Non starter code 121 mass air flow?

[Laney760]

Sorted! Home and dry with correct diagnosis! The RAC guy this morning was insistent that my HT leads were ok when I was suspicious of one of them. RAC guy this afternoon was fantastic, it was the HT lead from the distributor to the coil, arcing against the block. All taped up and secure now and no longer arcing and I will order a new set of leads! Now I can crawl into my own sickbed.

Thanks for all your help!

[TonyS9]

Awesome, I was going to say the rpm flicker during no start is an indication of spark to the point of the coil. It can't determine if the spark is going somewhere other than plugs.

Viewing engine during the dark is good way of checking for HT leaks, but you need to get the drls off somehow.

[Laney760]

Thanks for that advice Tony.

She is going in for high end discs, MOT, and a few other jobs in a couple of weeks time before I go on holiday so I am going to ask my mechanic to check the distributor, distributor cap, renew rotor arm, renew HT leads, etc. This is one area of my engine thats been quite neglected to be honest!

Once again, thanks to everyone!

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Laney760

Sorted! Home and dry with correct diagnosis! The RAC guy this morning was insistent that my HT leads were ok when I was suspicious of one of them. RAC guy this afternoon was fantastic, it was the HT lead from the distributor to the coil, arcing against the block. All taped up and secure now and no longer arcing and I will order a new set of leads! Now I can crawl into my own sickbed.

Thanks for all your help!

Go for Bougicord leads Ellie, they'll last longer and be more reliable.

Regarding your other comment about the ignition system in general not getting as much attention as the rest, with LPG you really need to swing the balance a bit as any ignition faults will show up quicker.

Anyway, glad the correct diagnosis has been done and you can finally relax in bed and recuperate!

[mjk164]

Ellie, when you look at the distributer cap, also look inside at the 4 copper contact points that the rotor passes. After a time they will grow a light brown "crust" which simply gives further resistance for the arc to negotiate. Take a penknife and gently stroke the blade at each contact and you will see the "crust" flake off leaving clean copper. I guarantee your starting will improve!
But don't forget to also renew and/or check the RSR.
Cheers.

[Laney760]

Back for more ignition system advice please.

So, this morning my plan was to book the car in as soon as I could before MOT for a new MOT which makes September 14th earliest I don't lose any of the current MOT and get new discs fitted and ignition system all checked out and renewed as necessary. I want to get all the work done at once to save having to go to work on shank's pony any more that is necessary because it means getting up at 4.30am and getting home at 7.30pm!

No problems starting or running today, she's not 'missing', BUT the power is clearly down a bit, never felt her like this before. Confirmed on an overtake where she didn't fly in 3rd gear. I wondered if my spark is weak and if this causes low engine power and I took a look on the net and saw that I am right. So I have just been outside in the pitch black to see if I could see any further arcing and I spotted something interesting. Inside the area I have rung around on the photo I can see something orange rotating, my rotor arm? It looks as if this area of the distributor is so worn away that I can see the rotor arm rotating inside, I don't think I should be able to, this must mean that damp is getting in? Am I right? If I am right I wonder if I should wait until Sept 14th for an overhaul of the distributor, cap, leads etc, especially in view of the current weather?!

[IMG]DSC00735distributor by Strider'swoman, on Flickr[/IMG]

[Laird Scooby]

Enlarging the photo doesn't reveal any holes but it looks like your dizzy cap is generally dirty under its cover Ellie.

Given it's been pretty damp today, that means the dampness/humidity and the dirt can provide the means for the HT to "track" to earth. This will give quite a nice light show that in certain circumstances can appear to be rotating because it's following the source of HT which is the rotor arm that is of course rotating.

I'd suggest getting a new rotor arm and dizzy cap ASAP and HT lead set (all 5 leads) and fitting them. It sounds very much like you've had a latent problem for some time and the recent damp weather has brought it into the open.

[Laney760]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

Enlarging the photo doesn't reveal any holes but it looks like your dizzy cap is generally dirty under its cover Ellie.

Given it's been pretty damp today, that means the dampness/humidity and the dirt can provide the means for the HT to "track" to earth. This will give quite a nice light show that in certain circumstances can appear to be rotating because it's following the source of HT which is the rotor arm that is of course rotating.

I'd suggest getting a new rotor arm and dizzy cap ASAP and HT lead set (all 5 leads) and fitting them. It sounds very much like you've had a latent problem for some time and the recent damp weather has brought it into the open.

So I should be able to see the rotor arm turning from outside the dizzy? That is a hole that I have circled in pen, there is a round gap which has very irregular sides. I'll order up the parts and get the car booked in. Cheers Dave.

[loki_the_glt]

It also appears that the cover for the dizzy cap is either not seated properly or is damaged, as it should offer a degree of protection to the cap.

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by Laney760

So I should be able to see the rotor arm turning from outside the dizzy? That is a hole that I have circled in pen, there is a round gap which has very irregular sides. I'll order up the parts and get the car booked in. Cheers Dave.

You definitely shouldn't be able to see the actual rotor arm Ellie.

In the area you've circled, there is (if memory serves correctly) a locating lug recess in the dizzy cap. Inside the cap at the "base" of the cap should be a flash-over guard, usually a clear (ish) disc that fits onto the dizzy before the rotor arm and cap.

If it is tracking/arcing inside the cap, it's highly possible the resultant light show is showing the shadow of the rotor arm as it turns and will most likely appear orange because weak sparks are generally orangey-yellow so it could be the integrity of the cap is physically ok but optically letting you see things you shouldn't normally be able to.

It could be the cap is damaged and there is a definite hole there that can't be seen properly in the photo. It's a shame you didn't get a video of exactly what you saw, if you put the camera into "Night Mode" that usually works and may give more of a clue.

Either way good plan of action to order the parts and get it booked in!