Avoiding car breakdown

redrabbit29

I have a 9 year old car, it's only done 45'000 miles and is brilliant. Really reliable.

However, a couple of times, maybe once every 4 months or so, very rarely it sometimes won't start. E.g. will go out in the morning as normal, and the engine will turn over and it just won't start.

Strange thing was, last time it happened I got the bus somewhere instead of using the car, about 6 hours later, returned home to try the car before calling RAC/AA and it started!

Anyway, my question is - is there anyway of improving the reliability of a car or at least doing everything possible to avoid it breaking down or failing to start?

Thunderbird_2

Hi

Doing the service regularly will keep the car in a good condition. Replacing spark plugs and HT leads will greatly improve the starting. The way you described things suggest that there night have been some moisture in the engine compartment. Try spraying 40WD on the distributer and along the HT leads and change the spark plugs with new ones, plus filters and you should be ok.

I have a 14 years old car and touch wood it is relaible so far. However, sometimes it won't start the first time. I found flooring the petrol pedal while starting it the second time does the trick.

redrabbit29

Thunderbird wrote: »

Hi

Doing the service regularly will keep the car in a good condition. Replacing spark plugs and HT leads will greatly improve the starting. The way you described things suggest that there night have been some moisture in the engine compartment. Try spraying 40WD on the distributer and along the HT leads and change the spark plugs with new ones, plus filters and you should be ok.

I have a 14 years old car and touch wood it is relaible so far. However, sometimes it won't start the first time. I found flooring the petrol pedal while starting it the second time does the trick.

What do you mean by the "HT leads"? What does HT stand for? Sorry, I am a complete motor newbie.

chris147_2

First of all what sort of car is it? Is it fuel injection? Are there any warning lights displayed on the dash? etc

Thunderbird_2

Hi

HT Leads are High Tension leads which are the wires going from the distributer to the spark plugs. They are four in a four cylinder engines.
Over the time, they get knackered and might need replacing.

P.S Don't forget to change the timing belt on the recommended intervals or even earlier as it is one of the silliest things that can write your car off.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

Without knowing what car it is and what fuel it runs on, how do you expect people to help?

redrabbit29

Pew pew: It was a general care about keeping a car maintained. Also in response to chris, there are no actual problems with the car, it all runs fine. I'm just asking because sometimes, rarely but randomly it will fail to start.

I'll need the car to be very reliable as I can't be late for work, and if the car doesn't start, it will take a lot of public transport to get me there.

It's a nissan micra btw. A 1998 model and it runs on petrol.

Just to re-iterate, it's just about what I can do to keep it maintained. I try to check it over regularly, e.g. tyre pressure, oil, etc... I haven't had to re-fill the oil at all since I've had the car - I've had it for 18 months.

Thanks.

goldspanners

i think pew pew pew means if it was a diesel car we would offer different advise than we would if it was petrol,that is why it is important to tell us what car you have,so you can give the correct advise for your car.
anyway as above i would replace all the H.T. leads,you can get a set from halfords starting at £12.99,if you change them yourself only do them one at a time as there is an order to how they go.
change the spark plugs,you could get a cheap set of plugs for around £10 or a better set for £20,again,change these one at a time so you remember which way the H.T. leads go on.
has it been serviced recently? if not get it serviced,oil,oil filter,fuel filter(if it has one) and air filter should all be replaced,and as another has said get the timing belt done. (you may be lucky as your age of micra may have a timing chain which shouldnt need replacing).but get it checked out to be sure.

anewman

After 18 months an oil and filter change at the very least is a good idea

Keeping the car serviced properly serviced like goldspanners won't only help ensure reliability, but will help the car's longevity too. No point not caring for it and scrapping it 5 years before it's time.

Andy_Edinburgh

Micras of this age/model are known to be susceptible to a fault in the throttle body - see

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=e&t=39416&m=433054

Your occasional misfire might be a warning of more problems to come, but the solution is very cheap if you can find someone handy with a spanner and a soldering iron.

JoeA81

I've got a 1997 petrol injection golf, and it actually says in the owners manual that sometime on cold days, or in certain conditions, that the engine might not start immediately. This does sometime (not often) happen to me. The manual says, after you realise its not going to start right away, dont run the starter motor for more than 10 seconds. Then turn off the ignition, wait 30 seconds, and then try again. I've followed this advice every time, and every time the car has started on the second go!