I would just like to say

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Well today went a bit bad. :(
I was really looking fwd to a pootle in the mini but it all went horribly wrong.
Did it want to start? No, not really.
Got it started and made it to the petrol station forecourt and on the pump with only 2 restarts because it kept dying.
Filled it with Shell's finest "motion-lotion". Went to drive off the forecourt and it "died" right on the roadway and stayed dead.
Pushed it onto the pavement put the hazards on locked it up and walked home for tools.
Came back and tried it again and it started. Hacked it up the road to go round the block and head for home.
Died on the first right turn...... Coasted it down the road to a stop in a safe place. Just would not restart. In danger of warping the battery plates and or burning out the starter. Went home for more tools. Came back in the Rangie. I put a voltmeter across the wires to the coil and 0 Volts with ignition on?
Pulled the wires off and tested each side to ground still 0 Volts with ignition on. I thought the coil was meant to have "juice" until the points/solid-state stuff opened and the coil-field collapsed to provide the spark. I gave up, locked it up and came home.
Myself and BIL towed it back home this evening with an illegal 4T AA tow-rope.
It is sat outside on my drive sulking.
I am sat here typing....sulking. :D
Lots to fix I think. The timing seems Wayyyyyyyyyyy out and I need to go back to basic fault-finding school for a refresher.
I will charge the battery tomorrow and then test the coil with some fly leads to see if it produces a spark. If it does it might mean the electronic dizzy is up the swanee or the timing is so far out it is just not true. Ho-Hum.


See you all tomorrow. ;)
 
DanClarke said:
Well today went a bit bad. :(
I was really looking fwd to a pootle in the mini but it all went horribly wrong.
Did it want to start? No, not really.
Got it started and made it to the petrol station forecourt and on the pump with only 2 restarts because it kept dying.
Filled it with Shell's finest "motion-lotion". Went to drive off the forecourt and it "died" right on the roadway and stayed dead.
Pushed it onto the pavement put the hazards on locked it up and walked home for tools.
Came back and tried it again and it started. Hacked it up the road to go round the block and head for home.
Died on the first right turn...... Coasted it down the road to a stop in a safe place. Just would not restart. In danger of warping the battery plates and or burning out the starter. Went home for more tools. Came back in the Rangie. I put a voltmeter across the wires to the coil and 0 Volts with ignition on?
Pulled the wires off and tested each side to ground still 0 Volts with ignition on. I thought the coil was meant to have "juice" until the points/solid-state stuff opened and the coil-field collapsed to provide the spark. I gave up, locked it up and came home.
Myself and BIL towed it back home this evening with an illegal 4T AA tow-rope.
It is sat outside on my drive sulking.
I am sat here typing....sulking. :D
Lots to fix I think. The timing seems Wayyyyyyyyyyy out and I need to go back to basic fault-finding school for a refresher.
I will charge the battery tomorrow and then test the coil with some fly leads to see if it produces a spark. If it does it might mean the electronic dizzy is up the swanee or the timing is so far out it is just not true. Ho-Hum.


See you all tomorrow. ;)
Click to expand...
It being a Mini and equipped with one of Lucas's finest ignition switches I'd be looking from there to the coil and distributor. Timing's unlikely to have shifted.
 
Stanleysteamer said:
Feeling a bit rubbish today.
Woke up wiv an edache.
Feeling woozy.
Lickle bit of a tight chest.
Very slightly bunged up schnoz.
Glands under chin swollen (although I have that very often for some reason).
Shame as a bit to do before S-i-L can come around and help me fit a stoopidly heavy worktop.
Hey Ho!
:(
Click to expand...

A few peeps I know have had some sort of flu/cold for 3 or 4 weeks now. :oops: A wee hot toddy will sort you out.
Hope your feeling better tomorrow. ;)
 
DanClarke said:
Well today went a bit bad. :(
I was really looking fwd to a pootle in the mini but it all went horribly wrong.
Did it want to start? No, not really.
Got it started and made it to the petrol station forecourt and on the pump with only 2 restarts because it kept dying.
Filled it with Shell's finest "motion-lotion". Went to drive off the forecourt and it "died" right on the roadway and stayed dead.
Pushed it onto the pavement put the hazards on locked it up and walked home for tools.
Came back and tried it again and it started. Hacked it up the road to go round the block and head for home.
Died on the first right turn...... Coasted it down the road to a stop in a safe place. Just would not restart. In danger of warping the battery plates and or burning out the starter. Went home for more tools. Came back in the Rangie. I put a voltmeter across the wires to the coil and 0 Volts with ignition on?
Pulled the wires off and tested each side to ground still 0 Volts with ignition on. I thought the coil was meant to have "juice" until the points/solid-state stuff opened and the coil-field collapsed to provide the spark. I gave up, locked it up and came home.
Myself and BIL towed it back home this evening with an illegal 4T AA tow-rope.
It is sat outside on my drive sulking.
I am sat here typing....sulking. :D
Lots to fix I think. The timing seems Wayyyyyyyyyyy out and I need to go back to basic fault-finding school for a refresher.
I will charge the battery tomorrow and then test the coil with some fly leads to see if it produces a spark. If it does it might mean the electronic dizzy is up the swanee or the timing is so far out it is just not true. Ho-Hum.


