Any electrical help from you experts?? :)

[Benny]

Thought i'd post this here too in case very clever electronic geniuses only peruse the electrical bit! :) Any help you can give would be really handy...
Please have a look at my thread..

http://www.miniaddicts.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=3217

[BajaMoMo]

No one seems to really asnwer questions here. I would suggest you tighten the fan belt first. Then, if you are still having that problem see if you could slave on another alternator to makre sure yours isn't causing the problem. Finally get a haynes manual those thing come in handy. I just bought my first mini a month ago and I want to completely fix it up before I ship to bacxk to the states with me. Good luck on finding your solution. Hope this helped.

[Gr4H4m]

posted on your other thread.

[milly]

Also check connection to alternator, I've had a loose plug in the past that gave me intermittant fault with charging, make sure connections are clean if not clean, then clean them with emery paper and cover with vaseline which will protect them from oxidizeation. Also check engine too subframe earth, unbolt it and check its clean and connection is sound (disconect the battery first) also check battery connections are good, tiet and clean. Check the level of the electrolight in the battery if it is not a sealed one. Remove it from the car and place it on a level surface and remove plugs if it is low top it up with the correct water available from motor factors. If you have a multimeter check the battery voltage after charging it, it should be a good 12 1/2 volts minium you could get as much as 13 1/2 on a new battery. Fit the battery, then place a volt meter across the terminals and start the car, read voltage at idle and with some revs on, you should be getting a good 12 1/2 possibly upto 13 Volts. If not turn engine off and place the black side of meter on a good earth in the engine bay and the positive probe in the output side of the alternator plug or lead, start the engine put some revs on and compare the results with what you got at the battery. They should be very similar figures varying by fractions of a volt, if there is a hughe disscrepancy then there is a high resistance between the alternator and battery, you will then have to trace the lead checking along the connections as already disscribed. If they are both low i.e 11.5 volts, then check the battery to body earth before you start changing alternators and batteries.

Check connections on the starter solenoid are good and clean. Remove the leads from the soleniod and press the button on the solenid and check the resistance through it, If it does not have a button you will have to make two leads up to go to the LT side, small spades, connect a battery across it and it should click; check resistance arcross the other side of it, DISSCONECT BATTERY FROM CAR, BOTH LEADS BEFORE ATTEMPTING THIS. Earth pionts and connections are very often overlooked until all the components have been replaced and the original symptons persist. Good Luck.

[Benny]

Yay!!
Took it to a mechanic who said the fan belt shouldn't be any tighter than it already is.. (so not sure about the lights getting brighter when revving but still...) and he found it was a duff battery - was under warranty though so nothing to pay not even labour... wohooo!!! She even sounds better when running now for some bizarre reason...

Thanks for all the replies, really appreciate it and always good to learn more from other people.

MOT on 23rd :-/ Wish me luck!!

[Moggers]

ohhh mines in for mot on that day too, quite worrying to say my dad had the whole wiring loom off the car trying to figure out why the hazards wudnt work. turned out that the guy that had it before me had missed a piece of wire off the loom and then crossed them over with other cables that went round in circle and then plugged back into themselves.

[Moggers]

how did ur MOT go, mine failed on some stupid things then wheel bearing n subframe mounts gone. all done and passed now and only costing £35 for the parts