Discussion
I'm having one of those "stamp your feet and growl" moments.
I suspect I will have the problem solved in the next few days with replacement leads, but partly for info and partly for opinions I thought I'd post.
A few weeks ago we started experiencing a general coughing and hesitation at various points on the rev range.
You can feel the engine dropping to a seven cylinder, 4.375 litre!
Cure up to now has been the following well worn procedure:
1) Pull up
2) Bonnet up
3) Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, "bu££3r", "Fook", "Sheeeeeeeeeet"!!!
(repeat step 3 eight times, burning knuckles, fingers, wrist at random.....!)
And all goes well for a few 100 miles. In fact yesterday, after following the process in Dorset, it was running better and better and then after continuous cruising at about 3,600 revs (clearly not in top gear, Occifer
) for an extended period, we were running smoothest ever by the time I got home. Bet you anything, one of the connectors will be loose this morning 
It is usually one of the middle leads on the right hand side - you check the fit at the dizzy then that pulls the other end loose....
Anyway, the HT leads are two years old now (I see they were replaced on Valentine's Day 2002!), and 31,000 miles ago.
In no particular order...
Anyone else have similar?
Is that reasonable lifetime for the conditions?
What would you consider doing differently?
Which leads would you go for?
I suspect I will have the problem solved in the next few days with replacement leads, but partly for info and partly for opinions I thought I'd post.
A few weeks ago we started experiencing a general coughing and hesitation at various points on the rev range.
You can feel the engine dropping to a seven cylinder, 4.375 litre!
Cure up to now has been the following well worn procedure:
1) Pull up
2) Bonnet up
3) Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, "bu££3r", "Fook", "Sheeeeeeeeeet"!!!
(repeat step 3 eight times, burning knuckles, fingers, wrist at random.....!)
And all goes well for a few 100 miles. In fact yesterday, after following the process in Dorset, it was running better and better and then after continuous cruising at about 3,600 revs (clearly not in top gear, Occifer
) for an extended period, we were running smoothest ever by the time I got home. Bet you anything, one of the connectors will be loose this morning It is usually one of the middle leads on the right hand side - you check the fit at the dizzy then that pulls the other end loose....
Anyway, the HT leads are two years old now (I see they were replaced on Valentine's Day 2002!), and 31,000 miles ago.
In no particular order...
Anyone else have similar?
Is that reasonable lifetime for the conditions?
What would you consider doing differently?
Which leads would you go for?
The joys of 'TVR-wrist' have to be felt to be believed 
The burns will heal eventually though 
Magnecor leads on mine for 18 months now - recommended.
Edited to add even on 7 cylinders, you're still 0.075 of a litre ahead of my precat
>> Edited by ANDY43 on Monday 5th April 09:37
>> Edited by ANDY43 on Monday 5th April 09:43
The burns will heal eventually though Magnecor leads on mine for 18 months now - recommended. Edited to add even on 7 cylinders, you're still 0.075 of a litre ahead of my precat
>> Edited by ANDY43 on Monday 5th April 09:37
>> Edited by ANDY43 on Monday 5th April 09:43
Me too Becky..Had mine changed recently with a new distributor arm and cap by Peninsula and wow what a difference..zzWell there you go - thought I couldn't do anything technical. Well I've opened up the bonnet and replaced the HT leads (some of the old ones were literally falling apart).
Not only that, but the car started again!
Immediately a lot smoother, so we'll have to go and do a short road test.
On Dave Batty's advice I've gone for the original Rover parts. They certainly seem to fit better than the previous ones and, from comments such as Ed's, the Magnecors can be a pain when they decide to pop off....
Not only that, but the car started again!
Immediately a lot smoother, so we'll have to go and do a short road test.
On Dave Batty's advice I've gone for the original Rover parts. They certainly seem to fit better than the previous ones and, from comments such as Ed's, the Magnecors can be a pain when they decide to pop off....
beano500 said:
Well there you go - thought I couldn't do anything technical. Well I've opened up the bonnet and replaced the HT leads (some of the old ones were literally falling apart).
Not only that, but the car started again!
Immediately a lot smoother, so we'll have to go and do a short road test.
On Dave Batty's advice I've gone for the original Rover parts. They certainly seem to fit better than the previous ones and, from comments such as Ed's, the Magnecors can be a pain when they decide to pop off....
..was only a pain for 1st 2 trips.. about the going rate for any work I do myself !
Regards, Ed
starmist said:
But now it goes backwards....
That wouldn't have surprised me! He's running beautifully again now.
Going for another "Purbeck Pootle" at the weekend - can't wait! 
Having an interior cleaning spell now. Wondering if I'm brave enough to tackle a dashboard replacement? A couple of things such as the left central air vent pipe (not the plastic cover the aluminium box behind) has come rattling loose (so I've taken it out to cut down on weight!), one of the indicator bulbs needs replacing and the veneer has two cracks in the main bit and one in the lower section! Been a while since I've helped Leven stay in business
>> Edited by beano500 on Wednesday 7th April 13:34
Found this thread regarding magnecor leads...thought you may find it useful;
Pop-off in Magnecor leads
by Leon
I've seen numerous posts regarding problems with Magnecors popping off, but can't remember seeing any posts with a solution to this notorious problem (where a lead becomes detached from the sparkplug and the engine misfires). Therefore I thought it'd be worth typing the following to stop folks being deterred by thoughts of Magnecors causing them problems.
