Hadn’t used the car (Mk2) for a couple of weeks over Christmas and now it won’t start (first problem ever with the car!). Can anyone point me in the right direction (technically challenged here, by the way)?
Seems to be plenty of power from the battery; ignition comes on OK but when the key is turned to fire the engine there is a horrible “grating” sound (appears to come from in front of the driver somewhere but it is difficult to tell) and nothing else.
Any suggestions, hints, likely cost to put right etc would be gratefully received!
[And, does anyone know a decent mobile mechanic in Cambridge who may be able to come and fix it if I can’t?]
Sounds like a flattened battery; have you checked the battery itself? Having lights on the dashboard doesn’t necessarily mean there is enough juice to turn the engine over.
I agree. The noise is probably the starter ( solenoid) but not enough juice to engage and turn the starter properly , I would charge the battery and try again it may save you a loy of time money and effort.
I will try charging up the battery. I assumed that wasn’t the problem as the headlights were bright and the alarm/immobiliser was fully functional (according to the manual it should warn me if the battery was low). However, it sounds like a cheap solution if it works.
By the way…do I have to disconnect the battery or can I just connect the charger? If I disconnect do you know what will happen to the radio and immobiliser (Clifford Concept 400)? Any reminders on the correct sequence for disconnecting/connecting etc also gratefully received.
Not sure of type at the moment - will check this evening. It is pretty old (I can’t remember using it for at least 10 years, probably much longer) and was probably a cheapo one (as money was tighter in those old days!). Is there anything I should look for (in its name or specs)?
Took the plunge and plugged the old recharger to the battery/body for a few hours yesterday evening and this morning the engine fired up straight away [:D].
Never would have thought that such a horribly expensive sounding problem could be cured so easily/cheaply.
A few years ago, I brought an engine starter from Argos, for about the same price as a battery charger. Essentially, its a 12V battery you can keep charged by 240V. If you have a flat battery, you can jump start off it without disconnecting anything. I found it powerful enough to start up a completely dead XJ-S. Some of them allow you to hook up via the cigarette lighter, but this one came with normal crocodile clips. When jump starting, attach the earth jump lead to the spare wheel screw. This reduces the chances of shorting out on the battery positive terminal.
Cold damp weather is hard on most batteries, but what can exacerbate things is a poor clamp on the earth (-ve) terminal. A lot of garages, if disconnecting the battery, will simply loosen off the clamp and wiggle the clamp off the battery terminal; more likely on the MX5 due to the poor access to the battery in the boot. Over time, the lead terminal wears, and the clamp fails to grip tightly. The fix is to fit a new generic clamp. Short term bodge is a bit of tin foil on the terminal to pack it out a bit. Many MX5s have quite old batteries; you can get many many years out of the original fit Panasonic (on my old 1991, it was still going strong after 13 years, the only fault being wear to the base of the plastic casing…), so I suppose this could be an issue. Not had this specific problem with any of my MX5s, but did have it on a CRX in the US.