TOPIC: Electrical problem

Interesting Andrew, I will get there in the end and llet you know outcome
Cheers
Mark

Thanks Nina ( not Nina ) I am going to spend a few more hours tomorrow on it checking through things again, I will update later
Cheers
Mark

Latest update, gets worse I now find the battery isn’t charging, so I took the alternator to a specialist who checked it and is working correctly. Also changed the battery just in case it was that. Whilst car is running no charge coming through at all and battery volts steadily reclines.
Could I have disturbed some wiring when checking everything, I have had a look but can’t find anything.
I knew fiat electrics could be problematic but this is getting beyond a joke.
Any ideas ? So I can get back to my original problem
Cheers
Mark

I have just replaced a faulty battery on my Coupe after initially thinking it was an alternator problem, so the Fiat electrical gremlins are having a good rummage round the cars at the moment!

I had a similar issue to what you are experiencing on my old car, but mine was solved with a new coil, although my first port of call - having not checked the coil first - was the carb, which I had rebuilt and it ran a lot better and for a lot longer before misfiring heavily. Once the coil was replaced the car ran fine until the tin worm got the better of it.
My new one seems to suffer from loss of power when cruising and then asking more of it under load, which could the start of a similar issue to what you are getting now.

I would be checking the earthing points and checking them again, they were a pain on my old car!

Sorry I cant add any more to whats already been said. Good luck!

If you haven't done so, try running a big cable ( like a jump lead) from the alternator output the connection at the stater motor. On mine the original cable was a bit puny and was more resistance than conductor.
Result was that although the alt. was making voltage ok, several volts were lost between it and the battery. The original cable is nearly 6 feet long and replacing it with a nice new fat cable made a measureable difference.
If you are electrically minded, and equipped, you can follow the voltage drops to see where problem lies.

Here’s something from the fiat TC club:

Found my coil was getting so hot that water dripping on it was immediately vapourising. After changing coil, the same issue and same figures when tested with multi meter, so relented and took to a specialist as thought maybe something over charging or timing way out. Turns out nothing wrong except the water was a clue. Dripping on top of coil and shorting, so also explains the rougher running when hot. So after cleaning out the heater tray and drain, where water had been coming from, they then mounted the coil upside down

It doesn’t say if it worked or not as end of thread but worth a try?

Just editing this now as this is counter intuitive
If water was vaporising wehn hot, then the fault should disappear wehn hot so methinks the trouble would be wehn cold n wet (like minis and mk1 fiestas were)

Just an update to say the non charging was a bad connection on starter.
The hot coil problem persists although I have run car for over an hour and the engine didn’t cut out.
Coil was extremely hot though.

I know this has been said before but, coils do get hot, my 4.6 straight 6 Hotchkis gets VERY hot and was running like a pig on a trampoline until we did a service. It had been stood for quite a while so: drained all fuel; new fuel and filters, new plugs and shielded leads;; new plugs: points and; correct 24v coil...I don’t know which cured rough running but something did but coil still gets hot, I can’t create more airflow over it as it’s under armour plate.
Try giving it a run, under load, and see if something you’ve done has cured it, then just live with hot coil and possibly try to create more airflow over it, it is mid engined after all

Hello

any chance Mack can give an update on this as i am suffering similar/the same issues?

cheers

RDS

To be honest never properly resolved it, coil still gets really hot, but on the bright side I have managed driving for more than a hour and it hasn’t konked out !

you are luckier than me then. I can set my watch to the minute it will die. Usually just after I say to myself, "all is forgiven, what a wonderful car you are to drive...."

Mine used to be 45 mins at idle, I will see what happens this season as I have just got it out of storage today

yes please do Mark - so many threads start with a request for assistance, advice is given and then rarely is there a follow up, let alone a thank you to the contributing forum members, which is a shame. I'd really like to use this car!!

I've collated into one document a lot of responses as to whether this is a n electrical or fuelling problem and am sifting through to make more readable.

I solved my hot coil problem with one of the "dry coils" from Eurosport.
The fuel evap (hot start) problem was fixed with a facet redtop pump, malpassi regulator and suitable electrics.
Next step will be lumenition ignition!

cheers Andrew

dry coil not eliminated the issue here and i have some re-routing of fuel lines, pump tests, fan (rad and carb) tests, carb strip and other things to do before going down the elec fuel pump route.