9 replies to this topic

[grumpyone]

Hello all, a newbi here i have a 1968 morris mini which was imported back to Australia from europe a long time ago, i am the fourth owner of this car and have a very comprenhensive history of the car :0 lucky me.
ok here is my problem car ran fantastic up until about 2 months ago, now it is tempermental, starts when it wants to and wont start when it wants to. I am sure it has a earth fault, and i thought i had solved it, when i moved the battery earth lead.
But to my displeasure that was not the problem, so if someone can list places i can check for a bad earth i would be extremely happy and i can work through the list and try and solve the problem. any info will be greatfully appreciated
Hear from you soon.

 

[lordcakes]

If you think it is definitely an earthing problem the first 2 areas I would check are:
1. In the boot, earth from battery to body. Make sure that the battery post and clamp are clean, the cable is not broken (or has broken strands) and is not corroded. Make sure that your connection to the body is clean and tight.

2. In the engine bay, find your engine earth cable/strap. Again, make sure the connections are clean and tight etc. and that the cable itself is good. Not sure about your engine but my earth cable goes from the clutch cover onto the bulkhead.

If electrical fault is suspected with wiring/connections rather than components, check and clean all connections involved in the ignition circuit, including those at the fusebox.

[Steam]

Sounds like a distributor / wire fault or condensor fault.

Edited by Steam, 10 April 2021 - 11:42 PM.

[weef]

When you say "wont start" is it not cranking over or cranking over but not starting ?.

[62S]

Earth problems usually mean slow cranking and/or things like accelerator/choke/heater cable getting hot.

[sonscar]

Does it crank normally and not start?Does it crank slowly and not start?Does it not crank at all?Steve..

[grumpyone]

Weef    

When you say "wont start" is it not cranking over or cranking over but not starting ?.

The engine is not cranking over at all, ignition light/Red light goes out/no power

when i turn the key to the right, as in start position.

[grumpyone]

Does it crank normally and not start?Does it crank slowly and not start?Does it not crank at all?Steve..

Steve   motor/engine does not crank at all, just loses power once i turn the key to the right/to the start position.

 

[sonscar]

I would clean the battery cable connection on the solenoid and starter.Check the starter is not seized.If the current draw is enough to cause the lights to go out there could be a possibility of a fire,go carefully.Measure the battery voltage then turn on the headlights for five minutes and remeasure,it should not alter.Significant drop indicates a dead battery.Good hunting.Steve..

[grumpyone]

Problem solved   i did a lot of cleaning of terminals, tightened a lot of earth cables and cleaned all connections and problem solved.

So what the actual cause of the problem, i dont know but it has now been remedied.

Thank you to all who sent me ideas, reasons that might have been the problem.