Decided to keep the wedge!

[anonymous-user]

Well I've decided to keep my wedge. I've spent quite a bit of money on it getting it sorted over summer and now I know it's a good one so it would be stupid to get rid. I've been out tonight in it and it ran like a dream, I still get excited about driving it, feels like a special occasion and nothing for the money comes close!

Anyway, couple of questions:

1. Where is the best place to get the ecu reconditioned, or can anyone on here do it for me? (obviously I'll pay)

2. Can anyone recommend a good place for bodywork in Hertfordshire (or surrounding area)

3. Also, I've had the TVR Centre look after it so far but if anyone knows any good (cheap) local garages in my area that can service the car,etc ?

Cheers!

[numbnuts]

borat said:

Well I've decided to keep my wedge. I've spent quite a bit of money on it getting it sorted over summer and now I know it's a good one so it would be stupid to get rid. I've been out tonight in it and it ran like a dream, I still get excited about driving it, feels like a special occasion and nothing for the money comes close!

Anyway, couple of questions:

1. Where is the best place to get the ecu reconditioned, or can anyone on here do it for me? (obviously I'll pay)

2. Can anyone recommend a good place for bodywork in Hertfordshire (or surrounding area)

3. Also, I've had the TVR Centre look after it so far but if anyone knows any good (cheap) local garages in my area that can service the car,etc ?

Cheers!

Re-condition an ECU ..best of luck with that one, whats up with it ?

[anonymous-user]

It has an intermittent idle problem. Most of the time it idles fine and then sometimes it will hunt, almost as if it's about to stall. I've found if you leave the car idling like this it will suddenly start running fine again. It's not a problem, it's more irratating than anything. I've heard that Mark Adams recons ecus. but just wondering if there are any other places recommended?

[tallbloke]

I've been told that you can often improve them just by carefully running a soldering iron by each joint in turn to remelt each joint. Try ringing a good local auto electrician and talking about it.

[leorest]

tallbloke said:

I've been told that you can often improve them just by carefully running a soldering iron by each joint in turn to remelt each joint. Try ringing a good local auto electrician and talking about it.

I did this to mine and it worked a treat. Have to admit I was a bit nervous attempting it in case it ended up as scrap. Also well worth while unplugging the ECU and replugging it in but make sure it is 100% positively plugged in. Remember the TV ad Clunk Click every trip.

[350zwelgje]

Resoldering is probably what the ECU needs as said before (it is the repair most of times - for mine it was). And if problem not fixed, the throttle potentiometer needs either adjustment or replacing. Could try that to start with perhaps.

Rob

[simonb9]

350zwelgje said:

Resoldering is probably what the ECU needs as said before (it is the repair most of times - for mine it was). And if problem not fixed, the throttle potentiometer needs either adjustment or replacing. Could try that to start with perhaps.

Rob

Can you adjust the potentiometer then ?? Mine has the same symptons, sometimes absolutley fine, sometimes stalls when changing down or idles roughly for a bit then stalls, otherwise runs fine. I thought the potentiometer just plugs in and then thats it, you can't adjust it ?? But then i'm no mechanic........

[campbell]

simonb9 said:

350zwelgje said:

Resoldering is probably what the ECU needs as said before (it is the repair most of times - for mine it was). And if problem not fixed, the throttle potentiometer needs either adjustment or replacing. Could try that to start with perhaps.

Rob

Can you adjust the potentiometer then ?? Mine has the same symptons, sometimes absolutley fine, sometimes stalls when changing down or idles roughly for a bit then stalls, otherwise runs fine. I thought the potentiometer just plugs in and then thats it, you can't adjust it ?? But then i'm no mechanic........

Hi all

The potentiometer is ajustable, well its static setting is, the voltage setting should be around 0.32 to 0.34 volts.
To change the position of the pot there is two screws locking it into place, you can loosen them and it will rock on its center axsis, there is three wires going to the pot, one is the earth, one is main voltage (4.9V) and the last one is the information line, just move the pot round when the ignition is on and with a multi meter you can change the static setting.

Cambelt

[anonymous-user]

I'm pretty sure it's the ecu. So far I've adjusted the throttle pot, replaced AFM, intake pipe to plenum, spark plugs. HT leads, distributor cap and had the car tuned a number of times. As I said before, it's more of an annoyance than anything but I suppose it's a process of elimination. I would advise anyone who's having running issues to replace the distributor cap and leads first. Relatively cheap and made the biggest difference to my wedge (it wouldn't even idle at all before replacing these).

[rev-erend]

A nice easy test for the ECU is to just 'swap' it with a mate with another 350i and see if it improves it or not.

Does the symptom travel to the other car.

Did this with my old 400SE and a friends 400se.

