Continuing Saga-poor running

[Upset99]

Took my "Federal" M100 to my mechanic. The really good news is that he REALLY likes the car and he will look forward to working on it especially when I get the shop manuals to him. The rough running that came on Thursday night went away on Friday morning but came back before I took the car to the mechanic. He took a look at the car and saw evidence that there had been a mouse in the engine compartment but he saw no "real" damage at this time. He did NOT hook up the computer to the car at this time. I am running on 2 cylinders. I think it is 2 and 4. I think #1 is on the right side (passenger American) of the car? He recommended new plugs and wires to start. The local parts store had the plugs and not the wires. I need to order the wires. Replaced the plugs and 1 and 3 were fouled, the car ran a little better but still only on 2 and 3. He believes since the car wasn't run on a regular basis for the last 7-8 months, the injection system needs to be cleaned. He was able to get 1 and 3 running by jiggling with the correctors to the injectors. He ruled out sensor problems and valve problems since the car did have a period of running right.

[HJ2]

Hmmzzz.. It could also be one of the coilpacks imho or the baseplate needs to be tightened for good grounding.
Is the sparkpluggap & base timing OK?

[Upset99]

Thanks. The car is going back in on Monday morning. My local parts store does carry the coils for the Izuzu Impulse for about $80 for the pair. Are they same ones? I know the Izuzu spark plug wires are too short. BTW, this I just got the car on Thursday night. It had lived in California its whole life but spent the last 7 months in MO. with the family from the last owner. They were supposed to start it every week or so...."supposed"?

All the fluids are clean.

[HJ2]

Check the excellent LEC WIKI
http://wikilec.9600.org/index.php/Ignition_Coil

[tigerdog]

The local parts store had the plugs and not the wires. I need to order the wires.

Hopefully you were able to source NGK BKR6EIX : Iridium centre electrode (recommended - heavy duty); they usually come with a 1.1mm gap and need to be carefully closed down to .8mm for the Elan.

Coils are NOT from the Impulse. They're a standard GM part from the 80's-90's. I have MSD replacements fitted as do several others and they work well. Do not buy Accel equivalents - I had one burn out after only a couple of months of running - they have a horrid reputation in GM performance forums on the net.

Plug wires are easy! Since you're in the USA you can contact Kingsborne Wire Werks at 800-643-0375, ask for Chris, mention my name (Doug Shelton) and tell her you're another US LEC M100 Elan person looking for wires. They sell a set of high-quality 8mm wires (stock are 7mm) with new separators, in black, blue, red or yellow at a special LEC discounted price of $22.50 + S&H. There are at least 25-30 LECers using these wires on stock and heavily modified Elans with good results.

I hate rodents under the hood - had a neighbor who's Mercedes S-class donated several thousand dollars of wiring harness insulation to a local rat. Good luck with this!

[Upset99]

I bought the plugs that were in the car...NGK BKR6E. They were pretty cheap ($8 for the lot), maybe I will just get another set. As to the Coils, I will buy the MSD units today for Monday installation. On Monday, I will call and get those spark plug wires. THANK YOU. With the savings? I gave to the Club. I have been a member of a number of different Car Clubs and this one has been the best.

[HJ2]

These are the 'normal' The Extension 'IX' tells if they are Irridium tipped
I have the same plugs. As it turns out the gap was wrong from the beginning so make sure to adjust to 0.8 mm!

[Upset99]

I will have the gap checked on Monday just to be on the safe side.

Thanks

[tweetdriver63]

I think you've got a pretty good plan. I would download elanscan and order an interface. It's well worth it. Also, if the car really has been sitting that long, without the people starting it up and running it like they were supposed to, well, things do tend to go bad when not used. There could be contamination in the fuel tank (water, etc). Fortunately we have a plastic tank, so you don't have to worry about rust in there. I had that problem with an Isuzu Impulse that had sat for more than a year.