ChrisC

You need to reroute that lambda sensor wire, it can’t run that close to the primary.

It’s not engine out, but it’s not simple because Caterham advance the cam over the stock ford settings. If you set it like standard ford you will lose horsepower. Easiest option is get it done by a Caterham specialist, or be prepared to get your dial gauge out.

Esys is the standard tool, costs about £20 for the lead and download the software. It’s a bit of a pain to get working, but there are forums out there. BimmerCode is what I am now using, bit more expensive but simple to get working, its an iPad/iOS app, the connector is £27 and the app in app purchase is £25. The changes I have made to my 2015 MCS are Tyre temps as well as pressure on the vehicle status display. Stop start remembers my last setting (saves switching it off each time you start the car) Music off when the drivers door is opened instead of when it’s locked Outside door handle lights on when you reverse Active sound using JCW engine note instead of the MCS noise There is so much more you can change, it just depends on what units are installed in your car, but you also switch stuff off you don’t like or want. If you have a late Mini or BMW it’s a way to personalise your car.

Get yourself coding the Mini, and you can also have tyre temps as well as pressure :-). It’s one of the coding changes I made to my 2015 MCS with JCW kit. The best coding change is the JCW engine note from the Active sound.

Bump

My comments are based on comments made by CC during my build in 2016, and http://www.caigauge.com/automotive where they talk about CAN instruments. As I said an up to date wiring diagram would help. Do Caerbont publish pdfs for Caterham gauges, I have only seen documents on the smiths range, which I agree are analog. You don’t get any documentation when you buy a gauge from CC parts.

So I can see myself doing some Google based research on CAN ID's and seeing how/if the MBE matches up.

It might be a touch easier than that. I don't think digital senders have replaced the analog units, I think it's analog to the ECU (MBE) and Tacho, and CAN from ECU to Tacho and then to the other instruments. Problem is I have never seen a wiring diagram for the CAN based 3/4 sweep instrument car. The wringing diagrams I have seen all seem to be a little outdated. The startup full sweep is a tell tail sign. I have a CAN decoding scope, but haven't owned a car with CAN instruments, my 2015 kit 360R has 1/4 sweep analog instruments and part of me is happy with the simplicity. When I get my hand on a car with CAN instruments I will decode it. I suspect they have aligned themselves with whatever Suzuki was doing from their ECU to have a consistent set of gauges between cars.

The 3/4 gauges are CAN, so they are reacting based on a digital signal on a specific CAN channel. I don’t have a wiring diagram, only for the old gauges.

Remember if the gauges sweep is 3/4’s of the gauge it’s a CAN bus gauge (unlike the conventional 1/4 sweep gauges). The 1/4 sweep gauges are more effected by poor earthing. I don’t have a wiring diagram for the 3/4 sweep gauges, so not sure if the signal is coming from the Taco or ECU, either way your going to need more than a multimeter to diagnose the CAN gauges. As it’s a new build I would let CC look at them during PBC. It won’t be the first kit supplied with wiring faults, mine had wiring problems with the ignition switch and no wiring at all to the start switch.

Unfortunately new MOT rules (2018) dictate Engine Check light is a fail. Granted it says the light should come on and go off, I guess its easier to explain it has no engine check light if there is no light showing, than it is to try and explain its just a feed back loop lighting the light. All depends on how this rule is going to be seen. In truth if the earth difference is the problem all its going to be is cleaning a few connections and making sure the engine has a good earth, not the end of the world, but that’s a big IF

I suspect it's a difference between the engine and the chassis loom. The fuel gauge is wired from the Tacho (Y198) The connections from the fuel pump (and sender) are earthed in the engine loom, but are supplied from the chassis loom. So supply is Ignition Switch N47 to Joint N54 to N54 Fuel Pump Relay to YG166 to YG166 Fuse to YG167 to YG167 to Inertia Switch YG168 to Fuel Pump The next Connection to the Fuel Pump is the sender level (but there is a strange extra blanked wire that could be causing the problem) GB148 to Joint with GB149 and GB150 (GB150 goes to the Tacho), (GB149 goes the engine loom through the large connector and back via a small connector to the chassis loom where is gets blanked) The next wire SG196 also goes to the large connector on the engine loom, and then to earth in the engine loom (BY51) The final connection is B10 to earth. If you have followed this so far you can see the Tacho is between the fuel gauge and the level sensor, and this sensor has two earths (engine and chassis) and a blanked off connection. To prove this you could remove anything from either the fuel level or fuel pump circuits. So that's inertia switch, relay, fuse or the pump from the fuel pump circuit or the fuel gauge. If the light goes out then earths (and that blanked off wire) is where I would look. Maybe someone local has a Sigma with this fault so I can dig deeper ;-)

Possible to get a picture of the light? - Will have a dig in the wiring diagrams when I know the light I am look at.

