Hello all fiat lovers! Would appreciate if there are any tech heads out there that would help point me in the right direction. My fiat x/9 has been very reliable on my commute to work everyday, for years. This morning I got to work ,no problem ,but when it was time to go home I switched on my little baby and she wouldn't start. The x1/9 turned over fine but that's all it did , just turn over but no starting and I stopped before my battery died. Now this is where it gets interesting , at the same time . The digi clock stopped working, my electric windows, the flip up headlights ,and window wipers also stopped working?? All at the same time as the car wouldn't start. I'm guessing it may be a bad earth? If so does anyone know how to fix a bad earth? Is it on the battery ? Are there a number of earths around the car? If not ,then what can it be?most of the electrics parts, coil,leads,distributed cap and rotor arm, condenser ,battery ,points along with a fuel filter I have renewed a year ago. Luckily I had my bike at work and biked the3miles home, but ,no word of a lie ,as soon as I peddled out of the car park the heavens opened, I got home soaked , and as soon as I opened the front gate and got off my bike ,the sun came shining out of the clouds!! Like it was laughing at me! That's what you get with the British weather! I appreciate anyone's help on this . Thank you all for reading .

Hi there,

Well, first of all bless you for keeping alive a piece of automotive history. The good news for you is that the little fiat is a very simple machine designed in the days when there were points and carburettors! I take it that your battery is generally good since you manged to discharge it pretty good whilst cranking it for a while , yes? Incidentally I presume you're aware of the implications of cranking an ic engine for and extended period, overheating of starter and filling the cylinders full of fuel can be good for the little baby, not to mention the dilution of the lube oil.... Okay, so your battery is serviceable but do not forget that the ignition system depends on a power supply as well. Now there are a couple of wee fuses that supply power to the primary side of the ignition as well as the instrument cluster and a few other things so youll have to check these out or the car is dead in the water. Be sure to check that a faulty coil hasn't blown the fuses or replacing the fuse will result in it blowing again. So check to see if any fuses have blown...


After you've done that you'll be closer... Have you a wiring diagram?

Let me know how you get on..


Ray

Just checking my wiring diagram for the x and notice that there aren't any fuses for the primary side of the ignition cct so the fuse thing ain't gonna help you. Don't think it'll be a main earth since you've got good cranking but could be a smaller loose connection somewhere. Check your ignition switch in order to ensure you've got 12v going to the primary side of the coil when the switch is on.

You can also check if you're getting a spark across the points with the dist cap off that'll show you the same thing. However it won't rule out a cracked dist cap or bad rotor arm...

Sounds like a fried ignition switch, if you pull apart the connector that leads to the ignition switch on the steering colum an check if any of the connectors are burned, if so you amy have found your problem.

Thankyou all, the car is still in my works car park and I am still biking to work, I will check out all that you have suggested, I will let you know. Thanks again all!

If a car cranks and does not start, it's time to isolate the problem to whether it is mechanical (timing belt), fuel (fuel pump or clogged filter / carburetor), or spark (wet points, bad components).

So, the basics can be covered first, then the specifics can be looked at afterwards.

Basic #1 : When the starter cranks the motor, does it sound consistant with what the car previously sounded like when it cranked? If a timing belt blew, the engine cranking sound would be strange and irratic, a smoother whirring sound would occur from the starter since there would be no compression going on in the cylinders. If all is normal, you will hear the starter's pulsing rur-rur-rur-rur sound when you crank the engine.

Basic #2 : assuming the timing belt is ok, then time to check fuel. If you're carbureted, that can be done by removing the air cleaner lid, and with your hands open up the choke flap and then articulate the throttle lever. Yopu should see a stream of gas shoot inside the primary ventury (you can usually hear it too). If you got gas, then...

Basic #3 : see if you have spark coming out of the ignition coil. pull the lead fron the center terminal of the distributor and hold it 1/8" away from a grounded metal surface and have your mate try cranking the car while you watch for a spark to jump from the coil wire to the ground surface.

Hopefully by this time you found which one of three is the culprit and can attack that particular issue.

For future reference... What year is the x1/9? Carbureted or fuel injected? That will make a difference on diagnosing the fuel issue.

Does it have ignition points, or an electronic dizzy? That will make a difference on diagnosing the spark issue.

Check that coil.