s I've driven were smokers, but they were all relatively stock.
Hopefully this won't be either, with running a pre-mix, unless I can find a solution for the oil injection system.

Bit of progress last night. Got the diff pulled (which was Tetris'ed in there), pulled the brake/clutch pedal box & associated master cylinder reservoirs, started trying to organize the web of wiring to get all that pulled.

Picked up some Ospho & a wire brush, hoping to start on that soon.

Photos to follow once I pull them off the Nikon.

Is the frame commercially/professionally welded or do you have to worry about a garage hobbyist welding that entire structure up diving into turn three hard on the brakes at 100 mph with your ass in it?

Cool, nice project!

Your project brings back memories. Autocross raced a modded '93 RX7, it was no pooch. The car I couldn't touch was a Caterham Super 7 JPE, driver was very good as well. Always lusted after that car.

Look forward to seeing your progress. Have fun!

quote:

Originally posted by ArtieS:
Is the frame commercially/professionally welded or do you have to worry about a garage hobbyist welding that entire structure up diving into turn three hard on the brakes at 100 mph with your ass in it?

Fully homebuilt, will be going over every joint & weld before painting the frame/chassis.

Good to know. I'm glad you are going to do that, as it would be a worry.

Fascinating project, and I'm jealous! Looks like a ton of fun to build, and will be amazing with that high revving rotary in the nose.

Good luck and please keep the pictures coming!

Almost done moving backwards. Spent a bit of time in the garage over the weekend.
Got the diff pulled, which was a bit of a chore, as there are 2 longitudinal crossmembers that prevent it from dropping straight out. Took some creative maneuvering to get 1 side of the upper diff mount to clear it, then the other side dropped out easily.
Finished clearing the cowl/dash/firewall. Pulled the brake/clutch assembly & their respective M/Cs, pulled all of the wiring & components (possibly the part I'm lease looking forward to in the future), and got the front brake lines pulled.
I gave some effort to trying to remove the engine/trans, but was not able to separate them far enough to pull them individually. The bellhousing on the trans hits the trans tunnel rails before it's able to fully separate from the engine & the engine is flanked on 3 sides by frame rails, so it cannot be easily moved either. New plan, with them reattached to each other, is to raise them as a single unit, slide forward, then separate them again to remove the engine; trans should follow forward easily.

Just have the accelerator pedal & engine/trans to pull, then I can start rustoration, followed by finish welding & installing the missing bits for the rear suspension. Then comes frame paint & reassembly can begin.

Current status:

Small victory/progress.
Got the trans pulled last night. Took a bit of maneuvering, but it dropped out pretty easily & was a lot lighter than I was expecting.
Now I just need to recruit some assistance removing the lump of 13B & I can start on the frame.

Recruited some help & the engine should be coming out this afternoon.
That'll be the last backward step & things can start moving forward.

Down to the bones.
Recruited some help in getting the engine removed, and wow that 13B is heavy for being so small.
Got the frame up on a couple tables & at a more workable height to start on the cleanup. Going to order a dye penetrant kit to check the finished welds on the frame then paint.

quote:

Originally posted by FlyingScot:
Check out the speed academy wankel build Speed Academy. The videos of the rebuild are pretty good in that they have a very knowledgeable wankel rebuild expert help out...

Video

Happened upon Speed Academy yesterday & watched a couple of their teardown/assembly videos & am midway through their 10k RPM build.

Was looking at the 'dead' 13B that I have & on a whim gave the clutch a spin. Engine spins freely with no noticeable dragging/snags.
Planning on disassembling it to see how it looks inside & assess if it's maybe viable to rebuild.

Not much to report this week, so far. Hoping to get some garage time this weekend.

Popped up a Dexter Kill Room rust tent in the garage to try to mitigate the rust dust to a secluded area.
Have worked back to almost the firewall area with a wire brush, lots of nooks & crannies in the engine area.



Also got a lot of the parts stored away & off the ground right next to the work area. Makes getting around the frame a lot easier.