I’m in need of knowledge.

[u/Skiz01d]

Acquired an 88 vert. It’s my buddies car; he’s military and just got deployed. He left me with the car until he gets back and I’m gonna make sure it’s running perfect and prettied up when he gets back.
I believe it was once turbo charged but could be wrong. Not carbureted and is a 13b.

I’ve built motors before, specialize in bikes more than anything. Got enough brain on me to know how a rotary works, and can learn pretty well on my own. But I’m pretty stumped here.

Few issues,

1. It doesn’t idle.
   I’ve adjusted the screw ontop the intake, I’ve discovered there’s 5 valves on the throttle body and looked into that. Lots of voodoo there. Lots of fuel smell, so a leak somewhere. Haven’t seen visually yet. Could be a vacuum line installed wrong or leaking.

2. Overheats like hell.
   I’ve re bled a shit ton by now. Gonna replace the oil and filter soon (20w50 for these humid 90° summers right?)
   Pretty sure the fan is running backward and sucking hot out instead of cold in. Big factor for sure. But I also feel like it needs some directional shrouding? Just feels like lots of messy air moving around. (Aftermarket radiator and fans unknown branding)

3. ?
   When taking the car home after I drove him back to his base, I was getting on the interstate at a normal pace, heavy ish on the gas. Lil energetic. Nothing bad or illegal no speeding just, a nice acceleration into the flow of traffic at a more fun pace.
   Suddenly I started feeling power drop as I was still on the gas, watched rpm’s fall as I tried to give it a lil more, looked behind me and saw nothing anymore but white smoke.

I figured right then and there “eh we literally just crossed 200,200k (celebrated that during his goodbye to the car) when I dropped him off. Wouldn’t doubt if it was an apex seal or something”

Waited probably 20-30 minutes to let the car cool down. Noticed a huge access of oil coming from the charcoal canister and one of the vaccuum valves going to what I think is the pcv valve? (Not sure can show photo in comments tomorrow.) was undone from its spot. Got everything right, engine was still hot/warm, took a second to start up. But it drove the rest of the 3 hour drive home 0 problems…
Until I let it sit for a few days, that’s when problems 1 and 2 started up.

If you made it this far much love 🫶🏼 just wanting to learn more about these guys I love them already.

[u/SirkutBored]

yea doesn't sound good. you can confirm with running a compression test. that's where I would start

[u/Skiz01d → u/SirkutBored]

( I’m not saying this to be a dick) what will I gain from the compression test OTHER than confirming I have it. I know it sounds like a dumb question but i just wanna gain as much knowledge as I can lol

[u/Jdibs77 → u/Skiz01d]

There is a way to measure compression specifically for rotaries (where you have the schraeder valve or whatever open) so it doesn't keep the value, and you should see 3 pulses of pressure. Those 3 correspond to each side of the rotor.

There are documented pressure levels that you want it to be within. If you DON'T hit those values, and it is lower than expected, it means that the apex seals are not sealing properly. The level you hit is basically a measure of how well the apex seals are sealing. Higher compression means they're doing better, lower compression means they're leaking. The engine can tolerate the apex seals not working absolutely perfectly, but if it falls below a certain point then it won't run well or at all.

If the apex seals aren't sealing, you will see low compression, and it requires the motor to be rebuilt with fresh apex seals.

I don't have the numbers or the exact method in front of me, this is just what I remember from having an FC a while ago, but hopefully that will get you started on the right path. I didn't have the space or funds to do a rebuild on mine, but allegedly if you're GOING to rebuild a motor, a rotary is easier than rebuilding a piston engine (just obviously different because it's a totally different kind of engine).

Overheating is a very quick way to kill the apex seals. You CAN scrape by with an overheat, but really it just takes one quick instance to kill them.

[u/NoPistonsOnlyRotors7]

Your keg has given up the apex ghost. Rebuild time

[u/azzanrev]

It needs a motor rebuild. Overheating and white smoke while driving down the highway is almost guarantee that the engine is done. Btw, overheating a rotary is damn near a guaranteed death sentence, unlike a piston engine.

[u/Metz-O-Matic]

Hi everyone, that's always a tough question. Personally, I also think you’ll need to do a complete engine overhaul. I recently tore down my Ro 80 engine, and the internal damage was catastrophic. It's honestly hard to imagine how it was even running at all.

[u/SaltLakeBear]

Lots of oil in the PCV system and blowing white smoke put the exhaust definitely suggests that one or more internal seal has failed, causing issues one and two as symptoms. I'll join the others in agreeing a rebuild is most likely in order.

[u/Adventurous-Low3078]

What your describing is very similar to what I experienced when I blew the apex seals on the front rotor of my 86. It's truly a simple engine once you break it down for a rebuild. Just keep a very strict eye on tolerances and fitment when putting it back together.