I bought a set of KV85's a few months ago, and within the first 100 yards of driving one of the leads had been blown clear of the sparkplug well, and the engine was misfiring.
I'd checked and double checked the leads to make sure they were fitted properly, but tried re-fitting them and continued the drive. The popping-off business continued despite my best efforts, so I emailed Magnecor basically saying that if they couldn't come up with a solution I'd like a refund.
I got a reply from Phil De Wit, and he telephoned me not long after. He explained that there are 2 breather holes on each lead- one at the bottom of the rubber boot where it attaches to the sparkplug, and one in the rubber boot which seals to the valve cover of the engine.
One or more of these breather holes is sometimes blocked during manufacture, and if this happens the air trapped in the sparkplug wells has nowhere to go when it heats up and expands (during engine operation).
I checked each lead and sure enough all of the bottom breather holes were blocked. After removing the silicon sealant from these breather holes and re-fitting, I had no more "pop-offs" and still haven't up to now.
They really are great leads as well - I definitely noticed an improvement in engine response, especially low down. The engine also idles much more smoothly, and they look good.
No I'm not on Phil's payroll, but I was almost deterred for life from buying Magnecors which would have been a shame as they're a great product. So anybody who's put off, don't be - they're unlikely to pop off and if they do it's simple to fix.
Also check the Magnecor FAQ at www.magnecor.co.uk/
Pop-off in Magnecor leads
by Leon
I've seen numerous posts regarding problems with Magnecors popping off, but can't remember seeing any posts with a solution to this notorious problem (where a lead becomes detached from the sparkplug and the engine misfires). Therefore I thought it'd be worth typing the following to stop folks being deterred by thoughts of Magnecors causing them problems.
I bought a set of KV85's a few months ago, and within the first 100 yards of driving one of the leads had been blown clear of the sparkplug well, and the engine was misfiring.
I'd checked and double checked the leads to make sure they were fitted properly, but tried re-fitting them and continued the drive. The popping-off business continued despite my best efforts, so I emailed Magnecor basically saying that if they couldn't come up with a solution I'd like a refund.
I got a reply from Phil De Wit, and he telephoned me not long after. He explained that there are 2 breather holes on each lead- one at the bottom of the rubber boot where it attaches to the sparkplug, and one in the rubber boot which seals to the valve cover of the engine.
One or more of these breather holes is sometimes blocked during manufacture, and if this happens the air trapped in the sparkplug wells has nowhere to go when it heats up and expands (during engine operation).
I checked each lead and sure enough all of the bottom breather holes were blocked. After removing the silicon sealant from these breather holes and re-fitting, I had no more "pop-offs" and still haven't up to now.
They really are great leads as well - I definitely noticed an improvement in engine response, especially low down. The engine also idles much more smoothly, and they look good.
No I'm not on Phil's payroll, but I was almost deterred for life from buying Magnecors which would have been a shame as they're a great product. So anybody who's put off, don't be - they're unlikely to pop off and if they do it's simple to fix.
Also check the Magnecor FAQ at www.magnecor.co.uk/
Hamish Price said:
Found this thread regarding magnecor leads...thought you may find it useful;
Pop-off in Magnecor leads
by Leon
I've seen numerous posts regarding problems with Magnecors popping off, but can't remember seeing any posts with a solution to this notorious problem (where a lead becomes detached from the sparkplug and the engine misfires). Therefore I thought it'd be worth typing the following to stop folks being deterred by thoughts of Magnecors causing them problems.
I bought a set of KV85's a few months ago, and within the first 100 yards of driving one of the leads had been blown clear of the sparkplug well, and the engine was misfiring.
I'd checked and double checked the leads to make sure they were fitted properly, but tried re-fitting them and continued the drive. The popping-off business continued despite my best efforts, so I emailed Magnecor basically saying that if they couldn't come up with a solution I'd like a refund.
I got a reply from Phil De Wit, and he telephoned me not long after. He explained that there are 2 breather holes on each lead- one at the bottom of the rubber boot where it attaches to the sparkplug, and one in the rubber boot which seals to the valve cover of the engine.
One or more of these breather holes is sometimes blocked during manufacture, and if this happens the air trapped in the sparkplug wells has nowhere to go when it heats up and expands (during engine operation).
I checked each lead and sure enough all of the bottom breather holes were blocked. After removing the silicon sealant from these breather holes and re-fitting, I had no more "pop-offs" and still haven't up to now.
They really are great leads as well - I definitely noticed an improvement in engine response, especially low down. The engine also idles much more smoothly, and they look good.
No I'm not on Phil's payroll, but I was almost deterred for life from buying Magnecors which would have been a shame as they're a great product. So anybody who's put off, don't be - they're unlikely to pop off and if they do it's simple to fix.
Also check the Magnecor FAQ at www.magnecor.co.uk/
The TVR Griffith / chimaera sets shouldn't have breather holes, Magnecor do have breather holes in some sets i.e for certain Jap engines but not TVRs,
Tim
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