General MOT failure points

[-paul-]

Failed the test this morning on a few point including:

• Both nearside & offside headlamps not working properly
• Nearside headlamp alignment

The inefficient operation of the headlamps has been a consistant problem which I just neglected, much to my own detriment, though I thought I'd got them working properly. The connectors are tarnished to such a degree that the grounds have been heating up & have melted the plastic on both sides but not the wiring. Just replace the spade connectors & the connector blocks or is there a more weather-resistant solution out there I could use ??

• Handbrake (supprise supprise)

Everybody who owns a Cinq/Sei knows about this, no need to go on though I prob will seek advice on exactly which parts to replace (or just the whole lot ??)

• Emissions (excessive CO at idle)

This is the part which is bothering me the most ...

I've still got the printout of the emissions test last year and comparing it to the new one, the test limits have changed, is this normal ?! Regardless of which limits you go from, the CO at idle is waaay above what it should be, 2.40% on the new sheet with the limit at 0.50% !! As soon as I started it up to get home, I noticed a new problem it's never had before, a missfire !! Wasn't doing this before the test and it's still apparent after running it home & letting it cool down. So, start with the plugs & leads for the missfire ?? Would this be a cause of the crap emissions test ?!

As you can probably tell, I'm pretty new to this & don't know what I'm doing properly but I'm willing to learn & put the time & effort in and I already have the Haynes manual !!

 

[fingers99]

For the headlamps (or the connectors) cut some off a scrappy. Clean the spades up as best you can, put vasaline on them. Gold plated terminals are the only other solution (if you can find some).

For the handbrake, see the guide above. Chances are it's the actuator elbows.

A misfire would certainly cause a fail. Always makes sense to fit new plugs before an MOT.

 

[-paul-]

The problem is actually finding a Cinq in a local scrappy !! Seem to be few & far between.

I've pulled the plugs ... now this may seem like a silly question, but how exactly do you gauge the condition ?! 1,3 & 4 seem pretty similar but 2 seems a bit oily/black looking. Bit difficult to get a close up picture to show & lack of experience doesn't help the vague description

Sorry to not mention earlier but this car has needed regular oil top-ups. Definitley burning to some extent but possibly leaking too ... save for another thread ?! Think I could start a whole section !!

At the end of the day, I really don't want to/can't afford to be spending loads of money but if all it needs is plugs to get it through emissions (obviously I'll need a set anyway) then so be it & worry about the cause after. Also, there's the issue of time constraint of 10 day to re-test having left it til the last minute :bang:

 

[fingers99]

Where are you?

Last time I looked there were a couple of Cinqs in the scrappy in Huyton, but for the connectors, anything that takes the same headlamp will do: get the connector and enough of the wires to make soldering easy.

Burning oil could well be part of the problem. What's the mileage?

 

[-paul-]

I'm in Blackpool, not a clue where Huyton is ?! But yeah, I get the idea, any one which fits basically !!

It's got nearly 71000 on the clock but the speedo is out by about 5mph, would this affect the figure at all ?? I don't think it's been treated at all well during it's life, poor thing !! It has served me quite well during the short time I've had it, even though I've had some problems. Quite a few runs to Coventry & back, had around 53000 on the clock when I bought it (December 2006)

Just wondering if it's worth chucking the cash at but it's my first car & you become so attached

 

[fingers99]

Ah, Huyton is to far for you, between Liverpool and Warrington.

At that mileage -- at least on the 1108 engines -- it's unlikely to be burning much oil. It's likely to be down to either bore wear or valve or valve seal wear. If you get someone to do a compression test on it, they should be able to point out where.

 

[-paul-]

Well, we've got a compression tester from when my dad broke his Renault so I'll get onto that tomorrow possibly, once I figure out how to use it ... it's the 899cc engine for reference btw

Cheers for the advice so far