Rubber band powered Griff!!
Rubber band powered Griff!!
Author
Discussion

mistert

Original Poster:

326 posts

255 months

Thursday 4th May 2006
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I have just restarted my love hate relationship with my Griff after an 8 month winter layup, prolonged due to building new house, becoming self employed etc.

I've just completed a full 12k service, fitted new brakes, new tyres, it sailed thro MOT and looks fantastic....so, with excited anticipation of first run out, about 10miles from home and in the middle of Nowhere, Lincolnshire it decides to just die on me! BR!

I soon realised the fuel pump wasnt running, and thro a process of elimination established one of the metal cased Bosch fuel pump and ECU relays had failed. Now it seems activation of the relay in the blue socket is dependant on the relay in the black socket, so if the black one fails the other wont energise. I had no spares or tools, but a swiss army knife and a rubber band!

Ingenuity is a great thing when faced with a 10 mile walk, (I had forgotten my mobile phone - idiot). I decided to prise the top off the failed relay and strapped the contact together with a rubber band, hey presto after 1/2 an hour of arseing about and threatening to kick the st out of it the Griff fired back into life.

Since I've experienced this failure I now find that it is quite a common cause for breakdown, I guess the heat in the footwell doesnt help.

Moral of this story:- make sure you carry a spare relay, or a rubber band (It might just be me but I'm sure it went faster with the rubber band attached!!)

scoule

299 posts

313 months

Friday 5th May 2006
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I carry a piece of wire with two male spade connectors ... it can be used to bypass the otter switch or almost any relay on the car :-)

Strangely, it also seems to be an insurance against problems since I've never needed it!

Wildfire

9,948 posts

281 months

Friday 5th May 2006
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IS this you?