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MG MGF Technical - Another Starting Problem

I have a '98 MGF, which has always started fine. Went to shops on Weekend, finished shopping and went back to car. Turn key, but no joy - not even one turn over.
Checked obvious things like battery and immobiliser, but both fine. Eventually push started OK (so immobiliser ruled out?). Drove home. Tried to start but still dead. Thought it may be loose lead to starter.
Push started and took to dealer to check. Dealer checks and says everything else is ok so must be starter motor, and wants to charge me £114 just to tell me that, + £450 for a new starter. In my limited experience, a starter doesn't just die suddenly, it dies gradually. Am I right or is it possible for a starter on a relatively new vehicle just to give up the ghost so suddenly ?
Rob

Try waggleing the leads to the starter solinoid, these are known to get rusty and bad. also try wacking the solinoid with a stone and try the engine again.

Will
Will Munns

Sounds like it could be the starter solenoid.

Locate the solenoid by opening the boot and removing the engine grill at the back. It is cylindrical in shape and near the bottom of the engine on the left hand side. There are two leads that go into the starter solenoid from the left hand side. Gently wiggle the lower lead. At this point you may feel some dust fall onto your fingers. This is corrosion that prevents the electrical current from the ignition reaching the starter motor.

There's a good chance you'll start first time after this. Takes 2 minutes, and definitely worth a check to possibly save yourself a few hundred notes!

Let us know how you get on.

HTH,
Jim
Jim

....and if this doesn't work then try giving it a good clout as Will suggests!!! :o)
Jim

>and wants to charge me £114 just to tell me that
OUCH, did you agree to pay their fee to look at the car?
can you not pay them if they are wrong? (solinoid?)
Will Munns

....if it does turn out to be the starter solenoid, then you should send them an invoice for £114, for teaching them something! Seriously though, if they're charging you for a diagnosis which turns out to be @rse, then I'm not sure I'd be happy to pay.

Jim
Jim

No - I refused to pay the £114, because I asked them to phone me before doing any work (so that I could agree how much to pay)... and they phoned me after doing the diagnosis and said it would be £450 for the new starter + £114 for the diagnosis, at which point I laughed very loudly.

Thanks all, for the tips - I'll try them as soon as I pick the car up from the dealer... going outside now to find a big rock!
Rob

Good luck Rob, would appreciate you letting us know how you get on mate.

Happy rock hunting!

Jim
Jim

Presumably the dealer released your car to you, Rob ???

Jonty
M.J. Tait

Well, ahem... after speaking to the dealer over the phone, saying how I refused to pay the £114 for diagnosis charges (when I asked them to check the leads), his argument being that it was a very long process to check all the wiring etc. I said that why would you check all the wiring when the first thing I would do (as a non-mechanic) would be to check the leads, then to test the starter itself. So in short I asked if they had in fact checked the lead to the starter. Short silence on the other side "... er, yes, yes of course we have..." Funny then, that when I arrived, all of a suddent here was no charge, and the car started first time!
I can almost guarantee that if I had tried to wiggle the lead or hit it with a rock that the problem would have been sorted(thanks guys). But of more concern to me is that one of these facts must be true about the MG dealer...
1. Their problem diagnosis skills leave a lot to be desired. OR
2. They took a chance a tried to rip me off by selling me a starter motor, that I didn't need, for £450 (knowing full well that it was a dodgy lead).

Thanks for all your help chaps, I have learned a ton about MG's in the last 2 days (and probably too much about the dealers).
Cheers,
Rob
Rob

Great news Rob. Glad that you're wallet hasn't been dented either :o)

Disturbing to think that one of your 2 points might be the case. I'm not sure which is worse, incompetance or attempting fleecing.

This is why I'm such a fan of organisations such as the AA and the RAC. If you're a member of a reputable breakdown organisation, then you can at least eliminate point 2, as they have no vested interest in trying to rip you off. They can at least diagnose the problem, and in this case would have been able to sort you out there and then FOC. Others might disagree, but my experience of the AA has always been positive.

That said, there are plenty of good dealers out there, and I'm sure others could point you in the right direction for the London area. Failing that Paul's website below has an MG dealers guide, which gives reviews of dealers throughout the country which might help in future (it also has a really good FAQ).

http://www.dotcomoff.demon.co.uk/

Happy F'ing Rob, glad you're back on the road.

Jim
Jim

Thanks for all the help. Will definitely conider AA.

Cheers,
Rob
Rob

Blimmey Rob - close call there, and glad to hear that the car starts fine now...

Time to name and shame? Certainly, you ought to put a new entry into Paul's dealership guide.
Rob Bell

Thanks for the plug about the MG Dealer Guide and FAQ - hoping to do some more work on both this evening. ;-)
Paul Lathwell

This thread was discussed between 05/11/2002 and 07/11/2002

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