JohnCh

Given this began after a hard jolt, I'd check for loose electrical, pinched wires, or crank position sensor. Do you hear the fuel pump when you turn the key? If not, check the fuse and then the wiring. Next, check the fuse for the ECU to make sure no issues there. Also check any connectors in the engine loom to make sure they are still tight. It's also possible that the crank sensor wasn't fully tightened so it moved a bit when you hit the hole. Not sure how to check that if you don't have the plastic alignment tool included with a replacement sensor, but others might know. -John

Like Gert, I've had my Emerald for ~12 years, and have upgraded to later firmware. It's very user friendly, lot's of support from both the company and various UK se7en forums, and reasonably priced. They do make harnesses and can modify them to suit your needs. After developing some issues in the harness I built during the initial install in 2004, I bought a replacement from them this summer and had them prep it for some future mods I have planned. It's very well made. -John

According to this video posted by Edd China, he is leaving Wheeler Dealers due to changes implemented by the show's new owner (Velocity Channel bought it prior to last season.) Sad to see the specific reason below, as I viewed the segments with Mike Brewer as the tax to see the interesting bits with Edd, not the other way around: "Unfortunately, on Velocity’s first attempt at producing the show they found Wheeler Dealers ‘too difficult to make’, ‘at least in its current format’. In particular, the detailed and in depth coverage of my fixes in the workshop; what I consider to be the backbone and USP of the programme, are something Velocity feel should be reduced. The workshop jobs are certainly the hardest part of the show to make and reducing their substance and role in the show will save the production considerable time, effort and therefore money. However, this new direction is not something I am comfortable with as I feel the corners I was being asked to cut compromised the quality of my work and would erode my integrity as well as that of the show, so I have come to the conclusion that my only option is to let Velocity get on with it, without me." -John

I don't recall seeing Pearl before -- looks fantastic! Of course that appreciation is tempered by my frustration from seeing photos of a se7en under blue skies. -John (in Seattle, where we've had our wettest winter on record...)

I don't recall seeing such a tall bonnet bulge on other S4s. Special engine, perhaps? -John

Regarding the steering column's contact with the exhaust manifold, have you checked the engine mounts? One might be collapsed or broken. -John

Have you changed your wheels since I saw the car? If not, then I'm pretty sure those are manufactured for Caterham by KN Wheels in the UK. A quick search on BlatChat should confirm and a call or email to KN might get you a definitive answer. -John

Based on what I've read, this is one of those "it depends" scenarios. Lots of people powder coat their wheels with no issues, but I have occasionally heard of wheels that have subsequently broken. I even know of one wheel vendor whose warranty explicitly denies coverage to problems arising from powder coating. The crux of the issue seems to be the age hardening process. Depending on the alloy, that is done at a temps near or below those used for powder coating, over a multi-hour period. If the cumulative aging time for the wheel with powder coating is over the accepted range, then the tensile strength will be lower. If it is still within the target time range, then there is no negative affect. For example, 356-T6, which is often used for cast wheels, is aged at 305F-315F for 2-5 hours. In this example, if the original age hardening was done close to the 5 hour mark, powder coating could tip it over the edge for the application. If it was only done for 2 hours, then it would be fine. To be safe, I'd contact the wheel manufacturer and ask their opinion. -John

I'm not sure why you are trying to draw attention to the driver of the hot rod. I'm familiar with him, and that guy is a snake... Oh, and second the kudos on your photos. -John

I also wear 11-1/2 and found out the hard way that I cannot drive a Caterham S3 without driving shoes. With driving shoes, or their equivalent, not a problem. -John

At least I didn't say it stands for voluptuous... -John

And all this time I thought the V stood for voluminous -John

There should be a coolant table that adjusts ignition and fueling based on coolant temp, but I'm not sure it's possible for the table values to change on their own. Are you able to log the AFR once you hit 60C? If so, what does that show? Are the values showing extremely rich or lean, or jumping all over the place? Does your ECU have a native driver for the WBO2, or are you running a standalone system like an Innovate? It's possible that the controller is fried, or it could simply be a wiring issue. Have you checked resistance of the WBO2 wires to confirm there isn't a partial break inside the insulation, and also confirm the voltage reading as Tom suggested? Lastly, when you replaced the WBO2, did you calibrate it? -John

I checked my notes regarding tensioning the chain with the Raceco manual chain tensioner. Ammo said to push down hard with the heel of your hand to ensure all the slack is between the cam pulleys, and then adjust to 10mm of movement, which should result in the optimal 3mm of movement when hot. He indicated that verifying the critical hot measurement is a good idea, so it might be worth doing that if you can't find another culprit for the rattle. -John

This seems odd. A single injector shouldn't be inputting that much fuel at idle/very low load. I wonder if the injector is failing and sticking open, thereby dumping far too much fuel into the cylinder? -John

Not yet, but please PM me if it happens again. There has been some weirdness going on with random moderation of new posters even though that option is not set. -John

I did 765 miles solo the day I bought my car, and 635 miles with a passenger on the way back from USA2005. I've also covered several thousand additional miles on subsequent tours, which included both freeways and backroads. As a device for covering a lot of freeway miles in a day, se7ens suck. Period. They are noisy, drafty, and "just" a bit lacking in creature comforts. However, blasting down deserted back roads for miles on end is a different story. If you love cars and the joy of pushing a communicative steed, there is simply no better experience. The positive and negative aspects of se7ening combine to make a memorable experience, which is just the sort of shared adventure that helps people bond. Prepare yourself and your son for the good and the bad and ensure you spend part of the trip on winding back roads and you'll create a memory that you can both talk about for years to come. -John

