1979 1000 with stage 1 kit.
I'll give you guys a quick brief first.
I, with the help of some people, did a like-for-like engine swap with another 998. I think the new engine has done about 36k miles. My other one had done about 77k miles but it buggered up. 
I was getting annoyed with finding extra bits and bobs that needed doing after the engine was swapped over so I took it to a Mini specialist garage to do the rest for me. Got it back from them on Friday after work and they gave it its first run and a bit of a tune. The earth strap was also replaced by the garage.
Drove about 55 miles home mostly through towns as I wanted to avoid the motorway. Other than having trouble getting the car into 1st, 2nd and reverse I didn't have any problems. Especially not with the engine itself.
Got home and I was trying to diagnose why my head unit wasn't working but couldn't figure it out. At some point I must have taken the HT lead off cylinder 1 (closest to the fan). The next day, I drove 20 miles up the motorway to work then drove back about 5 hours later. On the way back, after about 17 miles of the 20 mile journey, I got off the motorway and to a set of traffic lights at a roundabout. Just as I slowed for the red light, my car started dying on me. I tried dipping the clutch and revving it but it just died. The HGV behind me was right up my chuff and couldn't get around me without reversing, but there were vehicles behind him and he blared his horn at me. So I had to stick my hazards on, get out the car and push it up a verge so the HGV could move on. How embarrassing.
After a few more failed attempts at getting it to start, I pop the bonnet and notice the HT lead for cylinder 1 wasn't on. So I put it back on and tried starting it but got nowhere. I figured I just flooded the engine too much and seeing as I had a fresh set of spark plugs in the boot, figured I'd speed up the process and just swap them over. As I took out the spark plug from cylinder 1, some smoke/steam came out... which was weird. Took the other plugs out and nothing of the sort came out. Hope I haven't buggered anything. :\
I phoned up the RAC and they said a patrol couldn't get to me for another 2 hours. 2 HOURS?! Well I had to say okay because I didn't know if I could get it started again. So I waited for 2:20hrs and phoned again. They then said another 40 minutes. I wasn't happy. Didn't help that some chavs drove past in their pimped Golf with one guy sticking his head out the window laughing like a hyena...
I attempted to start the car again and it started. Woohoo! As soon as the light turned to green, I revved the tits off it and drove the rest of the way home - albeit with the choke out to help me out at junctions because when the revs went down, the car felt like it was going to die again. Managed to get home but I'm still stumped as to what the problem could be.
Started the car up today around noon and it started, but it didn't sound healthy at all. Here's a video of it.
I checked the float chamber to check fuel is getting to it and it is.
I also popped the hose off the float chamber to make sure the pump was definitely still working and a bit of fuel did come out, so that's good.
I checked for a spark from the king lead off the coil and it sparked. I then checked a spark was coming from cylinder 4 (furthest from the fan) and it sparked. So fuel is getting to the float chamber and a spark is getting to the spark plugs. One of them at least. A bit hard to check the others without an assistant because I can't see that far round the front of the engine.
I haven't been able to get it to start again since the first start earlier.
Any ideas, folks?
) down the road and back again. Still fine!
