roachw

Immaculate condition, 1.6 Ford Sigma 125 bhp, 6 speed, lowered floors. Full details here: https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/caterham/all-models/caterham-super-seven-2015/7172588

I don't know why my 7 is so unique regards this problem, probably never will. But I do have one final question, could this fix be responsible for an improvement in performance? I'm convinced my car is quite a lot "friskier " than before. At first I put this down to having not driven the car for a while. The next time I drove the car it still felt very frisky, which may have been due to the the frosty weather. But I've driven it again recently and I'm sure it's quicker. Could it be the fix had resulted in a better spark at the plugs? That's the only thing I could think of.

this is the "repaired" item..

They split around the front edge, so just behind the black plastic bead/rim. It's actually the white plastic body that splits away. Oh and the posts have broken off too. I'll try to post a picture of it. regards, Will

On a related topic, my sigma gauges keep splitting! oil pressure first and now temp. The car is only 18 months old, anyone else had this problem I wonder?

So, just to close this one off. Having confirmed the battery & alternator were both good, I took the car back to Bristol Auto Electrical for them to diagnose the fault. Thankfully they did find and fix the issue. The problem was a faulty earth connection, possibly the one that goes to the chassis near the alternator. BAE said that they had carried out lots of voltage drop tests and resistance checks and noticed that when they simply put the car into gear, the charge level began to drop a little. So just that small engine movement was enough to trigger the poor earth connection. BAE's preferred fix was to introduce a new earth strap going from the battery earth to the starter motor. Job done, my temporary volt meter is now showing charging levels of around 14 volts, higher than I've ever seen! Whilst reading some of the content on here recently I noticed a post by somebody that said "90% of electrical issues on 7s were caused by poor earth connections". I'll bear that in mind for the future and try to improve my own diagnostic & multi-meter skills. Thanks again to all who've helped me with this :-)

Sorry - without*

Thanks Tom, no it goes flat on a long run within lights on. I'm taking it to an auto electric place tomorrow as I'd really like to have it resolved for any Christmas blast. TTFN

Just an update - I've had the alternator off and tested, it's 100% fine. So I think it's a wiring fault....

Thanks Chris, I think I can see which one is the tensioner now. just gonna have a crack at it now... regards, Will

Hi all, is it the same or similar process for the 1.6 sigma please?

Many thanks for the info guys, working away ATM but will progress when I get home. regards, Will

Hi chaps, I've ordered a replacement cable from CC. any tips on how to do this "It would be interesting to measure the voltage at the live terminal of the alternator at the same time that it's low at the battery." Whilst I have a multi-meter I am a novice with it. thanks, Will

Thanks Jonathan, I'll do that. Not sure how this issue fits with the intermittent nature of the fault but I'll do as you suggest and see how it goes. I'll keep you posted. Thanks again, Regards, WILL