non-starter

[simon+2]

hello all,

I have a 1967 elan +2 with the lotus twin cam 1600cc engine. It has been sitting around for some time and has recently begun refusing to fire. I have been through the fueling system and there is defiantly fuel coming to the spark plugs (which are wet) and there is also a visible spark from all of them. However though the starter motor turns fine there is no hint of firing what so ever.

i recently changed the distributer points, rotor arm and cap after which the car started first time however a week later this problem began.

I am seriously running out of ideas, has anyone heard of any common problems with this engine that may cause this? Help would be much appreciated.

simon

[type26owner]

Check the compression first. If it's low you'll suffer in this way. One way to get around this problem for awhile is to ditch the Lucas starter. They turn over too slowly and make starting difficult even for a fresh engine.

Also check the voltage drop at the coil while the starter is turning over. If it falls below 10 volts then prehaps a ballasted coil is needed. IIRC, there is an official Lotus Service Bulletin over in the technical section you should read relating to this subject.

[GrUmPyBoDgEr]

"Sitting around for some time"
could it be that the fuel has turned sour?
John

[Dave-M]

Points closed up? Maybe
Dave M

[hantsjo]

Hi Simon, I've had problems with new dizzy caps in the past... remove the cap and check that the center electrode is not stuck in the socket. when this happened to me when i removed the cap the electrode popped down again and the car would run fine for a while then fail to start up, took me ages to work out the problem...
Jo
65 s2

[matnrach]

Hi,
Three problems I found when starting a +2 which had been standing for ages: (not including a stuck clutch, flat battery, earth to the starter solenoid etc etc)

1. Jets blocked with fuel that had turned to a thick gum
2. Poor earth on the coil
3. The points needed a good clean (400grit paper)

It will be interesting to find out what your answer is.

[simon+2]

hi thanks for all the replies so far

im thinking hantjo might seriously be on to something there with the dizzy cap since changing the points was the last thing i did before it stopped running, so im trying to compose a way to test they are working first before i go through the nightmare of removing the twin webbers again to get at the distributor i can also test the coil voltage whilst im at this as suggested above.

The fuel may be a fair point but i would expect to have some kind of reaction from the engine even if this was the case, it may run very badly but u'd expect some sign of firing. Weird thing is it turns over very strongly but simply shows no sign of firing. For this reason my first thought was that it just wasn't getting any fuel so i checked the breathers and did a pump test but they all turned out fine. The jets may be worth a look but as i say the spark plugs are getting damp (with a definate smell of fuel) which suggests the problem is not with the fueling.

Anyway i'll keep you posted of any progress,

simon

[carrierdave]

I had a few probelms with my car when i first tried to start her. Check the voltage you are getting to the coil - you should have a good 12v supply. If this is low then run a cable from the solenoid starter cable to the positive side of the coil (not the dissy side as you will take out the pigtail).

Try this and see if it works - If so then a quick fix is to fit the ballast resistor type solenoid and coil.

The other item may be the points - you need to ensure that the feed from the coil does not earth out before the points - the voltage must travel down the points and when you pull the points apart you should hear and see a spark.

Dave

[mikefromengland]

you dont need to take off the carbs to remove the dizzy .i have a right hand drive car .its a bit fiddley but take off the cap and the whole thing pulls out.

[berni29]

Hi There

It could easily be the fuel in my opinion. I would squirt some cold start into the airbox, or a bit down each carb throat (open, squirt close). If it fires then it's likely to be the fuel. Many people here will tell you that you are asking for an exploding airbox doing this so beware if you try it. I have used the technique a few times. In fact I did it this weekend after a carb change on my plus 2. The engine fired with the cold start, and it turned out that it took much more cranking than I thought to fill the carbs and get things going. At least I knew that it was going to fire if it got good fuel.

Good luck.