PLEASE HELP....Lotus Elise S1 Keeps Cutting Out

[KingoftheNorth]

Hi!

You'll find the immobiliser connector inside the plastic cover that house the Cobra Alarm, left hand side of the ECU. My Elise is a 1996 S1, so layout may vary I suppose. I can send you a picture, if you'd like - I'm new at the forum so I don't know whether or not there is a PM service.

Order the Immobiliser Bypass at the same time you order the MRFU, as it is as cheap as £6,50, and very easy to install - and test (I suggest you test both seperately in order to identify the problem - that's part of the sport I think).

Leif

[s1elisedriver]

KingoftheNorth said:

Hi!

You'll find the immobiliser connector inside the plastic cover that house the Cobra Alarm, left hand side of the ECU. My Elise is a 1996 S1, so layout may vary I suppose. I can send you a picture, if you'd like - I'm new at the forum so I don't know whether or not there is a PM service.

Order the Immobiliser Bypass at the same time you order the MRFU, as it is as cheap as £6,50, and very easy to install - and test (I suggest you test both seperately in order to identify the problem - that's part of the sport I think).

Leif

yes can send me the picture to [e-mail], i have ordered both already they should be here by next week, is bypassing the alarm also involve jumping pins? or is it just disconnect and connect the bypass unit?

[oodam]

I had the same problem and it was the fuel pump.

It would cope when the tank was above 18 litres normally but when it got below that (and oddly more prone in hotter weather) it would cut out. If I left it a while it would be fine for 10 miles or so. I thought it was too slow to fill the canister (built around the pump to enable cornering etc) but once it managed to fill the canister, I could drive until the canister was empty again. I could be wrong on that one but it explained the intermittent nature of the issue.

[s1elisedriver]

oodam said:

I had the same problem and it was the fuel pump.

It would cope when the tank was above 18 litres normally but when it got below that (and oddly more prone in hotter weather) it would cut out. If I left it a while it would be fine for 10 miles or so. I thought it was too slow to fill the canister (built around the pump to enable cornering etc) but once it managed to fill the canister, I could drive until the canister was empty again. I could be wrong on that one but it explained the intermittent nature of the issue.

i dont know what to believe anymore it can be so many things and the only way im gonna know is when i drive the car in high humidity and wait till it breaks down, so it could be

- mfru unit

- immobiliser

- coil

- fuel pump

i should eliminate the first two by this week.

[KingoftheNorth]

Well - it can be a series of faults, but quite often it boils down to a simple explanation. I'd suggest: start the car and leave it to idle until i stops. Restart it - and it will probably run for another minute or two before it stalls. Then it won't start. Replace one of the components (MFRU or Bypass), and restart the engine and observe what happens.

(I'm an ancient programmer (aged 65) and used to have an analytic approach to problems!)

I've posted a mail with pic's where to plug the Bypass.

Leif

[s1elisedriver]

cheers leif, ive ordered them from elise parts still waiting to arrive i will let you know how i go

[worldwidewebs]

s1elisedriver said:

cheers leif, ive ordered them from elise parts still waiting to arrive i will let you know how i go

Any progress to date?

[s1elisedriver]

worldwidewebs said:

Any progress to date?

we changed the mfru unit today, but the weather has been rainy, wouldnt know if it resolves the problem until its a hot day.

[worldwidewebs]

s1elisedriver said:

we changed the mfru unit today, but the weather has been rainy, wouldnt know if it resolves the problem until its a hot day.

Would be interesting to see what you find.

As I posted earlier, I have a similar problem and replaced the MFRU which did seem to cure it. However, I did a trackday last weekend and at about 3pm and after a number of decent sessions it stalled again whilst idling in the paddock.

So, obviously my issue isn't MFRU related after all but I'm struggling to reproduce it outside of a track setting. The loom's been out and all connectors checked/cleaned so I'm happy it's not that but I'm now looking for the next thing to try...

[s1elisedriver]

worldwidewebs said:

Would be interesting to see what you find.

As I posted earlier, I have a similar problem and replaced the MFRU which did seem to cure it. However, I did a trackday last weekend and at about 3pm and after a number of decent sessions it stalled again whilst idling in the paddock.

So, obviously my issue isn't MFRU related after all but I'm struggling to reproduce it outside of a track setting. The loom's been out and all connectors checked/cleaned so I'm happy it's not that but I'm now looking for the next thing to try...

Have u bypassed ur immobiliser that would be the next thing ill be doing

[worldwidewebs]

s1elisedriver said:

Have u bypassed ur immobiliser that would be the next thing ill be doing

I'll be giving it a go, but the only time I can really test whether it's worked is on a trackday. I could go for a 'spirited' drive all day long and then leave it idling and it'll be fine (and it's sleeting here now so no chance of it recurring) - I only seem to have an issue on trackdays when it gets really hot.

[s1elisedriver]

worldwidewebs said:

I'll be giving it a go, but the only time I can really test whether it's worked is on a trackday. I could go for a 'spirited' drive all day long and then leave it idling and it'll be fine (and it's sleeting here now so no chance of it recurring) - I only seem to have an issue on trackdays when it gets really hot.

It's defiantly an electrical issue bypass the immoboliser then take it for a run let the car idle for a while let me know how u go. I'm pretty sure its that or the coil

[worldwidewebs]

s1elisedriver said:

It's defiantly an electrical issue bypass the immoboliser then take it for a run let the car idle for a while let me know how u go. I'm pretty sure its that or the coil

I will probably try the immobiliser bypass but it could be left all day idling and it won't cut out - only after the best part of a day on track do I ever get any issues (unfortunately - as far as solving the problem goes). How's yours looking - all sorted now?

[s1elisedriver]

worldwidewebs said:

I will probably try the immobiliser bypass but it could be left all day idling and it won't cut out - only after the best part of a day on track do I ever get any issues (unfortunately - as far as solving the problem goes). How's yours looking - all sorted now?

Well its going good for now.. although it hasn't really been hot, mine usually stalls in busy traffic on real hot days unfortunately its going to be raining all week so won't know for a while but if it happens again I will definitely bypassing the immobiliser

[KingoftheNorth]

Hi!

My car would stall after I started it and let it idle for 12-14 minutes. You might as well try that in the garage when it is raining and you don't want to try on the road (Don't sit in the garage when the car is idling, though :-))

Leif

[worldwidewebs]

KingoftheNorth said:

Hi!

My car would stall after I started it and let it idle for 12-14 minutes. You might as well try that in the garage when it is raining and you don't want to try on the road (Don't sit in the garage when the car is idling, though :-))

Leif

I can't replicate it like that - it has to be track hot unfortunately

[s1elisedriver]

worldwidewebs said:

I can't replicate it like that - it has to be track hot unfortunately

Same with mine, no matter how long I leave it, it won't stall. Any progress to date on the bypass ?

[KingoftheNorth]

Hi!

What's status now?

[s1elisedriver]

KingoftheNorth said:

Hi!

What's status now?

it was 33 degrees yesterday and took out the lotus, it went ok with no problems. Im guessing changing the mfru unit has fixed the problem, still i cannot be 100% positive..

[KingoftheNorth]

Good!

Did you bypass the immobiliser as well?