<div dir="auto"> When cold, the battery connectors will be tighter thanks to contraction and of the metal. When hot an otherwise solid connection can become resistive or even open.<div dir="auto"> Next time it won't start, turn on the headlights first and observe them when attempting a start. If the dim appreciable the batter or its connectors are the cause.</div></div><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Tue, Mar 10, 2020, 3:28 PM Michael MacLean via Mgs <<a href="mailto:mgs@autox.team.net">mgs@autox.team.net</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div><div style="font-family:times new roman,new york,times,serif;font-size:16px"><div></div>
<div dir="ltr">Battery connections can "look" fine. There is a corrosion that sets up with disuse and the battery tenders tend to foster this. Just take off the battery connections and clean off the battery posts with a battery cleaning tool. You know, the one with the stiff steel bristles you put over the post and turn back and forth. Then do the same for the battery cable connections. You would be surprised how many times it's the simple things like this that are the problem.</div><div dir="ltr">Mike MacLean</div><div dir="ltr">69 MGB GT<br></div><div><br></div>
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<div>
On Tuesday, March 10, 2020, 1:21:59 PM PDT, Steve Shoyer via Mgs <<a href="mailto:mgs@autox.team.net" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">mgs@autox.team.net</a>> wrote:
</div>
<div><br></div>
<div><br></div>
<div><div id="m_8510077427096754117yiv4564730960"><div>
<p>I actually look at the battery connections every time I drive,
when I disconnect and then reconnect the battery tender clamps.
They seem clean and tight.</p>
<p>If the battery (or battery connection) was bad, would there still
be enough power to start the car when it was cold, and to run the
starter for a long time after the car was warm but wouldn't
start? I can try disconnecting the battery tender to see how the
battery reacts to only charging from the alternator.</p>
<p>--Steve (1980 MGB)<br clear="none">
</p>
<div id="m_8510077427096754117yiv4564730960yqtfd76888"><div>On 3/10/2020 3:50 PM, Max Heim via Mgs
wrote:<br clear="none">
</div>
<blockquote type="cite">
</blockquote></div></div><div id="m_8510077427096754117yiv4564730960yqtfd55001"><div>
Head? Coil? Now you’re grasping at straws. And carb doesn’t match
the symptoms.
<div><br clear="none">
</div>
<div>I think Mike was right. Clean and tighten the
battery connections. They are out of sight so are frequently
neglected. Have you looked at them since you installed the
battery?</div>
<div><br clear="none">
</div>
<div><br clear="none">
<div>
<div style="color:rgb(0,0,0);letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px;word-wrap:break-word">
<div style="color:rgb(0,0,0);letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px;word-wrap:break-word">
<div style="margin:0px;font-size:13px">--</div>
<div style="margin:0px;font-size:13px;min-height:16px">Max Heim</div>
<div style="margin:0px;font-size:13px">'66
MGB</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<br clear="none">
<div>
<blockquote type="cite">
<div>On Mar 10, 2020, at 12:44 PM, Steve Shoyer via
Mgs <<a rel="nofollow noreferrer" shape="rect" href="mailto:mgs@autox.team.net" target="_blank">mgs@autox.team.net</a>> wrote:</div>
<br clear="none">
<div>
<p style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">Thanks. I
don't think it's the battery. The battery is about two
years old, and it's been plugged into a battery tender
over the winter. I didn't have any trouble getting the
starter to crank, and I was running the starter for a
while without the battery appearing to run down.</p>
<p style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">I'll have to
test it by starting the car cold, driving it around my
neighborhood for a while, then parking it back in my
garage and trying to restart it after 20-30 minutes. If
it won't start I can pull the plugs and take a look, and
also test the battery to see if it wasn't holding the
charge. I can also check compression at that point -
maybe the head gets loose when it warms up?<br clear="none">
</p>
<p style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">I also thought
it might be the coil - I had read that sometimes after
the coil gets warm it can cause intermittent problems.
