Starting and running issues

[macspring]

Gareth,

Don't know for sure, but I think a new ignition switch is cheap enough and should just be replaced which will rule it out. GSF ?

Good luck with your quest !

Make sure to have standby starter motor to hand as the current one is working hard for it's keep.

I'm sure you will, but please post up the final cure when you nail it.

Kind regards.

[SHEEPISH-S2]

Hi all,

Thought I'd give an update on my S2 saga now that it's hopefully nearing a happy conclusion.....

The fault that reared it's ugly head in the first place was an intermittant non-start. This led to some testing a rumaging which unfortunately led me to all sorts of problems, the biggest was definately finding that the 20 year old paper head gasket had finally reached the end of it's useful life (symptom = nearly no compression in 3 cylinders!).

So, at the beginning of May I completed what turned out to be pretty much a full engine rebuild.... anything knackered has been replaced along the way or reconned (that'll be about 50% of what came off). When completed she rather astonishingly started on the first turn of the key, happy days.

I was however fearing that the root cause of the initial problem had not been found and so there was an element of waiting for it to bite me.... which it did halfway through its MOT test, typical and some what embarrassing having to push it off the garages ramps!

She was well and truely dead, which I was pleased about as it meant I could track the fault down once and for all. It didn't take long with my first port of call being the immobaliser.... burnt out output pins for the fuel pump feed. Immobaliser fixed she now starts everytime.

The partial MOT also led to the requirement for a full rear end suspension rebuild along with lots of other bits. The list of things I've done in 6 months is absolutely shocking, the car cost me £2000 to buy back.... i suspect I've spent the same getting her ship shape (I tend to half this number when talking with the wife!).

So on Friday she has another go at the MOT with my hope being she'll finally be roadworthy, and then comes the extensive testing of the engine job I've done!

Despite it all I still love her, maybe even more than before, and if she's good I'm going to take her to the Nuremburg ring in August to show her some proper appreciation!

To conclude, I think the morale of my story is...... Unless completely mad, never buy back a car you sold, always remember there was a reason you sold it in the first place!

Cheers,

Gareth

P.S. and I've still got a list of things to do!