nelmo

Hmm, not conclusive - another battery seemed to start it quicker but still took a couple of attempts. Then, I went out on a run with a local club today and about 70 miles in, the misfire I had a few weeks ago re-appeared . Hacked off with the whole thing, I bit the bullet and bought a new battery, hoping the dodgy electrical issue that the testers showed up was also causing the misfire and a new battery would fix both problems. No such luck - new battery made no difference to the misfire. I got the guy at Halfords to test the old battery (hoping their fancy looking gadget would be more accurate than my cheap multimeter) and he said it was fine - even slightly over-charged, he said. So, back to square one and the misfire is more of a concern...

Aha - possible fix on the way... I ordered some HT signal testers (you plug them into the HT lead and then onto the spark plug) which flash if there is a good signal to the plug and cranked the engine - only 3 of them flashed!! No flash on cylinder 1, the one with the longest cable. As I cranked, eventually it started flashing and the engine started immediately. So it looks like the engine has been trying to start on 3 cylinders only. I swapped out the coil pack and it did the same thing with that one. Checked the HT lead, resistance of 2.5kOhms, same as the others and much better than the old HT lead I took off - that had a 7.5kOhms resistance and with that in place, I didn't get a flash from the tester at all and the engine wouldn't start. Which, as Longboarder said, points the finger at the battery. My wife has inconsiderately taken the tin-top for a trip to the in-laws for the weekend, so I'll do a test with a neighbours car tomorrow (jump leads to my battery) and see what happens. If it starts immediately, it's definitely the battery and a nice simple (sadly not cheap) fix.

Whoah, that looks quick... Couldn't you find a smaller steering wheel? Must have been another button in the haberdashery section?

Ah but there is no such thing as anything being your fault; skid on oil/ice? Sue the council.. Have any accident and you'll have a raft of companies happy to sue somebody for you at no cost to you. Sad state of affairs but EVERYONE gets 'compensation' these days - and we pay for it with higher premiums.

Ah, that's a good idea for a test - I'll try it... I think my battery may have got in this state because my alternator circuit may not be right. I believe the battery warning light is what triggers the alternator charging circuit - is that right? My battery warning light is an LED, not a bulb. GBS tell me that they have some resistance built into their loom so this shouldn't be a problem but I'm not convinced my alternator is charging the battery. With the engine idling, I'm only getting 13.4v across the battery. Even if I rev the engine, it never goes over 13.9v. According to some 'expert' on the web, I should be getting between 13.8v and 15.3v across the battery when revving the engine (or maybe even idling) - is this correct? So, it's possible my alternator is not charging the battery enough. I charged it yesterday because, after trying for ages to start the car, the battery voltage had dropped to 11.9v.

So I had the charger on all day, came back and the battery voltage was 12.8v - fine. Ignition on - 12.3v at the coil pack. Starter motor churning: 11.5v at coil pack plug - seems OK? Significantly, the car did start, although took a while. How do I check the spark at the plug these days? I was planning on just pulling it out, connected to the HT lead, hold near to engine block and turn the ignition (saw a mechanic do this once years ago). But reading online, seen a lot of comments saying this isn't a good idea as it might fry the ECU. Opinions on that? Any other way to test the spark? Edit: just ordered HT lead testers - bit of a rip at £14 but need this sorted.

The cables are the proper battery kit from GBS and only 2 years old. For the engine earth, I filed off the powder coat on the chassis before fitting and then painted over with Hammerite - looks fine to me? It's the same thickness as the battery wires (10mm OD?). Another interesting change is that the engine seems to be running about 5-7 degC hotter than before and this started at the same time - could a weak spark cause that?

Actually, yes, the problem has been since I got the new starter motor. I did check the voltage at the coil pack plug but not while cranking, just with the ignition on. I vaguely recall thinking it was a bit low as well (around 9v) but at the time, I was just checking I was getting something and I wasn't concerned about the numbers - I'll check them again. Problem is, if that is the cause, what to do about it? @MrToad, it is FI and if fuel pressure was a problem, wouldn't it not run once started? Runs fine when it does eventually start.

Is it possible for a battery to have enough power to turn the starter motor but not enough to provide a good enough current to the coil pack? I'm having starting problems recently where I have had to spend quite a while with the starter motor going before the engine finally kicks into life - and it's quite sudden, as if I've suddenly hit a level whereby the coil pack gets a big enough spark to ignite some fuel. All this churning away is possibly killing my battery and this morning, it wouldn't start at all. A voltmeter showed my battery had 12.4 volts and the starter motor churned away but the engine wouldn't kick in. Battery had dropped down to 11.9V when I gave up. I've already changed all the HT leads, spark plugs and coil pack and re-wired the plug to the coil pack, so I was wondering if my battery is shot? But 12.4V sounds ok? (Once started, it runs fine, so I think fuel supply is fine).

Looks great Don't want to be negative but a couple of IVA failures; front tyres stick out past the wheelarches and I doubt those dials on the dash will pass the 'vicious sharp edges' test (I could be wrong though).