Aryan, I see four posts from you in this thread , two of which include a number of photos. However, your post count shows you've only made three posts total. Should there be more posts in this thread, or are the ones I'm seeing not visible to others? Thanks, John

I can't answer your specific question, but have you considered a third option; buy a car now, and sell it before returning to the US? This allows you to begin the se7en experience to determine what you like/don't like before making a longer term purchase after returning home. I personally learned a lot my first few years, including use-patterns, which ultimately led me to effectively start from scratch and head in a different direction from my original car. -John

It's the engine wiring harness that connects the ECU to all the sensors, coil, and injectors, not the car harness. I had Emerald start with the Caterham long loom and add wiring for the Map Selector switch and a VVT controller. I'm toying with an engine upgrade that includes variable intake geometry based on a motorcycle unit I bought a while ago. The VVT option native to the Emerald will allow me to control the actuator based on rpm and would theoretically offset some of the low-midrange torque loss from more aggressive cams Me? Slide around on the streets like a hooligan?? Never!!! That comment was purely for entertainment value. Really. -John

As much as I enjoy flaming Croc, I must reluctantly agree with his assessment (sorry Mike, I know you expect better of me :jester: .) It also seems that the sweet spot for cars is in the $20-$25k range. Perhaps there is a psychological barrier for many at $25k given this is a purely discretionary purchase -- start pushing beyond that and SWMBO may point out that money is better used for a kitchen remodel. As a result, my belief is that cars in this range are at the bottom end of their depreciation curve provided they are sold in similar condition as to when purchased. That said, regardless of additional depreciation, they are still a great investment. If you can afford to throw out $25k for a toy, you probably have a job that comes with some degree of stress. Nothing takes away stress better than blasting down a winding road in a se7en. Hard to put a value on that. -John

I hesitate to drag up such an old thread, but given there are two updates, one a year overdue and the other very recent, I thought I'd try to close this out again in case anyone else runs into a similar problem. When I left you last July, the car had been through a full tank of gas with no recurrence of the issue, so things were deemed resolved. Fast forward a few days when I decided at oh-dark-thirty that it was Take Your Westfield to Work Thursday. Much to my chagrin, the engine began acting up before I got down the driveway. After less than a mile, it was clear a U-turn was necessary, and suddenly it was Take Your 993 to Work Thursday. The next several months alternated between long periods of utter despair, and shorter bursts of attempting to figure out what the hell was going on. Based on all the signs, it was an electrical problem that wasn't tied to a specific cylinder. Given several key sensors & parts had been replaced, and that data logging indicated it wasn't the ECU or any remaining sensors, the wiring harness became the prime suspect. The ECU wiring harness was cobbled together from the harness that came with the crate engine mixed in with net new wiring. Looking into it, a few issues were found and fixed including one that matched my best guess of the problematic wire (12V+ to the coil pack). However, the intermittent poor running and idle continued. Finally, I was able to get the problem to repeat/resolve by pressing on the harness as it comes into the engine bay - I had my smoking gun! Unfortunately,efforts to track it down to any particular wire(s) were for naught, so with the post-Brexit Pound in freefall, an order was placed with Emerald for a new wiring harness. It's been in place for a couple of weeks, and so far, everything seems fine. In fact, it's been good enough to make today Take Your Westfield to Work Monday. I arrived without issues, hopefully the same will be true of the commute home. BTW I've forgotten just how easy this car is to rotate and hold with the throttle. Damn addicting -John

That Westfield is a later, fiberglass-bodied pre-lit. The factory switched over to the post-lit body ~1988, so if the 1999 build date claim is correct, it sat around for some time before completion. And with only 4500 miles on odometer, it apparently did a lot of sitting afterwards. -John

Hi Gert, have you tried the K3s adjustable speed and load sites option? This enable you to add a lot more granularity around light throttle and idle which addresses sensitivity issue you highlight. It made a noticeable difference on my engine. I'm running larger injectors than necessary for my power output, which does affect my idle. I'm toying to make the switch to 8 injectors, and may also go with a sequential setup when I do my next engine upgrade. Hate the added complexity, but it should aid drivability. -John

Revisiting this old thread. It appears this issue is finally resolved so thought I'd post an update to enable people to settle their bets (winners, don't forget to forward my 7% commission). Between my schedule and the intermittent nature of the issue, the diagnosis process was frustrating; on days when I had time to work on the car the engine ran fine, on those days when I only had time for a short drive, it generally ran poorly. Damn that Murphy and his blasted Law! I did get lucky one day though while revving the engine with the air filter off. The car was parked in the shadow of the garage and the engine was running normally for a few minutes before it started acting up. As this occurred, combustion flashes began appearing behind all 4 throttle plates. A little more messing around and the engine started running better, but still not right. Now the combustion flashes were only visible behind 2 throttle plates. The next day I removed the air filter, started it up, and it was running fine -- no combustion flashes were visible. I then did some additional data logging and paid closer attention to the advance readings. Although no corrections were being made, and the advance was consistent (i.e. no jumping around) the actual advance numbers weren't matching the values in the ignition table for a given load and rpm during those periods of poor running. Given the only 2 electrical items I hadn't replaced or already ruled out through previous data logging were the ECU and the Crank Position Sensor, I swapped out the latter for a new one about 2 months ago. The issue seemed to go away, but didn't have an opportunity to use the car extensively until last week. After putting 300 miles on it in various conditions without a hiccup, it appears the CPS was the culprit. -John