Here's what I surmised: Her alternator had failed/was failing and, of
course, the battery was drained by powering the ECU, FI, gauges, lights,
etc. When I jumped her car, it started immediately and ran fine until I
disconnected the jumpstarter (one of the combination jumpstarter/air
compressor/inverter things), then it barely ran and the (digital) gauges
were very dim. This may be an issue only with an alternator since, I
believe, they require some excitation of the rotor to produce current,
whereas with a generator I think there is enough residual magnetism in
the field coils to produce some output (possibly why they need to be
'polarized' when a car's ground is switched). Electrical gurus, please
correct me if I'm wrong.
People always want to blame the coil, possibly because it's about the
easiest thing in the engine bay to change out. My BJ8's coil is the
original AFAIK, and has nearly 200K miles on it and has been flawless
(but I carry a spare, just in case). Have heard of problems with newer
coils, esp. the 'Lucas Sport' variety, and have it on good
authority--tech support at Moss--that the newer ones are Chinese crap*
so if he's got one of those a new coil might be worth a shot. As
someone here, or on the Forum mentioned, the aftermarket parts business
for older cars is now a 'cottage industry,' without the QA effort that
the OEMs practiced (or should have, at least).
Also consider the (distributor) rotor but, in my experience they fail
outright and dramatically (engine stops cold and won't restart, period).
Bob
* same source told me people are buying original, empty Lucas boxes and
putting aftermarket crap parts in them. Beware.
On 4/11/2017 1:12 AM, Simon Lachlan wrote:
>
> Thanks for all the replies.
>
> Now, I had thought that we were facing two separate issues:-
>
> The battery was flat because of frequent short trips and then a series
> of attempts to start a recalcitrant engine.
>
> The engine was ?making a weird noise? and generally misbehaving which
> led to more attempts to start and a flatter and flatter battery??the
> one thing leading to the other.
>
> Are you guys suggesting that the battery ? still under guarantee ?
> and/or the generator could cause the engine to stutter, under rev and
> go gutless? ie that, let?s say, a fluctuating output from the
> generator could cause fluctuations in the ignition circuit? That would
> be contrary to what I?d expect. Generators fail???the lights go dim
> but the engine, if it dies at all, does so unspasmodically? (If that?s
> even a word!). In my experience, it?s more a question of the battery
> being flat as a pancake when you next try to start the car.
>
> And, of course, we haven?t heard if the charging light has come on.
> What about that, PH?
>
> As I said, I was thinking about timing. Are those bolts on the
> distributor clamp tight enough?
>
> Anyhow, I would really appreciate some more guru time on this one. Thanks,
>
> Simon
>
> *From:*Healeys [mailto:healeys-bounces at autox.team.net] *On Behalf Of
> *Bob Spidell
> *Sent:* 11 April 2017 01:06
> *To:* healeys at autox.team.net
> *Subject:* Re: [Healeys] "Engine making a weird noise"
>
> I helped a friend jumpstart her Toyota (Corolla, I think; maybe a
> Camry--who cares ;). A jump started the car immediately, but it
> barely ran; couldn't even light the dash gauges. The alternator was
> shot; ergo, could be the dynamo on your nephew's car.
>
> Bob
>
> On 4/10/2017 1:41 PM, Simon Lachlan wrote:
>
> Hi,
>
> Advice from the experts required please:-
>
> (No just the experts. We can all have a go.
>
> So, I got this, below, from my nephew just now:-
>
> QUOTE:-
>
> Hi Uncle Simon!
> ?????. I went to work with the healey on Saturday. All went well
> in the morning but on the way back the engine stopped just after
> the gate... And it would not start: as if the battery was flat:
> not much happening when trying to start it! I spent 30 min
> checking the distributor, wires, etc. all seemed normal.
> I called the assistance. They came with a battery booster which
> got the car started immediately. After 15min of driving I found
> myself in a traffic jam. The car kept on wanting to stop. I tried
> keeping the revs up but it did not work well: the engine was
> making a weird noise, the car had very little power and the revs
> did not want to go high: 4500 maximum. I don't see what that
> engine problem has got to do with the battery?
> And I can't explain how the new battery can be flat!?
> The engine stopped in front of my garage. It would not start. I
> pushed the car in it. And left. I was a bit fed up with it so did
> not go back. I might do in a few days...
> Any ideas about the problem!?
> PH
>
> UNQUOTE
>
> Well, the battery may be new, but I suspect it?s used quite
> frequently and doesn?t get time to get charged.
>
> Main problem is the lack of power and other related issues. Car is
> a BJ8 with a very recently fitted Pertronix EI and coil.
>
> I?m thinking coil or coil connections or timing. The car?s in a
> basement in Paris; I?m in Devon, UK which makes life tricky.
>
> Any thoughts would be much appreciated.
>
> Simon
>
>
>
>
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