BX back on the road - but still 1 fault to sort!

adrianeaton · Unread post by **adrianeaton** » 04 Apr 2004, 16:07

Hi all
Well, after the starter motor packing up in January (BX 16V) I've finally finished putting the whole thing back together - when you're not under any time pressure there really doesn't seem to be a rush!
While it's been in bits (inlet off to reach the starter) I've had the injectors cleaned with an ASNU machine and new seals and pintel caps. I've rewired the fuel injection loom as some monkey has previously just grabbed them and pulled to get the plugs off and they were knackered - amazing it actually ran! I've also cleaned up as many of the wiring connections as I could get to and have sealed all of them with silicone grease so shouldn't have too many problems there now. First impressions were of a smoother idle, and much better light throttle response, partly aided by 2 cans of carb cleaner to get rid of the gunk on the throttle body so the throttle doesn't need as much effort to operate.
I totally agree with Chris that the new style starters make the car sound really odd when starting - spins over like a Nissan now!
ANYWAY, now the problem - just been out for a test drive this morning to Crawley and back and a funny fault showed itself.....the engine check warning light came on and at the same time the rev counter dropped out too - the light was flickering quickly and the rev counter was doing similar and dropping back to zero and up again which leads me to believe this is electrical/wiring related. When the light is off it's running perfect. The car was kangarooing nicely while this was going on but would then be OK again. Throttle position/load don't seem to make any difference.
When I got home I tried wiggling some wiring to see if it would play up and the only thing I found was that the plug on top of the air flow meter when wiggled would cause the engine revs to drop - presumably due to a poor contact? I didn't fiddle with this when doing the other jobs so I'll have the plug off and clean it up as a 1st attempt but any suggestions where else to look? I'm guessing there's some wiring somewhere for the rev counter and ECU sensors in the same branch that could be to blame?
HELP!!
Adrian

johntaylor · Unread post by **johntaylor** » 04 Apr 2004, 19:21

Check the basics first....battery terminals, engine to body earth?
Switch on lights, heater and window heater....does the problem get worse with everything under load? If so it is back to the basics again, check all fuse blocks and harness connections apart from the forementioned. Perhaps all this is obvious stuff but worth trying.

AndersDK · Unread post by **AndersDK** » 04 Apr 2004, 21:05

Adrian -
The indications of engine fault lamp and rev counter falling out simoultanously - means you have an ignition problem. Either cabling or sensor.

Unread post by **alan s** » 05 Apr 2004, 02:59

It may be a clue (and maybe not) but a week or so ago, my son informs me that my starter problems had been fixed and there was no need to remove half the engine bay to access the starter motor as we'd suspected.
It seems that he had found a wire leading from the solenoid to a whiteish coloured plug that had internal corrosion and as a result was only showing 9 instead of 12 volts under certain circumstances and giving symptoms of stuffed brushes & dodgy solenoid. The plug concerned is flat & has 5 terminals on it I understand and the wires disappear into various parts of the harness. It's in a position (almost below the battery) to be both difficult to see as well as being vulnerable to contamination from both above & below and as the problem sounds like an internal break in a wire that is suspended from somewhere, thought this one may be worth a look.
Alan S

adrianeaton · Unread post by **adrianeaton** » 05 Apr 2004, 14:55

Thanks for the replies folks - the 'fault' has been traced and it was all my own fault [:p]
Went round all the wiring connections I'd disturbed and found I hadn't tightened 2 of the bolts holding the fuel rail onto the injectors - and since these are the same 2 bolts with the earth terminals for the fuel injectors I now know why it wasn't behaving!
At least I'd done the 3rd bolt up tight so no risk of fuel getting out....
That'll teach me to try and finish the job by torch light - but I knew I wouldn't sleep unless I knew the old girl was running again!
Took her out again last night and did 30 miles without problem - runs nicely and back to starting 1st turn of the key!
Will be driving to Bristol for Easter on Friday morning so will give the BX a run - had to renew the insurance on Saturday and did a grand total of 3,300 miles last year....600 more than the year before [:)]
Cheers
Adrian