10 replies to this topic

[RiskyBusiness]

1973 Mini 1000

Hello all,
I am new to the mini scene. I have just purchased the mini yesterday.
I've had a search around the site but cant seem to find an answer that really stands out. Any help or direction to a thread that could help is very appreciated

Upon the drive home last night, in 4th gear, the car began to sputter under acceleration. Upon downshifting to 3rd, it stopped and ran fine. Changed back to 4th and about halfway through the revs, it began to sputter again. I managed to get home fine. I got up this morning to a dead battery. A quick jump from my other car, and the mini was off and running again. Ran fine on the 15 min drive to work.
I left work to find it dead again, so a friend helped me by bump starting it. After getting it started, i turned the headlamps on, and they looked very dim. Then i started the journey home. About 1/4 the way home and it began to sputter again, this time in 3rd gear. I was about halfway home when i went over a speed bump. Upon accelerating after the bump, the car began to sputter very badly and i had to pull into the next parking lot. I pulled into a parking spot and the car continued to run very weak and then finally died. At this point, the headlamps were even more dim than before. I tried to start it back up, but all i got was a click.
During all of this, the car smelled as though it was running very rich. I have no idea where to start, which is very frustrating as i am supposed to ship the car out of the country at the beginning of December.
thanks in advance for any advice and help

Risky

[1987_ParkLane]

Welcome to the mini scene and TMF, but to be honest, I'm confused by what your car is doing lol. I would say maybe the alternator is on its way out, is the battery flat?

[taffy1967]

Yes it does sound like it's not charging and you're battery is letting you down.

So you either need a new battery and/or need to get the alternator overhauled by a good auto electricians.

Or you just need to fit and correctly tension a new fan belt.

[RiskyBusiness]

Welcome to the mini scene and TMF, but to be honest, I'm confused by what your car is doing lol. I would say maybe the alternator is on its way out, is the battery flat?

Yes, the battery is flat. The previous owner said the alternator is fairly new...replaced about 6 months ago (it looks very new also).

[MiniDick]

You could need a new battery or coil. If I'd just bought the Mini I'd replace the points, condenser, leads, spark plugs, dizzy cap, rotor arm and coil. Give it an oil/filter, fuel filter and air filter change too.

[taffy1967]

Perhaps the fan belt just needs adjusting then.

Also check the earth lead on the battery and between the engine and bulkhead.

[RiskyBusiness]

Yes it does sound like it's not charging and you're battery is letting you down.

So you either need a new battery and/or need to get the alternator overhauled by a good auto electricians.

Or you just need to fit and correctly tension a new fan belt.

So, i guess i will check the alternator with a multimeter after a jump in the morning.

[cambiker71]

The battery isn't being charged, although the alternator is new and may well be fine it needs looking at, first, does the red charge warning lamp switch on with the ignition switched on and the engine not running? If not, this is your problem as the alternator won't charge without this circuit working. Also check (as already mentioned) the fan belt is tensioned correctly, and any of the wiring associated with the circuit is in good order, and (obviously!) connected.

[camp freddy]

put a meter across the battery should read 12volt, after starting the car the reading should increase to around
13- 13.5 volts this will show the alternator is working. it takes a 10mile trip to replace the charge used when
starting.. I should go to a garage and ask them to do a drop test on the battery to see if it is ok..

as for the juddering and smell of fuel , check that the choke it releasing, the choke should only be needed
for about 1/4 of a mile after first starting , if the car starts ok without choke then it may be running too rich

[cambiker71]

put a meter across the battery should read 12volt, after starting the car the reading should increase to around
13- 13.5 volts this will show the alternator is working. it takes a 10mile trip to replace the charge used when
starting.. I should go to a garage and ask them to do a drop test on the battery to see if it is ok..

as for the juddering and smell of fuel , check that the choke it releasing, the choke should only be needed
for about 1/4 of a mile after first starting , if the car starts ok without choke then it may be running too rich

A charged battery is 12.6 volts, flat is 12 (or less), charging is 13.5 to 14 at 2000rpm with no load, less at idle often not much more than battery voltage on a mini (ever noticed your lights get brighter if you rev the engine?)almost without doubt the battery is now flat due to a charging fault, the reason it misfired was that there was not enough left in the battery to provide power to the ignition, so it stopped and the lights being very dim also confirms this. Classic symptoms of non charging. I'd also recommend, like Camp freddy, to get the battery checked once the charge fault is solved, flattening a battery like this often damages it.

[dklawson]

I agree with Cambiker71.

First confirm the proper operation of the charge warning light. Once that appears to be working (at least coming on when you turn the ignition to the run position), then move on to the voltage tests. If the red light is not functioning there's nothing to be learned from voltage measurements.