Zaz

Finally had 5 minutes to have a look today, so while waiting for the battery to arrive i decided to test the relay by bridging the 30/87 slots...fired up straight away even with a virtually flat battery. So, i managed to source a relay 30 from a local VW garage for 15 quid, will pick up later and at some point i will get the alternator checked just in case there is an issue charging the battery. Fingers crossed :lol:

I had a go at cleaning the ICV after the car refused to start at all, i hadnt actually touched anything inbetween uses of the car so it was nothing i did that made it not start. I will have a look for the fuel filter Sunday, i may just order a new one anyway while im at, 7 quid is no great shakes to rule that bit out, i have the battery and plugs on their way, a suitable socket and i 'may' order some HT leads only because the retaining clips on the ones present are broken (they still seem to sit securely) Now, might sound a stupid question, but as i have disconnected the battery and am now being asked for a radio code, do i need to put that in to deactivate any immobilising system ? just an afterthought really as on previous cars ive not had to do that, have run Fords with the radio locked out.

Thanks dude, 2/3 pages of hijacking i can deal with, lots of usefull info in this thread to sift and work through as time allows, i will keep this updated as i get along ;)

Not sure why Toby is being critical that i dont have the correct socket ? I have about 300 sockets lying about, i just dont have the one that fits, so ive bought one to add to the collection. The battery didnt take a charge, i left it going for 20 hours and nothing, it barely cranked the engine so ive ordered a new one plus plugs. I cant get to the fuel filter, its under the car, i can get the fuel pump though as thats through the boot area. The fuel filter was changed 15k miles ago. Once the bits arrive, i will have a go and post back, thanks for the ongoing assistance ;)

I dont really want to be disconnecting any fuel lines without depressurising the system first, i would have to let the residual pressure bleed out first before i could see if it was the pump generating flow or not and i dont want to introduce any airlocks in the system, so my first port of call will be to renew the plugs as i do anyway every time i buy a new vehicle, as a matter of course, i just need to get teh right socket to remove them ;) Battery charging is taking an age, far longer than normal so while there seems to be enough juice usually to turn the engine, it may not also be enough to fire it so ill let it charge overnight, if its not on maintenance charge by morning then the battery needs changing anyway.

Nah, ford want 20+ vat from the main dealer and i cant find an alternative anywhere yet

Right, busy morning, got meself some carb cleaner and had a right good go over the ICV, it wasnt all that bad really but now it sparkles. Took the dash apart and visually checked every fuse - all OK, all relays seated nicely and no damaged/loose cables in the whole fuse assembly as far as i can see. Removed and reseated the HT leads one by one, i dont have a socket for the spark plugs yet though, that will have to be checked later. Cant see any issue with the leads Checked every electrical connection i could see and get my hands on, checked the fuses in the angine bay (only two in box by the battery that i could find) I cant physically get to the starter motor assembly, i dont have the hardware to raise the car or get underneath and cant reach it from above, so i cant check that myself. Problem now is that i cant get the damn thing started ! The engine turns over but its not firing so im a bit stuck really, not sure what else i can check that i can get to. Ive stuck the battery on charge as it was getting a little tired of repeated starting attempts. One thing i have noted is after attempting a start and leaving teh key in the ignition, i get four beeps from the instrument panel, is this an error code of some sort ? The oil light comes on but goes out after a few moments, so i dont think its a fuel delivery issue. Ill post back when ive refitted the battery, if its that, then i may have an alternator problem aswell !

Was great fun this morning, wouldnt start for ages, started, ran for 30 seconds and cut out - wouldnt start for love nor money on demand, finally started after 20 mins and with some 'persuasion' of the throttle, got me to the train station 2 miles away. Would seem i have both issues ! My problem now is finding where to buy the relay 30 as my local garages dont stock it and also getting (possibly) a replacement ICV at reasonable cost but i think ebay may come to the rescue there.

Where is said valve please? On my galaxy i think its at teh back and slightly to the left, behind the air filter housing and multipoint rail that sits above the spark plugs - bit of a fiddly job to get to without getting hair off, but sounds like it will be worth the effort ;)

Thanks for the help guys, ill get on it this week. Would that also account for it cutting out momentarily while at motorway speeds though ? We had that happen 2/3 times on a run back from the midlands last week, bit unnerving at 70mph with 2 kids in the car !

Any ideas chaps please ?

Hi all, first post - be gentle ! I have had a read through the boards as best i can for some hints but cant find a suitable answer so am making a post. I have a 1998 2.0 litre petrol GLX that has a pretty useless handbook (where the fuse guide doesnt seem to relate to whats actually there) More often than not the car starts first time from a cold start, but it suffers from a little bit of intermittent hunting on tickover, idling at just over 1000rpm when settled When out driving it seems to run fine, no misfires and as far as i can tell its running on all cylinders (sounds right, not sure how to tell properly though) After a few minutes it cuts out completely, losing all power to PAS and ABS making it difficult to steer or brake properly, an obvious concern ! Usual routine is hazards on, ignition off, outt of gear, restart straight away and off we go but this is obviously not ideal if out and about for any length of time. I have visually checked all the main fuses in dashboard, not checked the smaller non-critical system fuses (lights etc, vertical column of smaller fuses) or the engine bay fuse box. I have checked the HT leads and as best as i can tell they are seated correctly and undamaged, though a couple of retaining clips where the leads meet the starter coils have snapped off, that doesnt seem to affect the fit though. I have visually checked the MAF sensor for gunge - clean as a whistle, the air filter seems good and apart from some debris in the filter housing that was clean aswell. One issue there though is the secondary smaller filter located in the housing on the right hand side that seems to filter out crap from a breather hose that runs from the top of the engine. This hose seems a little loose where it meets the engine but im not sure thats entirely important as its open ended anyway. Given the car seems to start pretty well when asked, im inclined to think the ignition system is OK but hard to tell. I am leaning towards a fuelling issue, but the fuel filter was changed 15k miles ago so doubt its that. Possibly a relay 30 issue ? having trouble finding one anywhere though, no garage near me has one. No engine lights are on which i am advised will be if there are error codes on the ECU Not sure what to do next - any advice greatly appreciated as we now need the car because teh 2nd car insurance has expired ! Thanks in advance :lol: zaz