Won't start!

[amarshall]

D'oh ! Answered my own question in 2007 : http://www.lotusexcel.net/phpbb/viewtop ... f=7&t=1445

[tonypoll]

Link doesn't work (at least, not on my browser)

[amarshall]

Link doesn't work (at least, not on my browser)

Fixed the link - and bizarrely, fixed the car by putting it back together again without changing anything (except putting a bit more charge into the battery).

[MikeC]

I've had similar symptoms, clicking, flashing, volts seem OK, but the real problem turned out to be the start contacts in the ignition switch had worn out. That was at exactly 250,000km ( the odometer was showing 155,342 miles and I'd pulled off the Autobahn in south Germany to take a photo... ).

Mike

Ouch! I hope it isn't that - but the milages are similar. What's involved in replacing/repairing it ?

To save me the expense of replacing all the locks, or having to carry around extra keys, Gerald Turner (then Head Mechanic at Daytune) took the ignition switch apart and replaced the electrical contacts, leaving the lock barrel alone. So it was quite cheap. I will pass GST tomorrow, maybe I'll drop in and ask if he would do the same again.

The day after it happened in Germany, I awoke in the Golden Lotus Chinese Restaurant in a spare room they had, walked back to the car, refitted the starter motor (which had tested OK at the local Opel dealer) and installed a toggle switch from the odd spares in the tools box, and proceeded to the Nürburgring. If anyone has Club Lotus News from around 1991/2 and can find an Excel / Trabant comparison "test" done in Budapest, that was on this trip with my Excel and we were on our way home from Hungary when the switch failed.

In fact the Trabby was one Graham Arnold spotted in an otherwise deserted car-park, and all the maneuvering for photos was done by the Excel.


For anyone with mileage above 150,000 I'd not only suggest checking the contacts on the ignition/start switch, but also the light and dip switches. It's not amusing when the lights go out on a twisty country road. When it happened to me flicking the light switch a few times got the lights back, but it was an anxious few seconds.


Mike

[amarshall]

Right - it's official, the battery is knackered and Halfords are refusing to honour the warranty (3 years 6 months into a 4 year "guarantee") claiming that the battery is Ok (based on a voltage check as far as I can see). I've had it checked independently and it degrades rapidly under load, and trips the overload protection on my battery charger.

Voltmeter on the car was reading close to 14V when I took it to Sheffield & back on Tuesday - so I'm pretty happy that alternator etc. are OK but it wouldn't start at all today (sluggish turning over, then relays & lights went crazy again as the power dropped).

I've just ordered a nice Bosch replacement from Euro Car Parts for delivery on Tuesday (£68 all in) and have flagged the warranty issue with Trading Standards as Halfords head office refuse to discuss it sensibly re contract law & the concept of durability under SoGA.

[Lotus-e-Clan]

I've had two Halfords calcium technology batteries fail well within the guarantee period and I cut my losses...not money losses, but reliability losses....and bought a dry cell ODYSSEY battery that can take discharge without encouraging an early failure.

Also my old VARTA battery on the Clan lasted 7 years longer than 2 Halfords jobbies, and for a short period helped the Lotus out until I got the ODYSSEY.