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Car Forum / MINI / October 2003Engine cuts out - suspect electrics? - 1989 (998cc) saloon
Hi Fellow Mini owners, This is my first post to this group and my first time owning a Mini, so bear with me while I ask some probably stupid questions. A couple of months ago I aquired a Mini 1989 (998cc) saloon (Rose). In general she runs fine, starts first time (with a bit of choke in the morning), but 4 or 5 times now the engine has died on me while driving. When I try and re-start, there are no ignition lights on the dashboard at the second click of the ignition key (there are normally). When I turn the key that final bit to turn the engine over, the starter motor turns and the engine fires-up, but then dies the instant I release the key. The first few times this happened, just waiting for a couple of minutes did the trick, everything was back to normal again. It happened last night on me and I can't get her started again. I don't know a lot about cars, but to me this seems like an electrical problem, maybe a short or a corroded wire somewhere in the ignition circuit. Can any of you more experienced people out there tell me if I'm barking up the wrong tree, or the right one? I don't even know where to look exactly to check the wiring (there's quite a lot of wire under the steering column, and it looks quite messy). Thanks to anyone who has the patience to try and help me. Doug > Hi Fellow Mini owners, > [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > turns and the engine fires-up, but then dies the instant I release the > key. Sounds like something is wrong with the lines that hold electricic power when the key is in nr 2 position. If no power is present on those lines, the ignition lights won't work (as noticed), and the ignition itself will not work when the key goes from the number 3 (start) to the nr 2 position (and engine stops). My first suspect would be the ignition switch. Either the switch itself is broken, or the connector that connects it to the wiring loom is corroded (a slight corrosion/ dirt on the contacts is enough). Check that connector first, the contacts should be bright copper or siler (depending on metal used). Clean it off if nessecary . Check the connector on the wiring loom of the car itself to see is the contacts are still tight and clean too. -- Bye, Ray > > Hi Fellow Mini owners, > > [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > -- > Bye, Ray If the connections are loose (wires connected together at base of steering column, just under dash) this can cause what your experiencing, so make sure their together and tight. Taffy > > Hi Fellow Mini owners, > > [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > used). Clean it off if nessecary . Check the connector on the wiring loom of > the car itself to see is the contacts are still tight and clean too. Thanks a lot for your reply, you seem to have done the trick. I followed the wiring loom down the steering column to it's plug, opened it, and inside all the pins were corroded and the insulation was a bit charred. I cleaned up the connections with a small screwdriver and plugged it together again. Lights and it started right up. I'm a bit concerned that the plug looked a bit burnt though. Doug. > Thanks a lot for your reply, you seem to have done the trick. I > followed the wiring loom down the steering column to it's plug, opened [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Doug. Because it was probably not making good connection, when you when you were turning the engine over, you would have been doing the same as putting lots of current through a very thin piece of wire. The connector would then get very hot which is why it now looks a bit burnt. Ben.  Signature????`????,,,,????`????,,,,????`????,,,,????`???? Please reply to the group Replies to this address will bounce! ????`????,,,,????`????,,,,????`????,,,,????`???? > Because it was probably not making good connection, when you when you were > turning the engine over, you would have been doing the same as putting lots > of current through a very thin piece of wire. The connector would then get > very hot which is why it now looks a bit burnt. No. On a ballast resistor system, there is a second connection direct to the coil from the starter circuit. >Hi Fellow Mini owners, > [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > >Doug I've had intermittent complete loss of electrics due to a poor contact on the main power feed that comes off the starter solenoid. On my car it's a push-on type connector and it gets corroded after a time. A gentle wriggle of the connector brings the power back up. Tom Ah late 80`s mini electrics, I remember that all to well my `86 was just the same (when I had her). The wiring got that bad that I was literally crumbling when I went to work on it, and that dammed fuse box. If I had to fix it once I had to do it at least a dozen times. In the end I moved the fuse box inside the car. > This is my first post to this group and my first time owning a Mini, > so bear with me while I ask some probably stupid questions. Welcome aboard. Stupid questions are welcome, because they're the easiest to asnwer, so it makes us all look smart 8-) > A couple of months ago I aquired a Mini 1989 (998cc) saloon (Rose). > In general she runs fine, starts first time (with a bit of choke in [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > over, the starter motor turns and the engine fires-up, but then > dies the instant I release the key. The ignition switch has a live wire into it. It then supplies three things: A) Accessories, indicators, etc B) Ignition *VIA THE BALLAST RESISTOR* and alternator C) Starter motor *AND IGNITION BYPASSING THE BALLAST RESISTOR* Those are very important clues there. What I think is happening is that the connection (B) is corroded or otherwise damaged so that it's intermittent. When (B) lets go, the alternator warning light will glow until the motor stops turning, then it will go out. You will see no warning lights whilst the motor is stopped and the ignition is on. When you turn the key to "start", the ignition is supplied directly, bypassing the ballast resistor and the motor starts. The moment you release the key from the start position, the motor dies again. The second important clue here is that the warning lights all go out with the ignition on. If they stayed on, but the engine still stopped, that would tell you the ballast resistor or it's wiring had died, rather than the supply to the ballast resistor AND the warning lights. Burrow under the steering column and fix the dodgy connection at the ignition switch! 8-) |
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