wet mini, not good!

[minimonkey]

Ok guys, being a girl I'm not expected to know much about cars so I'm not going to disappoint you with the question have. On days like today when it's piddling it down like there's no tomorrow I often find that my mini seriously judders when I'm driving in the higher gears, now I know that being an old mini it will obviously be slightly temperamental in extremes of weather, but I just wondered what exactly is going on inside my little girl when this happens and is there anything I could do (other than try dodging the rain) to reduce this juddering? Thanks for any explanations!

[joan or ark]

Some one will confirm but it could be misfiring because the ignition system is getting wet. A common fix is to put rubber gloves over it and to carry a can of WD40. Somewill explain it better. Get your self onto www.theminiforum.co.uk

[Fire99]

From my memory of being a fan of mini's since i could spell it the problem is due to the distributor poking out the front of the engine towards the radiator grill.

(As a matter of interest i think the engine was originally designed the other way round with the carb at the front but it caused carb icing so they rotated it 180 degrees.. So i read somewhere anyway)..

If it's an old mini then probably it still has points. Personally i'd fit an aftermarket electronic ignition kit (which are very cheap) which will junk the points. Other than that a nice guard behind the grill protecting the distributor from the worst of the rain.
IMO that should sort it.

[minimonkey]

joan or ark said:

Some one will confirm but it could be misfiring because the ignition system is getting wet. A common fix is to put rubber gloves over it and to carry a can of WD40. Somewill explain it better. Get your self onto www.theminiforum.co.uk

I love the idea of popping my marigolds over parts of my engine.... lol.... Thanks for the idea, will keep it in mind.

[Scrooloose]

Holts dampstart can also help if you're suffering from a damp problem... Just cover the dizzy in it to keep water out...

[DanGT]

The glove works well, you can get covers that go down the front of the engine. I think thay were an option at one point? Also old ignition leads can be the problem. (insulation going or the rubber at the end of the leads gone stiff).

[MinBin]

If it's a constant problem i'd go get one of those aftermarket weather shields. It's a huge piece of plastic but it will keep the water at bay

[the mini mole]

I have a small one that the previous owner fashioned and fits to the slam panel just infront of the dizzy- I will try to get a pic in the light tomorrow.
TMM