5 replies to this topic

[phil_clubman]

hello.

went out this mornin and my car wudnt start. there is charge in the battery and the engine is turning over just very slowly but it wont fire up. is this bad earth problems? what can i do 2 sort it?

cheers

[lrostoke]

Either bad earth or dodgy starter..

To elimate earth problem clean up the connections..

Boot unbolt where it attaches to boot floor, clean up connections refit.

Engine, check earth strap normally connects both ends of the top engine steady..clean up connection refit.

To elimate dodgy battery see if its better with jump leads

[ian]

If the battery is fully charged then yes id go for a bad earth.

Just take them off and give a nice clean until they are nice and shiny, do both though the engine to bulkhead and the one on the battery.

[phil_clubman]

ok thanks. the one in in the ingine bay along the engine mount isl ooking a bit tatty. ill try n get it replaced tomorrow as its raining quite heavily here. also a quickie about my starter solornoide. ive only had the car a week or so and cannot find it anywere. on my clubman it was mounted under the break servo on that panel at the bottom. on my new one the alarm horn is mounted there. does any one no were it can be? cheers

[dklawson]

To find the solenoid you'll need to follow the power cables. Remember that later pre-engaged starters sort of piggy-back the solenoid onto the starter itself.

by the way, since the car is new to you how do you know the battery is OK? Clean up all the earth and battery connections as suggested, then try starting the car with the headlights on. If they dim WAY down when you turn the engine over on the starter... it may be that the battery is low on charge. Remember, batteries are only good for about 3-5 years and you may not have any indication how old this one is.

[phil_clubman]

To find the solenoid you'll need to follow the power cables. Remember that later pre-engaged starters sort of piggy-back the solenoid onto the starter itself.

by the way, since the car is new to you how do you know the battery is OK? Clean up all the earth and battery connections as suggested, then try starting the car with the headlights on. If they dim WAY down when you turn the engine over on the starter... it may be that the battery is low on charge. Remember, batteries are only good for about 3-5 years and you may not have any indication how old this one is.

I have got a spare battery in the garage ive charged up today. i presumed the battery in at the moment was ok as the lights were working and all the electrics. i will try my other battery first thing and see what happens. thanks for the help and advice everyone.