I've been having electrical issue's for some time now, resulting in my car failing to start on multiple occasions. I thought originally it could be the fuel filter being clogged, it may be a coincidence but my car then worked.

Later it wouldn't start, then two days later it fired right up like there had never been an issue at all.

After replacing the battery I thought my troubles were over then I started getting the Speedo Ticking when starting it, so I take it into the dealership to have them diagnose the issue my electric system is having. $107 dollars later they said they can't find anything wrong with it.

Today it wouldn't start again after work. I had to go to school to take a final so I got a lift home from a friend and used another car to get to school and back. Afterwards I go back to work to get a tow truck to tow it down to te dealer to find out whats wrong with it. Only problem is, my car started!!! This is one of the few times it's a bad thing, because I don't know when it's going to die on my again or where.

What do my fellow Mini drivers have for me?

 

bad ground?

 

How do you check that?

 

Any other suggestions?

 

More info...
When you say it would not start....
does it crank, but not run?
Not crank?
sputter but not start?Any sounds? Any smells?
Ground wire connections can be looked at, and wiggled, then also checked with a multimeter on the Ohm setting....even a $10 Walmart one will do it.

 

Starter turns and turns but nothing other than that. No sputters or hiccups. I do sometimes here a slight ticking noise that sounds like it's coming from inside the dash behind the stearing wheel, but a little lower and to the left. sort of between the wheel and the fuses. It's not very loud though.

Where is the ground wire and how do you check it with a Multimeter? If there's another page on NAM a link to that would work just great!

 

There only 2 things that this can be, Fuel or spark.
Verify that the battery has a full charge. A battery with a low or partial charge can cause the engine to crank too slow preventing it from starting. Sometimes a jump will fix this problem, but if your battery is more than five years old you should consider replacing it.

 

Replaced it last week... I just got home from work, driving another car came to start mine up again and it fires right up. It's random that it doesn't start, do you think plugs or fuel?

 

Can you smell gas when you try starting in?

 

Could be HPFP.

 

I can't smell gas at all, do the High Pressure Fuel Pumps slowly stop working? I was thinking if it was dead it was dead.

 

Common symptoms -Car requires multiple cranks on startup, car dies or stumbles while idling, car won't start.

 

sorry, a gen1 DOES NOT HAVE A HPFP (high preassure fuel pump)!!
They are ONLY on gen 2 DIRECT INJECTION MOTORS!!

 

Gen1 cars have a REGULAR electric fuel pump....they do not have direct injection, so no secondary fuel pump to up the presure to inject it into the cylindar next to the sparkplug....we have fuel injectors in the intake, near the intake valves....
If you have no lean codes, or lack of power when at mid to high rpms, and can smell fuel when cranking, it is ok....

 

I must of read 2nd gen. Still can be a fuel pump going bad. AGAIN!!! Usually only 2 things to look for when a car will turn over and not start. Fuel and Spark.

 

Is there a way to test if it's the plugs or pump without having to buy new parts first?

 

Dealer should have kept the MINI and performed a cold start or recheck to duplicate the problem, then if duplicated, check fuel pressure at the rail.

If it was my MINI, I would do what Braminator mentioned. Spark and fuel and start with easy stuff first......

1) Check all fuses and their contacts in the SPEG. Have seen a few of them with whitish corrosion on terminals and fuse ends which makes for poor or sporadic contact.

2) Swap coil packs with another MINI owner.....?

3) Remove the back seat and check the electrical connector to the fuel pump........maybe it's loose or has a bad wire bushing at the connector.

 

I have an update or lack thereof. I've been making sure to always lock my car even when it's garaged and I've had no starting issues since. My AC is not cold at all but I don't see how the two cold be related unless it's a power issue.

 

Does your car have an alarm?
The fact that it's been working since you've been locking it suggests maybe some sort of ignition interupt issue.
One way to check this would be, the next time it happens, unhook the ground side of the battery for 5 min. or more, reconnect & try it again to see if it possibly resets something in the system. (I have an e36 that does this frequently)

As far as the A/C could just be low from the non-use during the winter, our systems really need to not only be full but pretty much spot-on as far as freon levels to work properly.

Keep us posted.

 

Update. Wed night it wouldn't start again. This time instead of the starter turning but ignition not taking place the car just clicked. I hooked it up to do a jump and it fired right up. I've come to the conclusion that something is draining my battery. Any Idea's on what that could be? I have hooked it up to a battery charger the last two nights and it fires fine in the mornings and doesn't even have the speedo ticking noise! the problem is if I wanted to plug my car in every night I'd get a nissan leaf...

 

You'll want to do a parasitic drain test.... You'll need a DVOM that can read mA.

Verify that the battery is good, have it charged and tested...

A good reading should be under .050 amps..

If you need a lab worksheet, (sort of like a DIY) let me know, I can post it.