[urq] CSI/ Thermo time

[Jim Haseltine]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Phil Payne" <quattro at isham-research.com>

> A raft of things can cause hard starting, but none of them are design
issues.  I keep meeting
> cars that have been bodged (even by a trick as minor as pulling the
connector off the CSV) but
> the piper eventually has to be paid.  Sooner or later there'll be a
problem that you can't fix
> this way and some poor mechanic is going to have to audit the engine bay
looking for these
> damn fiddles before he can start debugging the latest problem.
>

Too bloody right. This week I've spent 9 hours trying to sort out a WR which
dies under load - without any success. I first met the car in the middle of
last year, shortly after the current owner had bought it and discovered the
running problem - nothing that we've done to it since seems to have had any
effect. It will start on the first turn of the key and idle well but once
the engine warms it just won't run under load. It will rev to over 5k
without load (didn't want to take it any higher) but on the road it doesn't
want to know, seems to be 'missing' and then the power and revs drop away
until the engine stops. Turn the ignition off, restart immediately and its
got loads of power for the next 200 yards or so and then goes through the
cycle again.

Last night I reached the last resort and spent some 3 hours removing the
remains of at least two alarm/immoblizer systems and a hands-free phone on
the chance that one of them might be screwing things. Still no joy, the
thing runs like a pig once warm.

New so far:
Timing belt/water pump/idle roller
Exhaust manifold
Injector seals
plugs
plug leads
fuel pipes

swapped out for used known good items
ECU (twice)
TCI
both flywheel sensors
coil
fuel pump

tested ok/circuits made good
fuel pump relay
air temperature sensor
fuel pump loom

As you can probably guess, the owner is not a happy camper and nor am I. I
like working on cars but this one is pissing me off - the only (slight)
saving grace to this is that the 40 mile trip back from Hessle to York after
midnight is most enjoyable.

I'm now almost certain that the cause is going to turn out to be something
very simple which I've not spotted. (Any suggestions will followed up).

Regards,

Jim Haseltine