New roller

[Demlotcrew]

£255+VAT from BMW

Andrew

[turk]

Well I had the spark plugs out today, they were nice and clean, but at £3 a plug I couldn't resist getting a new set. This however hast sorted my issue. The exhaust pops intermittently when held at around 2k.

The cheapest I have found new leads for is £140. For 4 cables that seems rather excessive especially when 6 cables for an m20 is £42. M-TAX!

Does anyone know if the m42 ones or anything work or is it m3 ones only?

[davethegoat]

Subscribed.

[kundiboy]

M42 wont fit. The leads are S14 specific.

ECP sell genuine Beru ones at a decent price too.

Dizz cap and Rotor arms are pricey too at about £100 for the pair

Welcome to M Tax

[turk]

Ecp wanted £168...

I wasn't going to change the dizzy cap and rotor, do u think they might be an issue?

[kundiboy]

Might be worth taking them off and checking all is clean in there and there are no cracks etc, just for peace of mind.

[turk]

yes have taken it all apart and gentle cleaned up terminal etc with a small spark plug brush, No cracks or anything. Did however find a 1-2mm hole in cyl 2's wires insulation where it had been in the black trunking. Have now taped that up just until I get new leads.

[harry_p]

Ecp wanted £168...

I wasn't going to change the dizzy cap and rotor, do u think they might be an issue?

s14s seem to be very ignition sensitive, so would definitely be worth taking the cap off and inspecting both it and the arm.

parts from bmw are again incredibly expensive, but c3bmw do a cap and arm for a lot less, but the design is slightly different using a normal carbon brush rather than a pin and hole, so you'd need to make sure both cap and arm are of the same type.

[turk]

just bought new leads from magnacore, didn't solve my issue though. It is still definitely misfiring slightly. Might have to go and check the cap.

How do i tell if the arm and the cap are a matching pair?

[harry_p]

the original arm has a hole in the centre, and the centre post inside the cap is a thin metal pin, so when theyre fitted the pin sits slightly inside the arm and the spark has to jump a small gap from cap to arm, then arm back to cap to the plug.

the alternative setup is an arm which is solid along it's length, and the center contact in the cap is a carbon brush on a spring, so when theyre fitted the carbon brush is in constant contact with the centre of the arm.

the original type is supposed (so i've heard) to withstand higher revs more reliably, but ive not noticed any difference in real world use between the two, and the carbon brush system has been used on plenty of cars that rev higher than standard s14s over the years.

so, (imho) the type doesnt really matter, but a pin type arm will only work with a pin type cap, and a brush type arm will only work with a brush type cap, so if you took yours off and decided the arm was ok, but you needed a new cap you'd have to makes sure the new one was of the same type.

[magpie]

looking forward to the resto thread

[turk]

OK, so i took the diet cap off again and looked a bit closer, Also used my continuity tester across the terminals and I'm only getting connection when i scrape on the rough part of the terminal quite hard.

Im guessing i need a new one but please tell me if u know another way around it.

[Rav335uk]

They're shagged!

[turk]

thought as much, its sup rising it starts at all considering the lack of continuity across all of the terminals.

[Rav335uk]

M-Tax

Great, isn't it

[turk]

tell me bout it... its cheaper keeping an s54 running...

[Dezzy]

tell me bout it... its cheaper keeping an s54 running...

Chuck it in the M3 then. Thats got to be the best ever stop gap!!!!!

[turk]

i do have an s62 I could "chuck" in there for a while

[Rav335uk]

Your r3v posts are are a good read Adam

[Dezzy]

i do have an s62 I could "chuck" in there for a while

I know you do.

You got a welder too?

[turk]

Your r3v posts are are a good read Adam

Im not cheating on the zone its just they know loads about Ix's and i need their knowledge. PLus theres ones fella doing the exact same conversion and he's much more technical then me.

I will probably end up sticking the s62 into the gold one as a trial fit. I need to use the s14 as a daily for a while as I'm starting a new job which doesn't give me a company car. Then once I have succeeded i will transplant into the m3. Gives me a chance to 'fix up' the m3 too.

And yes i do have a welder, but need a shitload more practice to be respectable at it

[harry_p]

yep, deffo knackered. i'd guess the rotor arm isnt too sharp either.

the previous owner of my car was sure something was wrong, had it rolling roaded and it only made 169bhp.

complete ignition system refresh, - plugs, leads, arm, cap and coil, swapped the scorpion exhaust for a supersprint and it made 204.

[turk]

right, new rotor arm and cap on! its is the bouncy centre cap rather then the previous fixed one. All started up ok. How ever for the first 30 seconds or so after start up on partial throttle 12- 1500 revs or so is quite juddery and feels like a missing cylinder.

But after that initial period its fine.

So what am I checking next???

[e30topless]

Has the turd had new plugs recently ? the S14 loves to destroy them if they aren't warmed up properly,

moving the car "cold" a few times will do this..

[turk]

Brand new plugs. 4 days old infact. Should I let the car half way before even driving?

[DawieM3]

Turk,

Never start a S14 run it for only a few minutes and switch it off, if running a standard oem ECU, as you will battle to restart it untill it is warm. It floods itself, and the only way to restart is a fresh set of plugs, or leave it for a long while for the fuel to evaporate. Best to keep a spare set of plugs around in case.

It will also flood if cranking it over and it does not start, alternatively, pull the fuel pump relay, remove all the spark plugs and crank it over to remove the excess fuel. Dry your spark plugs and refit, plug the FP relay in and try again.

Cheers,

Dave

[UweM3]

the good old method to start an uwilling S14 with fould plugs is still FULL throttle at cranking. this will stop any MORE fuel to be injected and max air coming in. Just make sure you don't miss the moment when it fires up and lift......
Even if you pull the fuel relais there can be some fuel pressure in the system which is enough to squirt the remaining fuel in while cranking.

[turk]

Ok, great advice guys!!!

I am still having uneven revving problems especially while pulling away slowly with revs at around 1500. It jump about a bit and is underpowered. Once past 2k its fine.

PacerPete suggested it may be air box gaskets?

Cheers

[pacerpete]

Inlet manifold gaskets Adem, the phenolic rubber blocks that seal the throttle bodies to the head.
When these are in trouble you will get lots of cold and low speed running issues.

[turk]

What was the combination of gaskets you said to use ?

[TPS]

M5 paper ones I think he said?