Door microswitch
Discussion
So, after window-shopping for Tuscans on Autotrader and the PH classifieds for over a year, I finally took the plunge and put down a deposit last week on a 2000 Mk1 Tuscan 4.0 (obligatory pic below). Picked it up today and was grinning all the way home, despite the best efforts of the British weather and the M25 to put a damper on proceedings 
What a fantastic car!
The car:
Having never owned a TVR before, I was wondering how long it would be before the anticipated electrical quirks (sorry, 'design features') reared their heads - not long as it turns out... Just as I'm pulling onto the motorway at the start of the journey home, the heavens open and the O/S window promptly drops halfway down and stays there, resulting in the binnacle/door card/my crotch getting thoroughly drenched in a matter of seconds. I quickly surmised that the car must have decided that the door was open and had therefore dropped the window (if I'm honest, the "door open!" message on the LCD screen was a bit of a clue).
Solution: drop the window all the way to the bottom, stick an arm out and give the door a few firm tugs until the car agrees that yes, it really is shut, at which point you are then permitted to raise the window and shut the weather back out where it belongs. An interesting process while travelling at 70 on a busy motorway in an unfamiliar car which you are acutely aware has a reputation for breaking traction at the slightest provocation even under ideal driving conditions...
The same thing happened again a few more times on the drive home, but thankfully only after it had stopped raining. I figured that there was probably a fault in the microswitch that senses when the door is closed, so I popped off the cover plate for the door latch when I got home to have a closer look. Pics are below:
Door lock:
Detail of microswitch:
Question for all the Tuscan experts: is the arm on the microswitch supposed to be bent in that way? This pic on the TVR Power website shows the arm as being perfectly straight:
http://www.powersperformance.co.uk/store/slug/door...
On the other hand, the microswitch does still seem to be triggered when manually moving the door latch to the 'closed' position, so perhaps it is mechanically fine. Could these symptoms be produced by water getting in to the microswitch? The problem did first arise during a fairly torrential downpour, so that might be the likely culprit. Anyone got any thoughts/suggestions?
What a fantastic car!The car:
Having never owned a TVR before, I was wondering how long it would be before the anticipated electrical quirks (sorry, 'design features') reared their heads - not long as it turns out... Just as I'm pulling onto the motorway at the start of the journey home, the heavens open and the O/S window promptly drops halfway down and stays there, resulting in the binnacle/door card/my crotch getting thoroughly drenched in a matter of seconds. I quickly surmised that the car must have decided that the door was open and had therefore dropped the window (if I'm honest, the "door open!" message on the LCD screen was a bit of a clue).
Solution: drop the window all the way to the bottom, stick an arm out and give the door a few firm tugs until the car agrees that yes, it really is shut, at which point you are then permitted to raise the window and shut the weather back out where it belongs. An interesting process while travelling at 70 on a busy motorway in an unfamiliar car which you are acutely aware has a reputation for breaking traction at the slightest provocation even under ideal driving conditions...
The same thing happened again a few more times on the drive home, but thankfully only after it had stopped raining. I figured that there was probably a fault in the microswitch that senses when the door is closed, so I popped off the cover plate for the door latch when I got home to have a closer look. Pics are below:
Door lock:
Detail of microswitch:
Question for all the Tuscan experts: is the arm on the microswitch supposed to be bent in that way? This pic on the TVR Power website shows the arm as being perfectly straight:
http://www.powersperformance.co.uk/store/slug/door...
On the other hand, the microswitch does still seem to be triggered when manually moving the door latch to the 'closed' position, so perhaps it is mechanically fine. Could these symptoms be produced by water getting in to the microswitch? The problem did first arise during a fairly torrential downpour, so that might be the likely culprit. Anyone got any thoughts/suggestions?
Welcome to Tuscan ownership!! It's a blast so enjoy every minute 
I've recently changed the microswitches on mine as they were being a little temperamental. They are really simple little things and your right, likely to be water related but In my case it was the arm that kept catching the lock and wore the plastic on the switch that holds the arm so it would sometimes jam.
Yours do look in a funny position but I recon everyone's car is different. If the switch works then you have to bend and tweak that arm. Best of luck!
I've recently changed the microswitches on mine as they were being a little temperamental. They are really simple little things and your right, likely to be water related but In my case it was the arm that kept catching the lock and wore the plastic on the switch that holds the arm so it would sometimes jam.
Yours do look in a funny position but I recon everyone's car is different. If the switch works then you have to bend and tweak that arm. Best of luck!
Cheers Matt - hopefully it will have dried out overnight, so I might take her out for a spin today and see if the problem still occurs in dry weather. If so, then I guess the arm on the switch is the most likely culprit.
Presumably when I replace the metal faceplate I'll need to form a new gasket seal with RTV silicone (I'm guessing that's the black crud around the periphery of the recess). Do you have any tips for removing the old RTV first? Is it just a case of elbow grease and scraping with suitable plastic/wooden implement?
Presumably when I replace the metal faceplate I'll need to form a new gasket seal with RTV silicone (I'm guessing that's the black crud around the periphery of the recess). Do you have any tips for removing the old RTV first? Is it just a case of elbow grease and scraping with suitable plastic/wooden implement?