See you all tomorrow. ;)
Click to expand...
If it ran before there is no reason to think that the timing has slipped. Did you see/hear it running?
If you have electronic ignition it could be the electronic module thing that sits on the side of the dizzy whose name escapes me. That happened to me in my last Mini. First it ran like a sick dog then needed me to push it home.
Don't panic Capn Mainwaring! You'll sort it.;)
Do you have a decent strobe timing light?
To test a coil you need to test the primary winding with an ohmmeter i.e. the two small connections, should be somewhere between 0.4 and 2 ohms, then test the secondary winding, across one of the smaller connections and the one where the king lead goes, i.e. the big mother in the middle, that should show somewhere between 6k and 10k ohms.
You'll know how to test for a spark, so do that.
It could still be fuel related, i.e anything from a leaky hose, through a dodgy pump, to muck in the carb and or jet.
did you try to start/run it with the choke pulled right out?
Best of luck mate. You must be feeling sick as a dog and angry too! I would be!.:(:(:(
 
DanClarke said:
Morning All. :D
Another fine day of overcast and gloom (and that's just me). :)
The lathe hasn't shrieked like before and the belt isn't slipping horribly, so maybe that's fixed. :)
I might have a browse of the Mini's ignition if it doesn't rain.
Have a lovely day. :D
Click to expand...
Just a thought Dan on my S if the roads where really wet it would cut out and not start until the distributor had been completely dryed out ? I got over this with a marigold glove fingers cut of and stretched over it worked a treat 😐
 
Stanleysteamer said:
If it ran before there is no reason to think that the timing has slipped. Did you see/hear it running?
If you have electronic ignition it could be the electronic module thing that sits on the side of the dizzy whose name escapes me. That happened to me in my last Mini. First it ran like a sick dog then needed me to push it home.
Don't panic Capn Mainwaring! You'll sort it.;)
Do you have a decent strobe timing light?
To test a coil you need to test the primary winding with an ohmmeter i.e. the two small connections, should be somewhere between 0.4 and 2 ohms, then test the secondary winding, across one of the smaller connections and the one where the king lead goes, i.e. the big mother in the middle, that should show somewhere between 6k and 10k ohms.
You'll know how to test for a spark, so do that.
It could still be fuel related, i.e anything from a leaky hose, through a dodgy pump, to muck in the carb and or jet.
did you try to start/run it with the choke pulled right out?
Best of luck mate. You must be feeling sick as a dog and angry too! I would be!.:(:(:(
Click to expand...
Hi Stan, a proper strobe light is on order (fancy one with RPM and what looks like dwell angle functions).
The biggest issue for me is that the car appears to be a "bitser" and I have no idea what the component parts are and/or how well suited to one another they are. It is always a bit disconcerting to find components like dizzy's with no labels and out of eyeshot identifiers with wires not connected and just "taped up" and joints made up from spade terminal sets (M/F) in wires and similarly poorly insulated.
What I find most alarming is the overwhelming stench of petrol inside the cabin (good job I do not smoke).
In my fumblings yesterday I discovered plug 1 was wet and clean (its HT lead was hanging loose/not making proper contact) while plugs 2,3 & 4 were sooted up. Gaps were 35 thou' which may or not be good (depends on coil energy and timing etc.).
I will have a look at it today (while the battery is being re-charged). As you say, it's not a disaster, just annoying.
 
DanClarke said:
Hi Stan, a proper strobe light is on order (fancy one with RPM and what looks like dwell angle functions).
The biggest issue for me is that the car appears to be a "bitser" and I have no idea what the component parts are and/or how well suited to one another they are. It is always a bit disconcerting to find components like dizzy's with no labels and out of eyeshot identifiers with wires not connected and just "taped up" and joints made up from spade terminal sets (M/F) in wires and similarly poorly insulated.
What I find most alarming is the overwhelming stench of petrol inside the cabin (good job I do not smoke).
In my fumblings yesterday I discovered plug 1 was wet and clean (its HT lead was hanging loose/not making proper contact) while plugs 2,3 & 4 were sooted up. Gaps were 35 thou' which may or not be good (depends on coil energy and timing etc.).
I will have a look at it today (while the battery is being re-charged). As you say, it's not a disaster, just annoying.
Click to expand...
I've never been one for checking ohms and volts and stuff with old Minis
Squirt of carb cleaner will see it fire up if electrics are ok
If not then I would start with the fancy electronic dizzy, no idea how to check it though
If it ran before then you can forget timing , dwell angles etc, I would have plugs about 30 with fancy dizzy or 25 with old type
Good luck with it, sun shining here :)
 
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