Discussion
Hi folks, the never ending list of problems continues with my 450SE, but if someone is able to help with one of them that would be nice.
The idle has always been a nightmare, despite 3 different stepper motors and a Mark Adams chip and just having had an engine rebuild. Yesterday I started it and it was stuck at 2000rpm even after driving 10 miles. I switched off for 10 mins and then started again for it to be ticking over at 1000rpm, like it should! Sometimes it's the other way around and keeps stalling which is a nightmare as you lose brakes! Most of the time it's stuck at 1500rpm. The only thing I can think is that it's temperature related but other than that I don't know.
Any ideas would be much appreciated. Also, if anyone has a 450SE it would be interesting to know how many miles you get to a litre of oil (max to min on dipstick), for comparison purposes after my rebuild.
Cheers
Nick
The idle has always been a nightmare, despite 3 different stepper motors and a Mark Adams chip and just having had an engine rebuild. Yesterday I started it and it was stuck at 2000rpm even after driving 10 miles. I switched off for 10 mins and then started again for it to be ticking over at 1000rpm, like it should! Sometimes it's the other way around and keeps stalling which is a nightmare as you lose brakes! Most of the time it's stuck at 1500rpm. The only thing I can think is that it's temperature related but other than that I don't know.
Any ideas would be much appreciated. Also, if anyone has a 450SE it would be interesting to know how many miles you get to a litre of oil (max to min on dipstick), for comparison purposes after my rebuild.
Cheers
Nick
Thanks everyone for all the ideas. I'll try them out over the weekend.
gmw9666 -yes it's the hotwire. I have also noticed the idle increases slightly when the fan cuts in so temperature sensor could be along the right lines. I thought they fitted a new one with the rebuild though, unless there's more that one?
I've checked the throttle mechanism and it's definitely not that.
The stepper motor I bought was expensive original equipment and I've also tried a used one from a Griff 500 that was in good working order. Blanking off the stepper hole sounds like a possible option to try.
I'll look into the brakes. From what I remember they don't completely disappear although I wasn't going that fast when it's happened luckily!
Cheers
Nick
gmw9666 -yes it's the hotwire. I have also noticed the idle increases slightly when the fan cuts in so temperature sensor could be along the right lines. I thought they fitted a new one with the rebuild though, unless there's more that one?
I've checked the throttle mechanism and it's definitely not that.
The stepper motor I bought was expensive original equipment and I've also tried a used one from a Griff 500 that was in good working order. Blanking off the stepper hole sounds like a possible option to try.
I'll look into the brakes. From what I remember they don't completely disappear although I wasn't going that fast when it's happened luckily!
Cheers
Nick
I've just tried disconnecting the stepper motor. I got the car warm and then took the plug out of the stepper motor which made no difference initially as it stayed at 1500rpm. I then adjusted the idle screw on top of the plenum until it was just above 1000rpm. I drove the car after this and WOW, it's completely transformed the car! It runs just as it should with the revs dropping between gear changes and ticks over at exactly 1000rpm when you come to a stop. I'll just have to see how it starts from cold tomorrow. Can't believe I could have just unplugged the damn thing 3 years ago!!! Thanks for the suggestion.
Will let you know how it goes.........
Will let you know how it goes.........
Another mystery...!!! The idle is miles better now I've unplugged the stepper motor which was a simple solution, but I'm having clutch slipping issues now!
It doesn't slip in 1st or 2nd, just 3rd, 4th and 5th. The strange part is that it doesn't always do it. Sometimes I can floor the throttle and rev it to 4500rpm and it's fine then other times it starts to slip as soon as you press hard on the throttle which makes overtaking risky!
When the engine was out they checked the clutch and said it was like new with a strong spring although they did notice a few spots of oil on the plate which they cleaned off. They fitted a new clutch master cylinder but that's not sorted it.
Does anyone have any ideas what is causing this? I'd rather not have the engine out again for the 3rd time this year if at all possible :O
Cheers
Nick
It doesn't slip in 1st or 2nd, just 3rd, 4th and 5th. The strange part is that it doesn't always do it. Sometimes I can floor the throttle and rev it to 4500rpm and it's fine then other times it starts to slip as soon as you press hard on the throttle which makes overtaking risky!
When the engine was out they checked the clutch and said it was like new with a strong spring although they did notice a few spots of oil on the plate which they cleaned off. They fitted a new clutch master cylinder but that's not sorted it.
Does anyone have any ideas what is causing this? I'd rather not have the engine out again for the 3rd time this year if at all possible :O
Cheers
Nick
adam quantrill said:
To be on the clutch plate the oil has to come from the gearbox side.
Any oil from the engine side simply gets spun off onto the bellhousing.
If the gearbox has ATF in, then changing to Mobil-1 which is thicker might reduce leaking from the front seal a little, worth a try, or yes it's box out time, so engine out too.
It has got ATF so I'll try Mobil-1. Thanks for that. In the Steve Heath book he suggests you think the gearbox can be removed by moving the engine forward and up slightly.....is that correct? Any oil from the engine side simply gets spun off onto the bellhousing.
If the gearbox has ATF in, then changing to Mobil-1 which is thicker might reduce leaking from the front seal a little, worth a try, or yes it's box out time, so engine out too.
The Hatter said:
Do you know what type/make of clutch is in there? You'll have a lot of torque with a 450 motor so even if it looks OK it may be marginal. I have a standard clutch in my SEAC as that's what I found when I pulled it apart but I pondered for a while before deciding to make sure the new one was a reputable make - and it seems OK. The clutch will only see high torques in higher gears, as in low gears the wheels will spin before the clutch slips; so your description suggests the clutch can't transmit the torque. I'd be concerned if I found traces of oil on the clutch surfaces and I was expecting it to transmit high torques; I'm surprised it wasn't swapped out - clutch plates are cheap compared to labour rates!
It's an AP clutch. I'm going to try some Mobil-1 in the gearbox as I remember when they did the engine rebuild they changed the gearbox oil to ATF and it's since then the clutch started to slip. If that makes no difference it'll be engine out I guess.Interesting photos Darren. It's still looking good, although the engine is a lot less shiny!
![](http://thumbsnap.com/sc/JSaS6oLF.jpg[/img]</a> <a href="http://thumbsnap.com/JxNn39pa" Target="_blank">[img]http://thumbsnap.com/sc/JxNn39pa.jpg)
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