Having owned a UK spec 2011 Sigma 125 I know the MBE ECU can’t put on a check engine light, or talk OBDII. So is it stock? Can you post a picture or put the car on Easymap to see what’s happening?

CC now supply a Fram filter, however when initially supplied it was a UFI2311800 (which seem hard to get). From the picture here https://caterhamparts.co.uk/oil-system/4885-oil-filter-vauxhall-cosworth-2-3-duratec.html you can see the PH2874 Fram part number.

The side to side moment is normal, the ARB is wider than the mounts holding it, which is why the movement is there. However I would replace all the bushes if everything is 17 years old.

As I have been for many years.

Somewhat disagree, they are scrap if you want to do L7C track days. I had done plenty of MSV trackdays with the standard bar, there are plenty other trackday organisers out there.

Yep my 5 min task to swap the cat back onto the car for MOT has now turned into "take the cat in a plastic bag along to the MOT"

Get someone in the know at your local meet to plug the lead into your car. If all is good will only take a few seconds. The lambda sensor from bosch is over £80 and more for the ford part. I know there are cheaper alternatives but I feel with this sort of thing its a case of buy right buy once, and also, know whats needed before you buy. There are other sensors that could also play up, for example the MAP sensor. On a 150 this was left open to the air and easy to get killed with water ingress. Dependent on your sigmas spec the air tube to that MAP sensor could have become damaged, that would also explain the problem. A local club member had spend a fair few hundred quid on sensors for his duratec trying to find a intermittent running problem. The lead found the problem (with a bit of diagnosis), end result the inertia switch was intermittent, how many engine sensors would have been replaced before he got to that if he was just using guess work.

Was the cat hot at the MOT station? Lambda sensor is a good shout, know to fail on Sigma cars (for some reason) all be it still very early. Do you know someone at your local meet with the MBE lead and how to diagnose your current sensor? Also was it running long enough before reading was taken. The ECU won't use the lambda reading to adjust the mixture until the 30 seconds after the engine has started (lambda sensor warmup time) and the coolant is over 67C. That 30 seconds is regardless how warm the engine is, and how long the engine was stopped for, you can normally hear the end of the 30 seconds if the engine is warn, when it comes off map only and onto map and lambda feedback. My 2011 Sigma was very rich during that 30 seconds, then spot one. Plan B - By pass pipe and swap in the cat for MOT. It's cheaper than a cat, and might give you a few more years before needing a replacement.

I love that video for two reasons. One, it says it has a 6 speed, but the gearknob (and other reviews of that car on youtube) go with it being a 5 speed, and two, it posts a 0-60 time of 4.5 seconds, lower than the offical 4.8 seconds quoted on the CC website. Back on topic - I think the noise is different due to the decat. I will decat at some stage, but at the moment I have bigger problems to solve. I also intend an upgrade to full 420 spec at some stage, possibly this year. If I decat it's to protect the cat. I know its working now, but for how long, at £600 (twice the price of a bypass) if it fails due to pops and bangs or vibration before I need it at an MOT then a bypass has saved me money. It's such a simple job to swap in and out at MOT times. Years ago I had a Mini (proper one) that during MOT / service at the John Cooper garages, it was discovered the lamda sensor had packed up, they said normally this results in a dead cat, but yours seem fine, yep that's because it was fitted that morning :-)

Yep my 360R is the same, I suspect it’s due to the stock ford cams, and the low state of tune. It’s not a complaint i have heard from the 420.

As above Standard Roll Bar from a Metric car S3 so not SV. Removed from car after 1 year, has some scuffing from the full hood, which can be polished out, apart from that its as it came from the box. Weighs about 4.5kg compared to the 7.5 of the FIA bar (so ideal if you want to add some lightness) and when you look in the rear view mirror you don't see a large black X as you do when you have the FIA. £40 - Can deliver or meet within Essex. Alternatively make me an offer but you may have to pick up from my home. (Thanks Ash for the ideal and words)

That upgrade (all be it the Caterham branded kit) is planned later this year, but can’t justify it at the moment.