Eastbourne tomorrow with PieroW. Anyone else want to play?
Discussion
Oh ho-hum. 
I suppose it had to happen sooner or later. After all, i have been driving my Chim "enthusiastically" for 18 months now, and with 16k miles under my belt in that time, i was able to say this morning that the car has never let me down.
Well, it nearly did today.
Having stopped the car for a minute to attend to an urgent call of nature, i found that the battery was flat on trying to restart it. We got it going by borrowing Kermit Power's jump leads, and contorting every bone to get them connected to the battery terminals (its in the passenger footwell). We then blasted off for a couple of hours to Eastbourne, only to find that the battery had not re-charged and another jump start was neeeded.
Initial diagnostics indicate that it could be the alternator, the battery or )hopefully) the infamous 100 Amp fuse, sensibly located on the underside of the chassis. I've plugged the accumate in for an overnight charge, and we'll see what happens in the morning.
Many, many thanks go to Kermit Power and PieroW (good to meet you Piers)for their mechanical assisatnce and sympathy - and above all for allowing me to share my embarrassment personally with you, rather than getting in before me!
It is a great shame that the delay caused by the first instance of starting failure meant that we didn't have time to enjoy the lunch venue, a very pleasant pub perched on the coast. But, we could always have another go
Having had a quick drink, i needed another jump start. And in desperate need of petrol, i decided that i would have to risk leaving the engine running whilst carfully filling up. The look on Piers' face when i automatically switched off the engine was a picture, as no doubt was mine accompanied by a loud shout of Doh!. So, i had the embarrassment of pushing it away from the pumps so that we could conduct the fourth and final jump start.
It got me safely home , although i did get a little damp in a couple of showers.
It looks like we could have another run next Thurs/Frid, and the drinks will be on me
So, apart from breaking my car, driving all the way to Eastbourne for a 20 minute stay, getting caught in traffic, and getting wet; it was a great day out.
You guys with jobs have no idea how difficult it is for the rest of us
P.S.
But i enjoyed the company, as always.
I suppose it had to happen sooner or later. After all, i have been driving my Chim "enthusiastically" for 18 months now, and with 16k miles under my belt in that time, i was able to say this morning that the car has never let me down.
Well, it nearly did today.
Having stopped the car for a minute to attend to an urgent call of nature, i found that the battery was flat on trying to restart it. We got it going by borrowing Kermit Power's jump leads, and contorting every bone to get them connected to the battery terminals (its in the passenger footwell). We then blasted off for a couple of hours to Eastbourne, only to find that the battery had not re-charged and another jump start was neeeded.
Initial diagnostics indicate that it could be the alternator, the battery or )hopefully) the infamous 100 Amp fuse, sensibly located on the underside of the chassis. I've plugged the accumate in for an overnight charge, and we'll see what happens in the morning.
Many, many thanks go to Kermit Power and PieroW (good to meet you Piers)for their mechanical assisatnce and sympathy - and above all for allowing me to share my embarrassment personally with you, rather than getting in before me!
It is a great shame that the delay caused by the first instance of starting failure meant that we didn't have time to enjoy the lunch venue, a very pleasant pub perched on the coast. But, we could always have another go
Having had a quick drink, i needed another jump start. And in desperate need of petrol, i decided that i would have to risk leaving the engine running whilst carfully filling up. The look on Piers' face when i automatically switched off the engine was a picture, as no doubt was mine accompanied by a loud shout of Doh!. So, i had the embarrassment of pushing it away from the pumps so that we could conduct the fourth and final jump start.
It got me safely home , although i did get a little damp in a couple of showers.
It looks like we could have another run next Thurs/Frid, and the drinks will be on me
So, apart from breaking my car, driving all the way to Eastbourne for a 20 minute stay, getting caught in traffic, and getting wet; it was a great day out.
You guys with jobs have no idea how difficult it is for the rest of us
P.S.
But i enjoyed the company, as always.
AngryS3Owner said:
Oh dear Dave, sorry to hear that - I'm 80% sure I'll have one by the end of the year, then you can laugh at me 
No laughing from me mate - it happens to the best of us. I've had much worse form supposedly "reliable" cars, and at least i made it home under my own steam I look forward to you "joining the club". My offer to you is still open by the way, and i just lurrrrvvvve shopping for cars, so if you need a hand
E2DJH said:
Nice one Piers, but surely that can't be me. There is no sign of jumpleads and no legs poking out from the passenger footwell 
I'm off to check that big fuse now, before my inspection pit fills with rain water.
I'm off to check that big fuse now, before my inspection pit fills with rain water.
This was over 7 hours ago! In the meantime, no update? I hope you've not fallen into the pit?If it makes you feel any happier, you're not alone in having car issues! The evil brake noise on my rear n/s wheel was coming from a stuck caliper. The caliper was stuck because the seal had gone, and it turns out that you can't just by a replacement seal... so I'm having to buy a complete refurb kit for an Elise S1 -
Hey KP, sorry to hear about your brake caliper - reliability eh? 
Well, a curse on all who suggested that my TVR was unreliable. It certainly looks as if it was the battery that went kaput (if only TVR made batteries), anyway, new battery acquired, installed and car now purring like a hungry tiger!
It was interesting having to undo bolts from under the car in order to remove the old one, but a relatively straight forward job for a man whose main mechanical tool is his credit card!
However, time will tell as they say. Roll on the next sunny day when we can put ot to the test.
Well, a curse on all who suggested that my TVR was unreliable. It certainly looks as if it was the battery that went kaput (if only TVR made batteries), anyway, new battery acquired, installed and car now purring like a hungry tiger!
It was interesting having to undo bolts from under the car in order to remove the old one, but a relatively straight forward job for a man whose main mechanical tool is his credit card!
However, time will tell as they say. Roll on the next sunny day when we can put ot to the test.
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