Cerbie misfiring - please help !
Discussion
Hi all,
Firstly, wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR and safe Cerb driving in '06 !
I have got a problem with my Cerb. Just got it back from my indie with new cams/timing chain and other engine bits and was running perfectly until today. Started misfiring very badly after yesterday's rain (i'm in London) .. was very down on power and could barely get up the ramp to my parking space.
This morning when I did a bit of investigating round the engine bay I noticed that where the HT leads connect to the distributor, there were sparks flying when the engine is on so I bought some insulation tape from maplins today. No sparks flying anymore, and for a short while the car was firing perfectly -- then I went out to do some shopping with the wife -- 20 mins or so into the drive -- the car starts going mad again -- bang bang bang (sounded very unhealthly, not the normal pop'n'crackle) .. lost all my power again and just about managed to keep engine from stalling...
I would think that maybe new HT leads are in order so I would be much grateful if you could let me know where I can get a good set from and roughly how much they would be ?
Also, in its present condition I do not want to move the car unless absolutely necessary and I would like to have it hooked up to a laptop to check what the ECU has to say to this problem before I drive it across London to my indie. So if one of you chaps lives around the SE10 area in London with a laptop, ECU cable and a spare 20 mins I would be extremly grateful for your help !!
All the best for 2006 !
Pete
Firstly, wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR and safe Cerb driving in '06 !
I have got a problem with my Cerb. Just got it back from my indie with new cams/timing chain and other engine bits and was running perfectly until today. Started misfiring very badly after yesterday's rain (i'm in London) .. was very down on power and could barely get up the ramp to my parking space.
This morning when I did a bit of investigating round the engine bay I noticed that where the HT leads connect to the distributor, there were sparks flying when the engine is on so I bought some insulation tape from maplins today. No sparks flying anymore, and for a short while the car was firing perfectly -- then I went out to do some shopping with the wife -- 20 mins or so into the drive -- the car starts going mad again -- bang bang bang (sounded very unhealthly, not the normal pop'n'crackle) .. lost all my power again and just about managed to keep engine from stalling...
I would think that maybe new HT leads are in order so I would be much grateful if you could let me know where I can get a good set from and roughly how much they would be ?
Also, in its present condition I do not want to move the car unless absolutely necessary and I would like to have it hooked up to a laptop to check what the ECU has to say to this problem before I drive it across London to my indie. So if one of you chaps lives around the SE10 area in London with a laptop, ECU cable and a spare 20 mins I would be extremly grateful for your help !!
All the best for 2006 !
Pete
All the best to you Pete.
I'm not being funny but I would be expecting the indie to sort this out FOC. You have obviously spent some wedge with them and a previously unexperienced problem has started since you have had the car back. At the very least, they should investigate and if its unrelated to their work then they could come to an arrangement with you on the recovery costs.
If they have made a mistake then I'm sure they will do what they can to put it right.
Best of luck.
Scott
I'm not being funny but I would be expecting the indie to sort this out FOC. You have obviously spent some wedge with them and a previously unexperienced problem has started since you have had the car back. At the very least, they should investigate and if its unrelated to their work then they could come to an arrangement with you on the recovery costs.
If they have made a mistake then I'm sure they will do what they can to put it right.
Best of luck.
Scott
If the plug leads (or ignition coil(s) for that matter) have broken down since you got your car back, it's probably a bit unfair to expect them to pay for the repairs - it not really being their fault! However, if significant engine works had been carried out one might have expected the leads to have been checked (esp. since they are a known weak point) which MIGHT have avoided the inconvenience. I hope you'll give them the benefit of the doubt until they've had chance to investigate. Good luck!
SP said:
If the plug leads (or ignition coil(s) for that matter) have broken down since you got your car back, it's probably a bit unfair to expect them to pay for the repairs - it not really being their fault! However, if significant engine works had been carried out one might have expected the leads to have been checked (esp. since they are a known weak point) which MIGHT have avoided the inconvenience. I hope you'll give them the benefit of the doubt until they've had chance to investigate. Good luck!
