Not firing on all cylinders?

[murphster]

Hi All, I have been enjoying TVR ownership but have had to work through a few problems (fuel pump relays etc. nothing a few searches here couldn't sort) and have come across another one today. I have just returned from holiday so my Chim has been sitting still for the past 10-12 days and was hoping to go out in it tonight.

Having suffered from flat batteries in the past I disconnected it before I left and it started no problems - Great. But I went for a quick drive before we set off to London and it is running a bit rough. I think there is a small bit more vibration in the cabin and definitely feels like it is a bit lumpy when idling and higher in the revs. Not firing on all cylinders / something else? (it had a 12,000 mile service in Feb so new spark plugs were fitted). What should I try?

In addition I have noticed when I have left the car standing for over a week for the first 10 minutes of driving after the car that when under load there is quite a lot of smoke coming out of the exhaust (I leave some roundabouts with a smokey haze ) but after 10 minutes it is fine. Is this normal? Could they be related?

Unfortunately having to take the Lupo now

Must add 'home start' to my RAC membership...
Thanks for any advice,

[blitzracing]

You need to pop the plugs out and have a look, it should be quite possible to see if one plug is misfiring (it will be wet and oily) or if its a more general issue where all the plugs will be affected.

[Alexdaredevilz]

Hey Simon

9/10 one of your plug leads or extenders will of popped off slightly

Moved to Banstead now if you need help

[Andy chimaera]

correct if im wrong, but isnt burning oil that clears after a few mins valve stem seals? thats what i was always told

[blitzracing]

Sounds sensible to me, may be oily was not the right word to use.

[murphster]

Thanks for replies and the offer of help Alex. I will try and check the plugs / leads tonight.

[bigdods]

What colour is the smoke ?

On the misfire front, I had a horrible one , turned out to be a broken spark plg extender. I waited until it was getting dark then fired her up with the bonnet open. The failing plug had a lovely lightning show around it ! SO try running it in the dark you might be able to see the problem.

[spend]

blitzracing said:

You need to pop the plugs out and have a look, it should be quite possible to see if one plug is misfiring (it will be wet and oily) or if its a more general issue where all the plugs will be affected.

Unfortunately you need to get the plugs out whilst the symptoms are occurring, they will clean up very quickly once all 8 fire up....

If OP is not competent + patient + resolved in equal measures... New Plugs, shrouds, leads, dizzy cap & rotor arm can all be thrown at it, that's when good (known to be working) spares can be invaluable to all anyways.

[murphster]

Thought it was one of the leads which had popped off as suggested so fired it up and went for a spin but the symptoms are still there. I pulled each of the leads to check spark and all look fine. I'll try and look at the plugs one evening this week if I can - the engine was too hot to attempt it now.

I would by no means say I am competent - but want to try a few obvious bits before calling in some help.

I think the smoke is white - I'll Pay more attention next time it happens. Had no smoke today - must have cleared it yesterday?

[tvrman]

Hi,

I had similar issues, and I managed to fix it doing the following.

1) Bite the bullet and get a new battery, it certainly helps things. I bought an Optima red, which was great especially when trying to start the car through troubleshooting.

2) Get the Dizzy cap off and clean up the rotor arm (white spirit). Make sure the contact on the rotor arm is firm on the post. I had to use a screwdriver to bend the mental slightly to make a firm fit.

3) On refitting the rotor arm, press it home, then prize it 1mm up, which will give a better contact with the contact in the dizzy cap.

Before doing this the car was running rough and had massive problems starting. Now the car has been fine for over 1000 miles, and even pops and bang when changing gear!

I may have moved a wire somewhere while doing this, but that is what I did and it solved my issue, thank goodness.

Good luck,

Ian

[murphster]

All sorted now managed to clean up the spark plugs all looked good but one was a little oily compared to the rest. Cleaned up the dizzy and fixed a PAS leak while I was there! Glad it's sorted. Thanks for the help.