Finally I drove my car for first time!
I bought it 6 weeks ago but I couldnt drive it cause insurances wouldn't cover me cause of my european license.
Finally the UK license arrived so I had my virgin drive of my MK Indy.
When I tryed to start the car was dead and to be honest I was expecting that, that is why I bought wires to charge the kit car's battery with my
everyday car battery. ( if this makes any sense...)
After charging it I finally managed to start the car. I let it worm up for 5 minutes and then I start the drive I was dreaming for 5 weeks. I drove it
for 2 minutes before I hit the traffic. Traffic was my biggest nightmare cause the clutch doen't forgive mistakes and in my effort to start
moving the car after the traffic light I did the mistake I didn't rev it enough and the engine stopped.
When I tryed again to start the engine was dead, not a sound nothing.
I tryed with the leads which I borroed from a guy who stopped to help me push the car of the middle of the road but nothing.
Do I need a new battery?
If yes any suggestions of size? Bike battery or car battery?
By the way my MK has a 1995 fireblade engine.
Thanks in advance guys!
Bike engine batteries really really really hate being run flat. You may well need a new bike battery to replace the dead one (then again, it could just be that you didn't drive it for long enough to fully recharge it).....
Its not going to be the battery if you tried a jump start. Sounds like either a main terminal could be loose or a main fuse has blown. Have you got any panel lights or other stuff still working?
Something like a YTX12 bike battery is perfectly sufficient for a BEC, but Id suggest keeping it on a smart trickle charger (Optimate etc) if you have
electrics in the garage as bike batteries do seem to die very quickly if neglected.
The other thing is you could obviously be suffering from a faulty regulator (a common blade fault). When the engine is running, check the battery
voltage, if its less than about 13.8v then its probably not charging, and if its more than about 14.5v then the regulator is not regulating and will
fry the battery
quote:
Originally posted by kastrato
wires to charge the kit car's battery with my everyday car battery.
Have you tried starting it since?
And dont let it go flat again!
No I didn't
The lights were working fine
How can I check the voltage of the battery?
What tools needed?
Sorry about my stupid questions but its I am not familiar with these things.
I hope to catch up on the way.
I did not tryed a jump start.
quote:
Originally posted by kastrato
I tryed with the leads which I borroed from a guy who stopped to help me push the car of the middle of the road but nothing.
jump start is when we push the car in order to start the engine. Is it??
I tryed with the leads.
Sorry about about my english!!
Jump start is using jump leads from another battery.
Bump start is pushing the car and engaging gear
So if you have tried a jump start then either the leads were faulty of there is another problem. If the lights were working then I am guessing that
the problem lies with the starter, loose terminal or a fuse.
Can I do something myself or I need to go to a garage?
Shall I buy another battery?
I've had a Battery on my Van that was going faulty from a Very small drain (A Tracker) and that would refuse to Start.
The fuel pump or Glowplugs or both wouldn't run because it was flat so it wouldn't bump off.
Even with the Jump Leads connected for 5 mins wasn't enough to get it started again, It took a good 10 mins before it would start!
So I will try again to jump start it with my leads this time (I know there not faulty cause it started the first time)
and if not I will go to a garage to check the voltage to see if it is the regulator.
Modern high performance batteries need charging special chargers to recover from a deep discharge.
Buy a new modern battery charger with controlled rate charging that will do both full recharging and controlled float charging
After recharging the battery do a load test or cranking voltage test on the battery, also check the alternator charging voltage.
Most jump leads aren't good enough to start a car with a dead flat battery.
Alternators (car or MC) cannot charge a dead flat battery, this is even the case if left running for 24hours.
Any engine with EMS puts a small drain on the battery even when parked.
[Edited on 26/4/07 by britishtrident]
make sure that when jump starting it you dont leave the car engine running! You risk frying your regulator apparently.
quote:
Originally posted by britishtrident
Most jump leads aren't good enough to start a car with a dead flat battery.
would it be easier to go and buy a new battery?
Because I dont use the car often I can disconnect the battery everytime I leaving the car in the garage?
Just make sure when jump starting you go Red to Red and Black to Black, Sonds stupid but we have a fleet of 70 odd vehicles to deliver newspapers and
it's not unussual to hear a bang as we lose another van for the night, my jump leads are made of 500amp welding cable
Tony
I will go tomorrow again to jump started
with my leads
wish me luck!
I know it may seem obvious but its not in gear is it and the neutral switch is still wired in. Just checking because the lights work suggesting a
charge and it wouldn't start when jumped and you stalled at the lights in gear.
again sorry if its stating the obvious
Pete
hi,my car was the same so i bought a new battery,still the same,got a trickle charger of e-bay been using it for about 4 weeks now starts first time every time and all through the days out drive after frequent stops (country pubs) sorry forgot to mention its a bike battery.for about £18 its worth a try.
my battery has a slight drain on it from the speedo healer ,it has to have permanent power or id have to set the % everytime i go out anyway i used it
last august or there abouts and then it was left in the garage untill end of march,,not even the optimate would charge it back up.
when you jump start it make sure the ignition is off when you attach the leads because if you get a little spark when you attach the leads it has a
chance of popping your cdi unit
In this point guys I want to thank you all for the great response!
Thanks guys!!
Hello all!
I managed today to have a proper ride with the car (practicly the first one!)
I jump start the car with my leads and it started fine hold idle fine everything seem fine.
I let it warm up and then I went for a drive.
The car was fine for the first minute with me trying very hard to rev it high when I starting not to stold it (or however it is called when you dont
rev enough and ...)
On the second traffic light the car did not hold the odle and stop with neutral in (actually first but with the clutch pushed down.)
thankfully was on the downhill so I start the engine again with second gear (push start)
500 meter later same thing happend again but luckily outside halfords so I went in and buy a new battery (65 pounds with 4 years warranty , ford
battery)
and after I fit it the car was fine, the engne didnt stop again for the rest of the day!
But in some point the gearbox didnt worked (stuck in 1st)
5 minutes later on my way home the earbox worked again!
I can't understand what is happenning!
I think it is alive and it taking the wee on me!!
What do you think??
Glad to hear you've sorted the battery problem. Might be worth checking your gear linkages from lever to gearbox and make sure they are all tight
and moving freely. Oil any parts that need it.
Phil
these are typical kitcar issues, they always need a bit of attention, its all part of the fun. Eventually it will run out of things to go wrong!
I dont mind doing thing, I like it actually but the problem is my lack of knowledge I am an architect you see nothing to do with engines..
How can I check my gear linkages? Where is the lever and what is it? I know what a gearbox is but I dont know where is it. Any pics and info will be
very helpfull!
thats not a bad idea!
The car I think it will be fine after I changed the battery no major problems occurred only the gear stick stuck for a while so propably will make it
to mk, but if somebody can show me how can I check the lickage I will hapy to do it!
The gear linkages are the parts that connect the bit you use to change gear, to the gear shaft on the engine.
This could be either a series of aluminium tubes or cable.
Phil
so basically if I remove my tunnel top I will be able to see all these parts.
Yes. You will also be able to see the linkage when you take the bonnet off. Just get someone to move the gear lever backwards & forwards, whilst
you're looking at the back of the engine, near to where the propshaft connects to the engine. (Without the engine running, obviously)
Phil