The most sensible reply .. exactly the way to approach this situation
If I was the person who owned the business that did the work and my customer phoned up with this problem, I'd be out to them with a laptop and a set of leads to try and diagnose it for them. I wouldn't want them thinking that it was something I'd forgotten to do or poor workmanship. They are 20 mins away. Maybe I expect too much from people I do business with. Certainly wouldn't use them again if I got a 'We can fit you in a wekk on Wednesday" type response.
Maybe Pete could clarify what they have said they can do or their response to his informing them of the problem?
Scott
Maybe Pete could clarify what they have said they can do or their response to his informing them of the problem?
Scott
Insulating tape on the HT leads, you've got to be kidding!
Sounds like you have a simple HT problem, and most likely there's nothing else wrong. Could be defective leads, or just a poor connection, or water contamination on the outside of the leads. If it's just contamination, you might get away with cleaning the leads, terminals and mounting pylons.
Sounds like you have a simple HT problem, and most likely there's nothing else wrong. Could be defective leads, or just a poor connection, or water contamination on the outside of the leads. If it's just contamination, you might get away with cleaning the leads, terminals and mounting pylons.
trackcar said:
If the plug leads (or ignition coil(s) for that matter) have broken down since you got your car back, it's probably a bit unfair to expect them to pay for the repairs - it not really being their fault! However, if significant engine works had been carried out one might have expected the leads to have been checked (esp. since they are a known weak point) which MIGHT have avoided the inconvenience. I hope you'll give them the benefit of the doubt until they've had chance to investigate. Good luck!
The most sensible reply .. exactly the way to approach this situation
Yup agreed. Its a lot more sensible than the prat suggesting the zombie routine... who was that?
It was him ^
Many thanks for all the replies though in retrospect I should have phrased my initial post differently as most replies slightly missed my point.
My indie (this is one guy only, not a whole company) did a great job on the partial engine rebuild just before Xmas but he is now on holidays abroad for a couple of weeks with his family. I would rather not want to phone him about my HT leads while he is skiing on some mountain in Switzerland...
But I also don't want to wait until he is back as I have already been without the Cerbie for almost 3 months due to the rebuild. So what I would like to do is to install new HT leads asap.
Would any of you be able to recommed where I could get a good set of new HT leads from. My car's a 1997 4.2.
Another question - does driving damage the engine when its misfiring ?
Many thanks !
Pete
My indie (this is one guy only, not a whole company) did a great job on the partial engine rebuild just before Xmas but he is now on holidays abroad for a couple of weeks with his family. I would rather not want to phone him about my HT leads while he is skiing on some mountain in Switzerland...
But I also don't want to wait until he is back as I have already been without the Cerbie for almost 3 months due to the rebuild. So what I would like to do is to install new HT leads asap.
Would any of you be able to recommed where I could get a good set of new HT leads from. My car's a 1997 4.2.
Another question - does driving damage the engine when its misfiring ?
Many thanks !
Pete
peter_melichar said:
Would any of you be able to recommed where I could get a good set of new HT leads from. My car's a 1997 4.2.
Tim at ACT does them at great prices: www.actproducts.co.uk/ignition.php
peter_melichar said:
Another question - does driving damage the engine when its misfiring ?
I wouldnt recommend it!!!!!
I think you should be able to buy the right leads through any TVR specialist such as Joolz, ACT, factory dealer etc. You may be able to get them locally by measuring the lengths carefully and taking one along to show the end fittings, but be extremely carefully about which lead goes where. Ideally, only ever take one lead off at a time so you can be certain the connections are exactly the same. Also make a sketch of what each lead is connected to, just in case. If you muddle the leads up then you can end up in all sorts of hassle.
Driving any distance with a noticeable misfire is a very bad idea. You can quickly overheat and damage the cat, even if it isn't destroyed immediately the petrol will poison it which may cause it to fail any future emissions tests. There's also the chance of damaging the rest of the exhaust system through internal explosions, and overheating nearby components. If you run it with a misfire the exhaust can get very hot indeed, and may even set the car on fire.
Driving any distance with a noticeable misfire is a very bad idea. You can quickly overheat and damage the cat, even if it isn't destroyed immediately the petrol will poison it which may cause it to fail any future emissions tests. There's also the chance of damaging the rest of the exhaust system through internal explosions, and overheating nearby components. If you run it with a misfire the exhaust can get very hot indeed, and may even set the car on fire.
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