BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

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barry badger
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEMS

Post by barry badger »

When it cuts out and refuses to start dribble fuel directly into the carburettor whilst someone cranks it over, if it starts you then know it's fuel related.
Use a small container so if it blows back it's not going to ignite a whole can of fuel.

If it doesn't start the possibilities are:-
a corroded connector on the amplifier, distributor, coil or anywhere else on the low tension circuit. ( look for green corrosion ). -likely
internal corrosion inside a wire, can usually be found by scrutinizing the wires looking for damage to the insulation -likely
distributor breaking down with heat, substitution is the best way to find this. -likely
faulty ignition switch, breaking down with heat ( had this once on a zx diesel, would intermittently lose power ) - very unlikely
flooded -unlikely seeing as carb has been rebuilt and fault has remained unchanged

other possible causes:-
sticking valves - very unlikely
floating/partial blockage in fuel tank -unlikely

hope this is of some help.
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Tim Leech
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEMS

Post by Tim Leech »

New dizzy cap has arrived, removed the old one, only to notice a large hole in the underside of it which has worn through and broken up!


Now it won't fire at all...

Going to check all connections tomorrow and make sure I've got the leads on right.
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEMS

Post by Tinkley »

Tim Leech wrote:New dizzy cap has arrived, removed the old one, only to notice a late hole in the underside of it which has worn through and broken up!
Now it won't fire at all...
Going to check all connections tomorrow and make sure I've got the leads on right.
What is a 'late' hole? maybe if I knew what an early one was.... :wink:
ROT replace one lead at a time and copy layout of leads from old cap to keep firing order correct...., don't forget the rotor arm which is usually a bit pitted and black rather than nice shiny brass. A wipe with a bit of 600 wet and dry does wonders!. I have once had a duff new cap (almost invisible cracking in the plastic) but it's pretty rare, fortunately. Easily seen arcing in the dark btw.
I take it the leads are new? You did get the right cap? as there are two types for each manufacturer Bosch and Ducellier, at least on the 16 which is similar enough. Not interchangeable of course and the lead ends male/female usually tell you, plus screw/clip attachment. One duff lead especially the coil to dizzy certainly gives a multitude of horrible symptoms.... :wink:
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEMS

Post by Tim Leech »

Large!

New dizzy cap fitted plus old rotor arm (new one the locating peg was obviously weak and had sheared off.... and another new fuel pump..,hey presto! She runs fine, thanks for all the advice.
Last edited by Tim Leech on Sun Apr 17, 2016 8:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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ken newbold
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEMS

Post by ken newbold »

ken newbold wrote:Only problem we ever had with our petrol BX was the distribution cap, the contacts on the underside got a build up of nasty crud, especially in the winter. A quick clean up and it was fine. Might be worth having a look in there
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Tim Leech »

These had worn down so much they were none existent. Anyway Mot next week
Last edited by Tim Leech on Mon Apr 18, 2016 8:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Kitch »

That still makes zero sense at all lol. If it was the cap, it wouldn't be affected by the choke mech. Must just have been coincidence.
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Tim Leech »

Its a strange one I grant you, I did change the fuel pump which as when I fitted a new filter I managed to snap the outlet pipe end off, and fitted a cheap all metal one, and then it began to play up, I've since fitted another new one which was better quality one and identical to the original one.

Anyway all is well!
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Kitch »

At least it's running again :D
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Tim Leech »

It's running great.
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Tinkley »

Well done for sorting it. Now you know why I change the cap/rotor arm so relatively frequently. It does wonders for good fuel economy too. It's worth checking at around 17-20k to see if the four contact pieces are still clean and not pitted, as a quick clean will see them do approx 35k in good order. I'd say that part of one of the contacts may have fallen off and then acted as stop on the next contact becoming a shearing force on the rotor arm. The gap is pretty close so even a small bit of crud could do this, especially when the plastic is old and heat cycled.

Kitch - it may be that in cold condition there was just enough 'power' through the cap to let it run, and as it heated slightly, the spark strength fell off just enough to become like a cliff edge. Hence it feeling a bit like a choke problem.

The worst dizzy caps I've seen have had no contact in one of the four positions, holes and cracks and I have seen sheared rotor arms before but not personally had one. The top spring loaded contact can also disintegrate... :wink: One Vw Polo i fixed was awful, the cap had done 96k - funny how the car would not start... :wink: not a lot of contact material anywhere!
A lot of EFI engines fault diagnose the coil packs so should be a bit easier to trace, note should as 'fault' still requires correct diagnosis from the solver.

Not sure which fuel pump you have but my 1.6 have the black plastic type. So far they have held up OK, though I'm wary and carry a spare on long trips as the one on my 14 failed at about 145k on the Hog's Back A31 - nice 60mph dual carriageway...the empty fuel filter was the give away... :wink:
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Dragon Man »

hmm the fact flames were spitting out of the carb tells me that it was an ignition timing issue. i am not sure how they advanced the timing on this engine but if its done via centrifugal weights, messing with the distributor could have freed them up if they were stuck.
the mk1 fiat panda's 903cc engine is like that. the later fiat panda used a different engine that was vacuum controlled. it's pretty common that the vacuum actuator on the side of the distributor (or hose linking it to the carb) perishes and lets atmosphere into the manifold causing a vacuum leak and more importantly, not adjusting the spark timing resulting in pretty much the same thing in the original post.

just one for reference..
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Tinkley »

The BX uses vacuum advance on the petrol carb versions AFAIK. You are correct, it is important to check the condition of the rubber hose and replace when needed, simple enough.
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by jamescarruthers »

My 1.4 TU had a hole in the vacuum advance diaphragm and I couldn't find a replacement. Ignitioncarparts.co.uk said they could replace the diaphragm if I sent it in to them. Couldn't find anyone else to repair, so this info could be of use to someone hopefully.
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Re: BX 19GT PROBLEM NO MORE!

Post by Dragon Man »

im not sure if it uses the same distributor as the old AX's but the vacuum advance actuator from one of those fits the Fiat panda 999cc FIRE engine if you drill out an extra hole.. so it would also work the other way around! ;) the panda actuator would fit the AX distributor if you filed some groves where the 2 top screw holes go.
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