mx5cartalk.com

i was driving home from work today, and the car started acting a little strange.

my gears were changing wierdly and had lack of power in them, when i pushed the throttle, the engine and gears lagged, this ended up stopping and presumed to act normal throughout the trip.

half way home the car started to jump around, the engine was acting strangely like i was running out of fuel, once again when i pushed the throttle the car went spastic, backfired chocked and pretty much died. another odd thing i noticed was the rpm gauge going spastic (was cruising at around 1500rpm, it jumped up to 5000rpm and jiggled inbetween the two figures.) i pulled into a street just in time for the car to cut out.

i was sitting around for about 5 minutes, checking the engine bay and boot as the battery light came on, my volt gauge states that the battery has enough volts and hasnt dropped over the time the gauge has been installed in the car. i tryed starting it a few times and it just didnt budge, like the alternator didn't want to turn. so i left it, made a call and then tryed starting it. It started, so i took it for a spin before i hit the main road, it was fine for most of the trip.

litterally two streets away from my street (even 600m away from my house!) the car started revving oddly again and just shut off, luckily i pulled onto the side road on time. checked all the car again, nothing! no loose bits, no shreaded belts, nothing at all! again made another call and then it started, punched it all the way home and let it run, it hasnt done anything odd.

i was thinking it could be my afm plug, cas or even loose battery terminal, unfortunately it doesnt seem to be the case, and this sounds like it could hurt my hip pocket.

i am thinking its either the alternator or the fuel pump (the fuel pump was changed roughly 60k ago, i think my mum cheaped out on a shitty one though, might give her a ring about it)

any ideas?

i will be checking plugs leads, belts etc when the damn thing cools down.

thanks

edit: fuel gauge is showing that it is just above the E line, i have gone past this many times before and have had no problems, but just thought i'd include it here.

Put 20 litres of petrol in it and see how it goes.

i'll give that a go a little later JBT

just checked the car again, its making a buzzing noise, car isnt on or anything, sounds like a bee just a bit lower pitched and a consistant pitch, sounds louder under car at the front bumper and on the right side of the engine bay ( i would of thought left side as thats where the alternator is)

that buzzing will just be your thermo fan for the radiator. altho mine only works when the car key is in the ignition and switched to "acc / Ignition" .. (one click before starting the car)

i think your problem might be the leads?

I will just peer at my crystal ball(s).....

Leads. The rest is paranoia.

Fatty wrote:that buzzing will just be your thermo fan for the radiator. altho mine only works when the car key is in the ignition and switched to "acc / Ignition" .. (one click before starting the car)

i think your problem might be the leads?

i know which sound you are talking about, but it isnt the same sound, and the keys are not in the ignition at all...

bruce wrote:I will just peer at my crystal ball(s).....

Leads. The rest is paranoia.

i'd be dissapointed if it were the leads, i changed them 3 months ago, i do have the stock set and will check if that fixes anything.

Check all your battery and earth connections.

if you changed leads 3 months ago then its unlikely the problem.

is the buzzing louder at the front or back? with your head under the car that is.

it could be the pump or something else, depending on how its playing up exactly.

Rotary wrote:if you changed leads 3 months ago then its unlikely the problem.

is the buzzing louder at the front or back? with your head under the car that is.

it could be the pump or something else, depending on how its playing up exactly.

at the front.

MXHEVN wrote:
just didnt budge, like the alternator didn't want to turn. so i left it, made a call and then tryed starting it. It started, so i took it for a spin before i hit the main road, it was fine for most of the trip.

It sounds Electrical, loose connection maybe or more

when you say alternator, i think you mean the starter motor, so when you tried to start it did you hear a clicking sound at all?

Rotary wrote:

MXHEVN wrote:
just didnt budge, like the alternator didn't want to turn. so i left it, made a call and then tryed starting it. It started, so i took it for a spin before i hit the main road, it was fine for most of the trip.

It sounds Electrical, loose connection maybe or more

when you say alternator, i think you mean the starter motor, so when you tried to start it did you hear a clicking sound at all?

maybe i do mean starter, something along those lines, what do you mean by a clicking sound, it doesnt make any strange sounds when starting, it is just really delayed or just doesnt want to start over. i've started it a few times since i have been at home and it has started perfectly.

the purpose of the altenator is to charge the battery, so that has nothing to do with your problem unless your battery is going flat.

So if you meant to say starter motor not turning over, this means it is not kicking the engine over at all. like there is no battery. but sometimes it will click if the starter is bad or bad conection at battery terminals

Rotary wrote:the purpose of the altenator is to charge the battery, so that has nothing to do with your problem unless your battery is going flat.

So if you meant to say starter motor not turning over, this means it is not kicking the engine over at all. like there is no battery. but sometimes it will click if the starter is bad or bad conection

ahk, must of got mixed up. like i said it hasnt made any weird noises, just the tacho went spastic and the engine was being a bitch (backfired when i tryed to get revs up) i'm starting to think its something to do with fuel, or spark. i will give all suggestions a go tomorrow.

You say you have gone past empty several times, maybe as simple as a dirty/blocked fuel filter from sucking up gunk from the bottom of the tank.