Ross L Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Driving along, red ignition light had been on for abt 30 miles, then just this morning after a 10 mile run it lost power and stopped ....awaiting RAC. Other observations - recent MOT and had made a few changes to Emerald mapping to get thru emissions. Did not go back to original settings, but car was running fine. Reg ignition light came on abt 20 miles after leaving the MOT garage. During the MOT a water pipe came off the some coolant spilled over the engine, the alternator specifically. Tigntened pipe back on and refilled with coolant, started and ran fine for MOT. During the breakdown, rev counter registered zero then engine started to lose power some coughing and spluttering. Temperature was fine, oil pressure fine, plenty of fuel. Still power in the battery, i.e. ignition light on, lights operate, but car will not turnover .. Any advice before the RAC swops in and solves the problem!! For completeness it is a Caterham SV 1.8 Rover powered 2008 c. 15k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ECR Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 If your ignition light is on your battery is not being charged. If you have a low battery voltage your ecu won't function (even though the engine may turn over on the starter) Sounds like your alternator is u/s (or perhaps the wiring to it ....) Have you tried jump leads ? Edited by - ECR on 14 Nov 2011 11:13:40 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakeandlizzy Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Do you mean the red light on the emerald? If so, then maybe the crank sensor? ot that it is bad, but maybe some bad wiring? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnv Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 yes, exactly what happened to mine when the alternator belt went Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross L Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 the ignition red light - the one on the dashboard, not emerald light Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted November 14, 2011 Member Share Posted November 14, 2011 As above. Where are you stuck... Oxfordshire? Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross L Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 yep OXON, but close to home, so logistics under control ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Easy diagnosis. Your alternator has stopped charging as others say. You then run on the battery until it goes flat, then the ignition shuts down. This takes about 30-40 miles in daylight, evidently, when it happened to me in darkness I got 10 miles before everything went dead. Back in the days of clockwork points, carburettors and mechanical fuel pumps cars would run like this for days - I remember a mate with an old banger who extended his charger leads and fed them through the letterbox to his car. After an overnight charge the thing would get him to work and around town for a few days, then when the starter got lazy he'd charge it again. He didn't want to pay for an alternator repair. He did about 6 months like this until the list of faults for the next MoT sent the car to the great breaker's yard in the sky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross L Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 RAC diagnosis means a new alternator is on the way ... thanks for contributions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakeandlizzy Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Ah, sorry, I have a stack dash. I don't have that light but wouild get a low batt alarm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myothercarsa2cv Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 I went quite a few weeks before realising the alternator belt was about as saggy as a saggy thing... only needed a bump in the cold... Coolant leaves a nasty residue, and if coolant poured all over the alternator, the residue could be causing the belt to slip, or the internals may be affected... Maybe give everything a good clean with fresh water? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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