Rob, Hi and welcome!
Looking at your photos, I'd say that water ingress to the switch itself looks unlikely. That said, the 'arm' is a very 'artistic' shape.
Yes, might be worth removing switch and drying out....I'd also add that its multi-pin connector in the B pillar can be a source of 'dodginess', clean the pins and spray WD-40/contact cleaner here! The connector is behind the alcantara covered panel behind the seat - just lifts out after lifting the door seal out of the way.
My other favourite for random window operation is the 'encoder' screwed to the top of the window lift motor. You need to remove door card and damp membrane to eyeball it. TVR - in their wisdom - placed a PCB in this area where it will likely get wet - at least damp....without any waterproofing for the PCB. The encoder merely counts the number of rotations of the drive ex the motor to the window lift, so that on door 'shut', the window lifts the same number of revolutions to shut. The encoder is held to the motor with a machine(small) screw. Follow the wires back to a connector to disconnect & remove. Spray WD-40 on the elec. connector too. Dry out the PCB/encoder and replace.
Nick
Looking at your photos, I'd say that water ingress to the switch itself looks unlikely. That said, the 'arm' is a very 'artistic' shape.
Yes, might be worth removing switch and drying out....I'd also add that its multi-pin connector in the B pillar can be a source of 'dodginess', clean the pins and spray WD-40/contact cleaner here! The connector is behind the alcantara covered panel behind the seat - just lifts out after lifting the door seal out of the way.
My other favourite for random window operation is the 'encoder' screwed to the top of the window lift motor. You need to remove door card and damp membrane to eyeball it. TVR - in their wisdom - placed a PCB in this area where it will likely get wet - at least damp....without any waterproofing for the PCB. The encoder merely counts the number of rotations of the drive ex the motor to the window lift, so that on door 'shut', the window lifts the same number of revolutions to shut. The encoder is held to the motor with a machine(small) screw. Follow the wires back to a connector to disconnect & remove. Spray WD-40 on the elec. connector too. Dry out the PCB/encoder and replace.
Nick
Hi all, thanks for the welcome and for the tips - Mark, the car was from a dealer and I admit that my first thought was "should I try to get this sorted under the warranty". However, if I'm honest with myself then part of the reason I chose the TVR over mass-market alternatives (Jag/Porsche/BMW etc) was so that I could have the 'fun' of trying to fix these sorts of issues myself! Obviously if any major issues crop up that I'm not comfortable dealing with, then I can fall back on the warranty.
Nick, thanks for the tip about how to access the void inside the B pillar - while poking around in there, I noticed that the two bolts which secure the microswitch were loose, meaning that the switch was effectively being held in place by the blobs of silicone that had been dabbed over the contacts.
I've removed the silicone from the bolt heads and tightened them both up, and took the opportunity to tease the arm into a slightly better position to make sure that the switch is triggered with the latch in the 'close' position.
Also, the three screw holes in the fibreglass for the faceplate seem to have lost their threads a long time ago. It looks as though the screws and the faceplate were just being held in place by the RTV. I've packed the screw holes with an epoxy/glassfibre mix (not my neatest work, but it'll be hidden when finished!) so that I can drill new pilot holes. Just waiting for the epoxy to set and then I can reattach the faceplate.
Touch wood, it seems to be behaving itself now - at least, the window raises when you shut the door and then stays in the 'up' position. Previously I had to lean quite hard on the door when closing it from the outside to get the car to recognise that the door was shut and raise the window, which would usually then drop as soon as the pressure was released. I guess this behaviour could be explained by there being a certain amount of play in the mechanism due to the bolts being loose.
Nick, thanks for the tip about how to access the void inside the B pillar - while poking around in there, I noticed that the two bolts which secure the microswitch were loose, meaning that the switch was effectively being held in place by the blobs of silicone that had been dabbed over the contacts.
I've removed the silicone from the bolt heads and tightened them both up, and took the opportunity to tease the arm into a slightly better position to make sure that the switch is triggered with the latch in the 'close' position.
Also, the three screw holes in the fibreglass for the faceplate seem to have lost their threads a long time ago. It looks as though the screws and the faceplate were just being held in place by the RTV. I've packed the screw holes with an epoxy/glassfibre mix (not my neatest work, but it'll be hidden when finished!) so that I can drill new pilot holes. Just waiting for the epoxy to set and then I can reattach the faceplate.
Touch wood, it seems to be behaving itself now - at least, the window raises when you shut the door and then stays in the 'up' position. Previously I had to lean quite hard on the door when closing it from the outside to get the car to recognise that the door was shut and raise the window, which would usually then drop as soon as the pressure was released. I guess this behaviour could be explained by there being a certain amount of play in the mechanism due to the bolts being loose.
Good man, glad to see your getting stuck in! It's the only way to really see how it all works and I assure you that you will be a whole lot more comfortable with the car once you've pulled it all apart a couple of times!
I don't have any silicone at all in the covers under the plates on mine. I would just give it a little spray with WD and cover it back up
If you need the switches, they aren't that expensive.
I don't have any silicone at all in the covers under the plates on mine. I would just give it a little spray with WD and cover it back up
If you need the switches, they aren't that expensive.
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