Project Cheap Grief not well :(

steptoe · Post by **steptoe** » Sat Oct 20, 2012 11:30 am

Just after thinking there should have been more turbo L series sold here, sedan and wagon form, thinking this coz my gLta is great little beast to drive....I pull up 35km from home to do a quote to find she has a very slow lumpy idle, the PEEL O2 sensor LEDs are reading lean idle mixture. Figured stuff this, turn around and head home. Got here

All the way cruising came up lean, power on and bost was fine, right on stoich. Might be time to fit spare rekitted LPG converter ? May be an air leak somewhere but doubting it.

Also in past week had start issues . Nothing at START or a click of starter. A jiggle at battery terminals sorted it once or twice. Sometimes no lights on dash, no start second try is fine. did same as when it was hottish.
Also got a click noise in front when touch brakes.
Tim to clean the grot out from inside, give whole thing a wash inside, outside and under bonnet, clean out shed and give her a bit of TLC as she is only car on the road at the moment.

I may even have an ignition switch back to swap in - or is it my FLs telling me something???

Post by **TOONGA** » Sat Oct 20, 2012 11:39 am

Check and clean both ends of both battery cables and check the cables for damage. I had an original EA ally cable for my earth that had gone past its use by date, and the ally was brittle and had lost conductivity (when bent the cable snapped). it is now replaced with a copper cable from a liberty wagon. As well I added an extra earth to the engine and to the body.

can't really help with the O2 problem sorry but look for gasket leaks(?)

TOONGA

steptoe · Post by **steptoe** » Sat Oct 20, 2012 7:55 pm

ahem.....

you know the Firefox "well, this is embarassing" message that come on screen.

1. the power cable at the battery was secure and tight in place - due to the fact it was cable tied to the other cable. The bloody 11mm head on one terminal bolt was loose, just weeks after the whole thing was renewed. Those silver zinc plated washers masquerading as spring washers like the quality Australian, US or Japanese made spring washers, are rubbish, likely from a workshop in China - and have been caught out before. Tightening that fixed the starter motor problem but only after it was deduced that my start kill switch was activated by a certain action I wil not reveal, at the commercial vacuum site

The lean mixture on idle and cruise, once again

the rubber cap plugging off the old auto vac line on the back of the mpfi throttle body had finally blown off and was visible in better light - sunlight. A new cap and an eansy teansy clamp has fixed that problem too.

It has also answered a pondered question that I had a few weeks ago - wondering how I could hook up a small air bleed to purposely lean off the mixture on cruise for better economy (worse emissions, cough, cough). Must be a way of old CG telling me

"use the auto port Jonno, use the auto vac port"

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Sat Oct 20, 2012 10:09 pm

So this was really just a case of little short cuts not having been sorted or maintained?

I had a bit of case of this today...

Maybe your subi's trying to tell you something - I know mine "communicates" with me when it's not happy, like today.

Cheers

Bennie

steptoe · Post by **steptoe** » Sun Oct 21, 2012 8:56 am

Only short cut was not finding a genuine spring washer.

The rubber bung - I guess , was only temporary 50,000km ago with man5 conversion. It'd be a great input for a solenoid and line into brake fluid reservoir - not the brakes, a 007 style smokescreen

for the plicks sitting on my arse in 80 zone - just before it turns to 100. Absolutely love the acceleration this baby has from 80 to 120 (oops) in 4th and stand on the gas, not just feed the turbo, stand on it !

Getting a wash and polish very soon.....