Newbe, 12a question

[savanaman]

Hi All

I understand that 12a rotarys require rebuilding at some stage? What are th signs of this being required??

Also Just seen an 82 with about 65,000 .. it\'s the revs dont come down past 1500 and it sounds a little loud and a bit sluggish.
Body is fine but knowing nothing about theses engines I wanted some advice ?
How much full service and do you think it would cure this.. maybe it\'s a choke problem?
Car is about £1500.  Its supposed to be 12a 6 port. Is this good , does it refer to exhaut ports?
One more thing  back box seems to blow a little... are these easily rplaced or cost fortune?

Thanks all

[MikeLMR]

The 6 port 12a is VERY rare in the UK as they were never sold in the UK. The 6 ports refer to the inlet ports, there are 4 primary ports and then 2 additional secondary ports that open at higher loads/rpm. Its very similar to the systems used on the 2nd gen EGI and the new rx8\'s.

The high idle is not on its own a sign of engine failure. Was the choke pushed back in fully ? These cars have a semi automatic choke system that should take it off once warmed up. The main indications of a good healthy engine are that it starts well when cold and then restarts easilly from hot too, there may be some light smoke at startup but that should clear up shortly after.

As for the car being sluggish, 1st gens don\'t make a great deal of power as standard and a normally aspirated rotary doesn\'t have a big torque peak so they will not feel quick even though they do pull all the way through the rev range. The 6 port 12a\'s do have a little more power over a standard 12a though.

The back boxes are very expensive new from Mazda but second hand or pattern parts are available. (I may know where a back box is available)

Regards ~ Mike

P.S Its nice to see the prospective owner of this very well known car on the forum ... its probably the only one in the UK so it needs looking after

[savanaman]

I have no idea what it is worth  Do you think £2000?

If I have the engine serviced and the rear box replaced what kind of cost might it be.
Oh yes the steering is slighty vague, little bit of play in it.

Thanks for the last post by the way.

[MikeLMR]

The steering being vague is normal, there should be a little play (+ - 1" at the steering wheel rim seems normal) at centre and then it tightens up when you turn the wheels.

The back box really depends if you can find a second hand one for sale in good condition. I seem to recall a new pattern part being in the order of £150+ as ever genuine Mazda parts are excessively expensive.
The servicing shouldn\'t be a great deal as 1st gens are so easy to work on, if you would like a good idea of a service and check up I would recommend that you ring one of the companies that advertise above, some have more experience of the older cars than others but to be honest any decent garage could perform a service, its just the check over and tweaking that would require a specialist.

I wouldn\'t like to comment on the price, other than it must be worth more than another 1st gen in very good condition as its so rare and has the desirable extra\'s such as the 6 port 12a, LSD, rotor wheels, wing mounted  mirrors etc. The question of how much a regular 1st gen in A1 condition is worth is a total minefield !

[Brett]

Is this not Phranques car?

[MikeLMR]

I would guess it is

[savanaman]

yes that is the car!

[Brett]

Have you sorted the engine problem yet?

[savanaman]

No   Have not picked car up,  hopefully it won\'t be serious.