broken down :(

[turbodave]

on the way home tonight my car just died
driving along at a steady 30 and i lost all power so i pulled over and the engine cut out.
i tried starting it but it wouldn't fire. it turns over fine, brand new starter motor today but it just wont fire up.
i have petrol coming through. i have spark at king lead but no spark to other leads.
will a new rotor and dizzy solve this or could it be something else?
thanks

[Nayls]

mix screw still present?

[turbodave]

yep

[raj]

you say you've had a new starter fitted today.! have you checked to see if the live feed to the starter hasnt shorted on the downpipe.? just an idea as this happened to me when i didnt secure the live feed properly.

[turbodave]

yeah all connections are on fine.

[Sparkie]

check your tdc sensor lead. or your dizzy cap centre electrode.

[Mr_Dave]

check your tdc sensor lead. or your dizzy cap centre electrode.

:agree: Good call. My dizzy centre electrode fell out this eve as it happens!

[turbodave]

the litte pin that sits on a spring? thats still there. well off to gsf. get a new dizzy
fingers crossed.

[djinuk]

it never harms to have a spare dizzy and rotor arm even if its not the cause of the problem.

btw you have a pm turbodave.

[turbodave]

got new rotor arm and dizzy but still no luck.
i now have a spark to the individual leads but still no life.

[IANMM]

so you got fuel and a spark.....??

have you tried a little fuel down each plug hole to see if it fires ?

[turbodave]

yep fuel and spark coming through.
think its either tdc. aei or overboost wires shorting.
anything else i should check?
cheers

[RICHIE]

check the plugs arnt wet were you have flooded it if you have spark it wont be the overboost wires

[turbodave]

im leaving it now been on the god damn thing all day.
if i leave it untill morning the plugs will be dried out?
ok then so just either tdc or aei unit?

[RICHIE]

im leaving it now been on the god damn thing all day.
if i leave it untill morning the plugs will be dried out?
ok then so just either tdc or aei unit?

no if you have spark its very unlikely tdc or aei unit. if you take the dizzy cap off and crank it does the gear rotate. have you put the new cap on right and your not 180 degrees out swap lead order to quick test if you want

[turbodave]

yep the shaft spins.
100% isn't 180 out as i had the caps next to eachother and lined up the little tab on the dizzy cap where it sits in the dizzy.

[RICHIE]

yep the shaft spins.
100% isn't 180 out as i had the caps next to eachother and lined up the little tab on the dizzy cap where it sits in the dizzy.

so you defintely have spark on every lead and fuel. take plugs out see if there wet give them a little clean check the plug carries the spark.

[turbodave]

yep spark on all leads
crap, the only thig i didn't check. ill get straight on it in the morning as weathers really bad now. hopefully its knackered plugs then. nice easy fix.
thanks for the help everyone.

[turbodave]

ok just checked. no.1 sparkplug carries spark, no.2 doesn't so im off to gsf get a new set of plugs.

[Bigfoot]

ok just checked. no.1 sparkplug carries spark, no.2 doesn't so im off to gsf get a new set of plugs.

How did you test the plugs out of interest. place no 2 plug in no 1 and still no spark?

[turbodave]

left plug on lead and placed it on a bare metal peice of the body.
new plugs on and it fired up but then died, off to get some petrol as i think its empty

jus inspected old plugs and one does not look right. it obviously has usual blackness at the end of the plug but this extends up the thread and onto the plug which the lead goes onto. does this indicate the plug hole in the head may be damaged?

[RICHIE]

so each individual lead carries spark as said try a plug that you know carries the spark on the lead that wasnt

[turbodave]

yeah got brand new plugs and they all carry a spark now.

[RICHIE]

yeah got brand new plugs and they all carry a spark now.

so does it run now

[turbodave]

it will fire up but then die afta 5 or 10 seconds and then wont start for like 3,4 hours and just keeps doin that :confused:

[RICHIE]

it will fire up but then die afta 5 or 10 seconds and then wont start for like 3,4 hours and just keeps doin that :confused:

are you sure your getting fuel when cranking.

[Mr_Dave]

Sounds like a fuel pressure problem? You say it might be out of fuel? Did you run it really low?

Could just be some crap in the filter causing a blockage?

I'd be pulling the fuel pipe off the carb, put a container on the end and cranking the engine over, see if its pumping ok.

Either that or the pump relay has packed up?

[turbodave]

yeah im definitely getting fuel i checked earlier today.

[turbodave]

just been out working on the 5, fitted new downpipe. went to start the car after i had finished and it fired up but again died after 10 or so seconds. i checked for fuel and spark and i have both and now it wont start just keeps turning over.
any help guys im at a real loss with it now.
thanks

[Tiny Tim]

How strong is the spark?

[turbodave]

seems pretty strong to me. just seems strange how it will start and then wont start again for a few hours.

[Tiny Tim]

Carb isnt leaking is it? Sounds like the float chamber could be emptying quicker than it should.

Manually give the throttle a few squirts and try again.

[turbodave]

ive tried pumping it, you can hear the fuel squirting through but still nothing

[Tiny Tim]

Have you pumped it before you start it though?

What's the age/condition of the leads, plugs and dizzy?

[turbodave]

yep :(
there all brand new, apart from leads which may have done 500miles?

[Tiny Tim]

I'd probably start by enlisting a mate to turn it over whilst you wiggle all the leads, TDC sensor etc.

Try swapping the Relay by the AEI for the one on the Rad fan loom.

[turbodave]

whats the relay for by the aei?

[turbodave]

ok.... big oil leak. looks like its coming from behind the flywheel, being thrown out everywhere. and its all over the floor

[Sy5GTT]

Not the turbo oil return is it?

[turbodave]

nope definetly not.
cant pinpoint where its from, around by the tdc is covered with oil and underneath the car it pissing down the flywheel stone cover.

[Mr_Dave]

Sounds like the crankshaft oil seal if its engine oil, else the gearbox input shaft seal?

[turbodave]

its engine oil.
how much work involved?
thanks

[Mr_Dave]

heh, lots :( Engine out job. You can prise out the old seal and get another in just by taking off the flywheel. Its a tad tricky. Else its sump/bearing shell off.

I've had a couple go. One only leaked when you filled the oil up right to the max, didn't leak at 3/4's full, so I left that one. Had to change one at last year tho as it was contaminating the clutch. Have you overfilled the oil or something?

You said that one plug was different to the rest? Might be worth doing a compression test? Just wondering if the rings are a bit worn and you're getting a bit of pressure in the crank case, maybe the breather is blocked?

Won't stop the engine running though! :)

[turbodave]

damn.
yeah probly worth geting compression test done :mad:
not my weekend at all.