I have the same setup as you and had a similar problem, although mine was much worse - major stuttering and kangarooing down the road. I replaced loads of stuff - spark plugs, HT leads, coil pack, re-wired coil pack plug - nada, made no difference. Then, while trying to get the Emerald datalogger to work, I sat idling on the driveway for 10 minutes. Drove off and...misfire gone. So I put it down to dirt in an injector which cleared by just letting the engine idle. BUT....the misfire has appeared again this last weekend - not as bad this time but still there.I'm hoping it's just a dirty injector again and I think I will start by replacing the HP fuel lines - maybe they're breaking up internally and blocking the injectors? Shouldn't be as they're R9 and only 6k miles old but cheap fix to start with. The Emerald datalogger is not much use IMO - does not have any diagnostics or error logging simply because there are no sensors like a normal engine has. It just shows you a graph of RPMs, injector and ignition levels etc. Also, you have to specifically turn it on - it's not on by default so won't have recorded your event.

it's funny you say that - my loom is crimped everywhere because I asked on here before I started wiring it up and I got 3 pages of replies! The responses were 50/50 so I went crimp because I cannot solder to save my life. But on the way back from Stoneleigh, my alternator stopped charging (voltmeter dropped to 11v) and it was because one of my crimped connections had simply separated. I got it going again using gaffer tape and when I got home, I soldered the connection instead and started worrying about all the other crimped connections I have. Loose plugs is more of the problem, I think - every connection should be clipped to something solid before and after the plug and then it probably wouldn't matter whether crimped or soldered. Too late for me - any new builders, save yourselves now!!

Yeah, the guys at GBS said that too me numerous times - half the battle, they reckoned. For me, my tester was most impressed by my use of paint on the nuts, to check for movement. He seemed to think that meant I knew what I was doing (I didn't)

There's software in a fuel gauge? Surely they are all just a bit of basic voltage-sensing electronics? Software suggests a chip, transformer to get from 12v to 5v etc, etc...

Yes, trim needed on cycle wings - I just used the thick edge trim supplied by GBS. Does it say that in the manual? Unless it's changed in the last 2 years since my IVA, just the steering lock is enough (although even that wasn't checked during my IVA).

Emigrate?! Well done - I would just like to have a patch like yours in Hampshire - moving from one great place to another. Taking the boat to France? Is that the steam-driven thing (excuse my ignorance)? Can that go across the Channel?

I did have NGK and I've put them back but no difference. I haven't changed the map on purpose BUT I did start up the Emerald software to use the datalogger - wonder if I changed something by mistake? But I would have had to consciously save it, so I doubt it... I didn't touch the injectors Bob - but I had a misfire which seemed to resolve itself by just leaving the engine to idle for 10 minutes. The only other thing I have noticed is that the engine is running 5 -7 degrees hotter than before I changed all the leads etc. (and not just because of the warmer weather), if that means anything?

Yeah, I put the original coil pack and HT leads back - no difference. I haven't got the original plugs but they were 10 years old (from the crated engine) so doubt they were ever at their best. It seems to be temperature related - first thing in the morning is worst. This evening, it finally started after much cranking and, once the engine was warmer, started immediately after switching off (did it a few times). What the heck does that mean? (FI so no carb icing to worry about ). Edit: ah hold on, maybe some sort of air leak into the plenum which closes up when the engine warms up and expands? Is that plausible or utter rubbish?

I recently changed coil pack, HT leads and plugs (to try cure what turned out to be an injector problem). Ever since, I'm getting intermittent starting problems - the engine turns, I'm getting fuel through (I can smell it eventually and I've taken the fuel system apart to confirm all the pumps work and filters are not blocked) but it just won't fire. It fortunately only seems to be a problem when trying to start up first thing in the morning (so I've not been left stranded anywhere yet). When it does start, it drives fine (no misfires, stuttering, pops or bangs etc) and when I come to start up to come home from work, it's no problem either, although a bit more hesitant than it used to be before the new bits. Battery is fine (12.4v before starting) and I've just tried another set of plugs as the first set were put in by the AA and were all he had in his van at the time. The new set (from Halfords, one of the 4-prong jobs) don't seem to have made any difference one way or the other. I bought these HT leads - could they be the problem? Are they known to be rubbish? I also got this coil pack - again, ok? This is for a 2004/5 2L Blacktop Zetec, FI. Any help appreciated - I'm supposed to be going to Goodwood tomorrow - don't want to have to go in the tin top...

Really?! Is this like the 'no petrol engined cars by 2040' promise ie. *bleep*s? ! Will be interesting to see how our National Grid (already at 95% capacity or something) handles that, considering it seems to take them 20 years to build a single power station.

Great to hear - sadly, I'm doing badly, only having got to one about 5 miles down the road. I had planned to spend an extra day in Wales after my track day in May, with a list of 10 or so to do but a breakdown stopped that. Must do better...

Just give up on it and get a GPS speedo - I'm in the process of doing that (although it seems to be my gauge that's died, sensor is fine).

Identical to mine - good choice

Should you ever use rubber for brake lines? Won't they swell with the hydraulic force, losing your braking force? If that's not a problem and you mean the exposed brake hose to the caliper, it's probably recommended to have it braided. Exposed to the elements, you don't want a stone cutting the pipe and losing all your brakes

Ah, that's interesting because mine has never worked and I was wondering how strict they would be about it - guess it depends on the garage?