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Heedwa

Only start when connecting + battery to coil

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24 minutes ago, sierra3dr said:

Have you bought the Cortina recently?

I bought it just over a year ago. Was a none runner when I first got it. Got it up and running a couple of months ago. Not taken it out for a spin yet. Now having these problems which is taking longer to fix than I would've hoped. 

 

Here's a pic of the car 

20240313_163632.jpg

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22 minutes ago, sierra3dr said:

I think that is the temporary 12v for startup. Might be best testing when it is running to see if it drops to 9v

The car doesn't run long enough for me to test it that way. When it does fire up it runs for around 10-20 seconds then dies 

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I'm not sure on the figures would have to check.

Think it should be 9V at the coil end of ballast with ignition on ( as it's powered via ignition switch when running)& 12V when cranking at coil as it uses a different circuit between starter motor & coil when cranking 

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8 hours ago, Heedwa said:

I bought it just over a year ago. Was a none runner when I first got it. Got it up and running a couple of months ago. Not taken it out for a spin yet. Now having these problems which is taking longer to fix than I would've hoped. 

Ah right,so you are now left with the battle of pinpointing where the fault lies. Such a lovely car,a Coupe aswell :thumbsup:

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3 hours ago, sierra3dr said:

Ah right,so you are now left with the battle of pinpointing where the fault lies. Such a lovely car,a Coupe aswell :thumbsup:

Thanks! When I'm out working on it I spend half the time talking to people who want to take a look at the car! 

 

Yeah everytime I fix one problem another shows its head. But I'd rather have these problems before I start driving it than on the side of the road. And I'm getting to know the car inside out in the process too

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Note, if you have got the ballast wire disconnected, then it won't be loaded by the coil, and it will float up to 12V.  I'd be doing a voltage check at the coil terminal, with everything still connected.

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5 minutes ago, MK5CortinaEstate said:

Note, if you have got the ballast wire disconnected, then it won't be loaded by the coil, and it will float up to 12V.  I'd be doing a voltage check at the coil terminal, with everything still connected.

Thanks for the advice! 

 

With it all connected as you say, will it still give a reading with just the ignition turned on and the car not running? 

 

I'm guessing it'll be the same way of testing with the multi meter, red wire to +coil and black wire grounded? 

 

And that way if the cable is good should it give a reading of 9v at the coil end? 

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1 hour ago, Heedwa said:

Thanks for the advice! 

 

With it all connected as you say, will it still give a reading with just the ignition turned on and the car not running? 

 

I'm guessing it'll be the same way of testing with the multi meter, red wire to +coil and black wire grounded? 

 

And that way if the cable is good should it give a reading of 9v at the coil end? 

 

Yeah.  Basically, with the ignition on, running or not, you should see 9V at the coil, provided it is all connected up.  If you were to look at the voltage whilst the engine is cranking, you should see the full 12V, as it bypasses the ballast wire.  And yes, red wire to the + terminal on the coil, and black wire to anywhere that's ground.

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On mine it registers 12v at the coil with the ignition on stage 2 but not running and 9.88v with engine running 

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7 minutes ago, swcortina said:

On mine it registers 12v at the coil with the ignition on stage 2 but not running and 9.88v with engine running 

KOEO

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5 minutes ago, sierra3dr said:

KOEO

👍

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32 minutes ago, swcortina said:

On mine it registers 12v at the coil with the ignition on stage 2 but not running and 9.88v with engine running 

Only problem I have is my car won't run long enough for me to test it whilst running. Engine keeps dying after 20 seconds or so. 

 

Guess my best bet at the minute is to change the ballast wire and see if that makes a difference or not. 

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8 minutes ago, Heedwa said:

Only problem I have is my car won't run long enough for me to test it whilst running. Engine keeps dying after 20 seconds or so. 

 

Guess my best bet at the minute is to change the ballast wire and see if that makes a difference or not. 

Have you tried bypassing the ballast wire with a separate wire from the bulkhead end to the coil to see if it stays running, if it does stay running then you have got a damaged/broken ballast wire

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Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, swcortina said:

Have you tried bypassing the ballast wire with a separate wire from the bulkhead end to the coil to see if it stays running, if it does stay running then you have got a damaged/broken ballast wire

I've not tried that. So where the ballast wire usually starts at the bulkhead end, from there swap it with a wire going straight to + side of coil? Could I use any wire? Or would I need a specific gauge? (guessing the wire will need to have a male side of bullet connector too?) 

Edited by Heedwa

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Same as the wire that has the female bullet connector that the ballast plugs into.

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