I have an ECU refurb'ed bu Lucas a few years back or there is Mark Adams or someone with a 350i said he had his ecu changed / fixed by a company (can't remember the name - based in Sunbury surrey) and was given by Southern Carburettors in Wimbledon. Might be worth a phone call. Think you will be looking at £200 ~ £300 for this.

[AM400]

My ECU was at some point replaced by ATP Electronics, being fairly close to me I got an exchange AFM from them as well.

www.atpelectronics.co.uk/

Andy

[leorest]

I believe the engine will run with the throttle pot disconnected. Obviously it will run differently but could be a useful diagnostic? Can someone who knows, explain how the engine running will be affected by unplugging the pot?

[chris390]

got my ecu repaired at www.carelect.demon.co.uk with exelent results

[anonymous-user]

Cheers for that, they look just the ticket. Interesting point about the water temp sensor on their site. I haven't tried replacing that. Does anyone know the best place to order one and if it's easy to fit?

[anonymous-user]

I imagine this would be what I'm after:

www.famousfour.co.uk/new_parts/parts_search.php?string=water+temperature&veh=rrc_86_95

Might as well replace the sensor for the gauge whilst I'm at it. Does anyone have a diagram of the location of these two sensors?

[350zwelgje]

borat said:

I'm pretty sure it's the ecu. So far I've adjusted the throttle pot, replaced AFM, intake pipe to plenum, spark plugs. HT leads, distributor cap and had the car tuned a number of times. As I said before, it's more of an annoyance than anything but I suppose it's a process of elimination. I would advise anyone who's having running issues to replace the distributor cap and leads first. Relatively cheap and made the biggest difference to my wedge (it wouldn't even idle at all before replacing these).

Sounds like your symptoms look like mine with a to be resoldered ECU required to fix it. Only difference is that idle was ok, it was reving it that didn't work anymore.

So agree that it probably is the ECU, but resoldering is a not to difficult repair, so no need to fork out a lot of money....

Rob

[chris390]

its not to difficult apart from bieng in a bit of a tight spot , i had to remove a coolant pipe to gain access on mine but it only takes about 10 mins to do with right tools - cheeper to buy tools than pay somebody else to do it. by the way you are aware of www.tvrwedgepages.co.uk arnt you ? all info you need to keep a wedge going is here.

[campbell]

borat said:

I imagine this would be what I'm after:

www.famousfour.co.uk/new_parts/parts_search.php?string=water+temperature&veh=rrc_86_95

Might as well replace the sensor for the gauge whilst I'm at it. Does anyone have a diagram of the location of these two sensors?

Hi Borat

The sensors are easy to for, you will find them at the front left corner of the inlet manifold, i think its a 19mm spanner will undo the sensors.
I would recommend you getting a bible for the car from Steve Heath www.shpub.co.uk/.
Good luck

Cambelt

[skyrocketship]

chris390 said:

got my ecu repaired at www.carelect.demon.co.uk with exelent results

i did too and got a 2 year warranty with it.

last week my wedge broke down - would not start, but would start when i put my spare (also faulty) ecu in. I sent back the carelect repaired (18 months ago) ECU for repair under warranty, got it back 4 days later, repaired no hassle, no charge.

Having said that I also get the occasional stalling, occasional poor idle problem regardless of a good ecu - am also in the process of changing leads, dizzy cap, rotor arm etc... I was told tho that as I have a fast road cam in it it will struggle a bit on idle - this makes sense but it seems to me that there should be a setting (even just faster revs on idle) that will stop it from stalling, but I have not found one yet in 5 years of ownership, various new pars and ecu's......

if anyone finds a perfect fix for this I would be very pleased

Edited by skyrocketship on Wednesday 1st November 09:34

[ed_crouch]

You might also like to replace the ignition amplifier. My 1988 390SE uses the Lucas 35DLM8 distributir, with a matchbox sized box on the side with 2 wires coming out of the top. This is the ignition module/amplifier. It takes the very weak inductively generated signal from the star-wheel assembly in the dizzy, and beefs it up considerably before sending it to the ignition ciol to generate the HT required for a spark.

They give up the ghost after a while, and are about 50 or 60 quid for a genuine lucas one, and takes about 3 milliseconds to replace.

One way of testing whether this is the problem is to take your trusty timing strobe gun, connect it to the car, start the car and get it idling nice and rough. Then point the gun at the inside of the bonnet, and pull the trigger. If the amp is faulty, there will be pulses of light missing, i.e. flash, flash, flash, nothing, flash, nothing, nothing, flash etc. You may also notice that when the gun actually does flash, that its not very bright. What this is is the amplifier failing to generate enough oomph to drive a spark. Generally gets worse as the engine warms up.

On mine, it was all fine when i revved the engine or drove it, cos the alternator then spins a little faster, and the battery charge voltage goes up a smidge, and then the amp was JUST able to cope.

Put the new amp in and repeated the test: constant stream of flashes that damn nearly blinded me!

Monster monster.

Ed.