I'm suffering from my second coolant seal failure. I have never rebuilt a rotary.

I pulled the first one appart it wasn't worth putting back together, and I got this great deal on an engine out of an ITS car only two races on it ( likely story). The first track event it used a gallon of water. At least this one doesn't push all the water out and overheat. This motor smokes under a quick drop in rpm.

my questions

1. what are the thoughts on a stop leak to try to get through a few more events, what do I have to lose ?

2. Is there a secret to the water seals other than everything being in spec.

Thanks

Dave

 

[quote name='smitty' date='Apr 23 2005, 12:55 PM']I'm suffering from my second coolant seal failure. I have never rebuilt a rotary.

I pulled the first one appart it wasn't worth putting back together, and I got this great deal on an engine out of an ITS car only two races on it ( likely story). The first track event it used a gallon of water. At least this one doesn't push all the water out and overheat. This motor smokes under a quick drop in rpm.

my questions

1. what are the thoughts on a stop leak to try to get through a few more events, what do I have to lose ?

2. Is there a secret to the water seals other than everything being in spec.

Thanks

Dave


[/quote]

sorry n/a stock port I'll change that while it's appart.

 

my advice would be to quit while you are ahead, in a manner of speaking. if you haven't already overheated you are asking to do so by continuing to run the engine at events. how did you pass tech anyway? basically i would advise to tear it down before any other engine parts become unusable and go from there. if you do your homework a full rebuild could be a lot cheaper than you imagined...

 

bit the bullet and get a new or rebuild engine [SIZE=7]





pretty much the best and only advise I can give you

 

http://www.rotaryresurrection.com/

TECH

Coolant Seal Fix (Temporary)



DISCLAIMER: "I am not the author of the writeup or developer or the procedure. I believe the original post may have been made by Paul Yaw of Yawpower, but I am not sure. I am only posting the information to be of help to other people, and take no credit for it. I have not personally tried it, and do not know if it will work for your individual application, but I know of people who have had some success with it."



If you're interested in what is to be considered a temporary fix, read on.



The recipe: two cans of Block Weld and some Purple Power degreaser from Pep Boys. The Block Weld is a clear liquid with copper granules blended in.

The process takes *hours* but can be very worthwhile!



Step 1: Clean the heck out of the cooling system - drain the radiator, fill with water and degreaser, run the motor until warm.



Step 2: Repeat 5 or 6 more times.



Step 3: Drain the radiator, fill with water only and run the motor until warm.



Step 4: Repeat 2 or 3 times. You must rinse the system with water until no degreaser is left inside, this is *very* important.



Step 5: When you are sure that the cooling system is very clean inside, refill with water plus two cans of Block Weld (no anti-freeze). Run the motor until warm (about 30 minutes). This hardens the Block Weld where the water is leaking into the motor. Do not rev the motor into high RPM during this process!



Step 6: Leave the motor off for a minimum of three hours



Step 7: Drive for 20-30 minutes in the local area to make sure that the repair has worked. Keep the RPM down! If successful, drain a small amount of water from the radiator and add some anti-freeze. If it's still leaking water into the engine, add another bottle of Block Weld and run the engine for 20-30 minutes. Let stand for three hours again. Test drive again.



Step 8: Drive the car around like you used to... assuming that the process worked!

This process can be a real pain to perform because you have to start the motor to accomplish the warm ups during the steps. Don't forget to pull the fuse when you turn the motor over to push out the water prior to each start up. Cups and cups of water came out of my motor throughout the process! I have been driving the car pretty hard since the temporary fix and it has held up well. It now starts easily, has plenty of power, and hasn't needed any water to be added to the system since I added the Block Weld (about two months ago). It was a lot easier to do this temporary fix than to go out and buy another motor/car, especially since my other one is almost done.

If your motor is shot (like mine was) you've got nothing to lose. If it works for you thank Paul Yaw at YawPower. His crappy little shop truck has been driven pretty hard for two years after this same kind of temporary fix. He claims that his truck's motor was blowing even more water out of it than mine was.





If you follow the directions on the can of Block Weld, it will not work for this type of repair! Follow the steps listed above. Be very aggressive in your efforts to clean the inside of the cooling system.

 

this may not be popular but I tried the temp fix I followed the directions for cleaning then installed bars stop leak. After a couple of heat cycles and an over night cool I preasureized the system to 12psi. Checked preasure the next day at same temp no change. I'm going to drain and refill with Evans at no preasure and ride it out.

Dave

 

Pleas dont take this wong, I am a BIG proponent of EVANS NPG+, but even I cant justify the cost of installing it in a known leaker......



Now if this is the NPG+ that you drained to perform the temp fix, I might could see it.



To me, a set of soft seals is the same cost as 4 gallons of NPG+, I would be inclined to pull a DR. HO on it

 

[quote name='banzaitoyota' date='May 11 2005, 09:51 AM']Pleas dont take this wong, I am a BIG proponent of EVANS NPG+, but even I cant justify the cost of installing it in a known leaker......



Now if this is the NPG+ that you drained to perform the temp fix, I might could see it.



To me, a set of soft seals is the same cost as 4 gallons of NPG+, I would be inclined to pull a DR. HO on it


[/quote]

I hate to admitt It three hours on the track ended in a big puff of smoke. Now I'll buy the soft seals. The good news is I didn't burn up to much of my coolant. That stuff makes a trange smoke when you burn it.

Dave

 

I wouldn't trust any part of that motor if it's overheated at all





Also you realize that you might not just have a failed seal you could have a cracked water seal groove (in the casting)



I tried the bars leak and it plugged my cooling system (the radiator for sure), but the jackets on a rotary in the housings are very tiny, for all I know some of those got plugged and the motor had hot spots all over it while it was running at "OK" temp...



Even at OK temp it was a tad high for my liking, and it eventually overheated



Now the motor is useless and totally warped, although I'll have you know unlike your situation mine overheated severely for ~5 mins...



Once the coolant starts disappearing, cut the losses and stop...



Although I realize it's a bit late for that, closely inspect every part before rebuilding this motor, and do not hesitate to buy new parts...