General acceleration/clutch problems

[dayrox]

Hi, I have a brava 96 16v and its just turned 79K mileage.

when accelerating from start the acceleration seems normal for a moment then it feels like it decreases, like im putting my foot on the brake slightly.. when I am not... its easier to feel in lower gears and its not pulling off like it used to. when driving however in higher gears im finding im having to put a few more revs in to get the speed up.. I have recently had the car MOT'd and the guy said they didnt have a problem with it on the rolling road as I asked him if he could sort the sticky caliper which I first thought it was. It was fine when I got it back from the garage for a day or so then it started doing it again..

I have just had the slave cylinder replaced as it leaked and the pedal messed up..

Recently I have also noticed the revs jumping up when im changing up a gear while releasing the clutch and going into the accelerator, is this the clutch slipping? I've noticed a burning rubber smell which I could smell quite a while ago, I thought it was something to do with the caliper :S

Also the starter sounds like its sticking when im starting the car up..

can any body sudgest wats going on and how I can sort it out is quite annoying and im not enjoying driving the car like I used too
any help apprecatied in advance, thanks...

 

[jug]

1.6 or 1.8?

 

[dayrox]

1.6 or 1.8?

1.6

 

[jug]

the flat spots when accelerating are often due to a faulty coil pack or HT leads on the 1.6. does the fuel injection system fault light illuminate at all? it usually would not if the leads or coil are the issue. if the light does come on, it would suggest a faulty injector is the problem.

from your symptoms it could be the early stages of either problem, and although injector failure is far more common, in this case it does sound more like a coil pack to me.


as for the revs jumping up when you're changing up a gear, that is not the clutch slipping. do it happen before you even touch the accelerator pedal?


a sticking starter motor makes a very nasty noise. you'd know if it was sticking, plus it wouldnt last long before the motor died or the gear teeth were ground down, wither way the starter motor would fail.

overall the best place to start is with the flat spots on acceleration. you need to test the coil pack and injectors, and definately change the plugs and leads if they havent been changed recently. if you search for posts by me you will find the procedures for testing your coil pack and injectors using a multimeter.

 

[dayrox]

thanks for your response dude

No lights appear at all it sounds like a plug an lead issue/coil i'm goin to see about changin them, i'll keep ya posted.

since my last post my clutch has become really high like at the top, and biting horribly it feels more like the gears jump in to eachother rather than smoothly i dont think its slipping, is this my clutch wearing out like I need a new one or because of the slave cylinder change ?

 

[jug]

it sounds like the clutch is not disengaging fully. i would try bleeding the slave cylinder to ensure it is air free. the clutch pedal should always rise to the top because hydraulic clutches constantly adjust, and there is also a spring on the pedal to bring it up. on a hydraulic system the clutch should also disengage quickly after you press the pedal (near the top). yours does not sound like it is doing this, and that would usually indicate a problem with the hydraulic side of things.

 

[dayrox]

Ive blead the slave and the clutch seems back to normal. Ive replaced the plugs and leads and used a lot of redex, but the problem still occurs when accelerating, its become really sluggish recently and i can smell a bad smell of petrol within the car quite often.. =[

does the injector light on the dash look almost like a pen spraying ? that did come on a while back like months... I assumed it was the screenwash level [im new] as it hasnt came on since...

 

[Kai - Fiat Bravo HGT]

hello mate, im not expert but i had the same problem and i changed the mass air flow meter i got mine on ebay for £11 so its not expensive and its really easy to fit

 

[jug]

Ive replaced the plugs and leads and used a lot of redex, but the problem still occurs when accelerating, its become really sluggish recently and i can smell a bad smell of petrol within the car quite often.. =[

its definately time to test the injectors. use a multimeter. the 1.6s are very prone to injector faults.

to measure the resistance of the injectors, disconnect the injector wiring hanress connector. this is at the right hand side of the fuel rail when looking in engine bay. inside the connector there are 5 pins. the centre pin is the earth. touch the black terminal of the multimeter on this pin. the other 4 pins are each for an injector. touch the red terminal of the multimeter on each of these pins, making a note of the resistance for each pin.

each injector should have a resistance between 14.5-15ohms. if any are lower than 13ohms i would replace them.

if you search for posts by me (jug) and search for 'injector' you should find plenty to help you out. you should also find instructions detailing how to change the injector. its very easy.

a scrapyard injector will only cost you a small amount (i usually pay £5 for 1 injector)

make sure you get the correct injector, there are two types- 4hole and 2hole. the best way to make sure you get the correct one is to remove it from an engine exactly like yours. there are 2 different inlet manifolds on top of the 1.6 engines, metal ones on the earlier models and black plastic ones on the later models. you will have metal or plastic so simply make sure its the same on the car you remove an injector from, if it turns out you need one.