If that was the case I'd think the car wouldn't run
after being push started, but I'm far from an expert. I
was just guessing at the carb because I've never been
good at tuning carbs, and it's the last thing I changed
on the car.</p>
<p style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">--Steve<br clear="none">
</p>
<div style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">On 3/10/2020 3:17 PM,
Michael MacLean via Mgs wrote:<br clear="none">
</div>
<blockquote type="cite" style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:12px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px">
<div style="font-family:'times new roman','new york',times,serif;font-size:16px">
<div dir="ltr">Check the
battery connections, clean and replace.<br clear="none">
</div>
<div dir="ltr">Mike
MacLean</div>
<div dir="ltr">69 MGB GT<br clear="none">
</div>
<div><br clear="none">
</div>
</div>
<div id="m_8510077427096754117yiv4564730960yahoo_quoted_4146678925">
<div style="font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;color:rgb(38,40,42)">
<div>On Tuesday, March 10, 2020, 11:41:43
AM PDT, dave via Mgs<span> </span><a rel="nofollow noreferrer" shape="rect" href="mailto:mgs@autox.team.net" target="_blank"><mgs@autox.team.net></a><span> </span>wrote:<span> </span></div>
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<div><br clear="none">
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<div id="m_8510077427096754117yiv4564730960">
<div>
<div>
<p>What is
the voltage on the battery? See:</p>
<div> <br clear="none">
</div>
<p><a rel="nofollow noreferrer" shape="rect" href="https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/r/advice/car-maintenance/car-battery-voltage-range" style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank">https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/r/advice/car-maintenance/car-battery-voltage-range</a></p>
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<div id="m_8510077427096754117yiv4564730960yqt49081">
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<div style="border-style:solid none none;border-top-width:1pt;border-top-color:rgb(225,225,225);padding:3pt 0in 0in">
<p><b>From:</b><span> </span>Mgs<span> </span><a rel="nofollow noreferrer" shape="rect" href="mailto:mgs-bounces@autox.team.net" style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank"><mgs-bounces@autox.team.net></a><span> </span><b>On Behalf Of<span> </span></b>Max
Heim via Mgs<br clear="none">
<b>Sent:</b><span> </span>Tuesday,
March 10, 2020 12:59 PM<br clear="none">
<b>To:</b><span> </span>MGs<span> </span><a rel="nofollow noreferrer" shape="rect" href="mailto:mgs@autox.team.net" style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank"><mgs@autox.team.net></a><br clear="none">
<b>Subject:</b><span> </span>Re:
[Mgs] MGB not (re)starting</p>
</div>
</div>
<div> <br clear="none">
</div>
<p>What
makes you think it was carb related? The
fact that you could push start it makes
me think it was more likely battery or
starter related. It being the end of
winter, I suspect a flat battery.</p>
<div>
<div> <br clear="none">
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<div>
<div id="m_8510077427096754117yiv4564730960yqt99890">
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<p><span style="font-size:10pt">--</span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p><span style="font-size:10pt">Max Heim</span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p><span style="font-size:10pt">'66 MGB</span></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<div> <br clear="none">
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</div>
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<div>
<blockquote style="margin-top:5pt;margin-bottom:5pt">
<div>
<p>On
Mar 10, 2020, at 10:46 AM, Steve
Shoyer via Mgs <<a rel="nofollow noreferrer" shape="rect" href="mailto:mgs@autox.team.net" style="color:blue;text-decoration:underline" target="_blank">mgs@autox.team.net</a>>
wrote:</p>
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<div> <br clear="none">
</div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<p>It
was in the 70's yesterday,
so I took my 1980 MGB out
for a ride. My current carb
is a Weber 38 DGES that I
installed when I replaced
the cam two years ago. I
drove around last year and
it was running well, until
one day when I stopped at a
store for a few minutes and
then couldn't get the car
restarted. After trying to
get it going I wound up
calling my daughter for help
and we got it push-started.
Yesterday the same thing
happened. After the push
start the car ran fine, but
I just drove it home rather
than risk another problem.
I was trying some starter
fluid to get it going
yesterday, but that didn't
work. I thought that maybe
the gas in the tank is old,
but the car started up after
a little cranking when I
originally left the house.<span> </span></p>
</div>
<div>
<div> <br clear="none">
</div>
</div>
<div>
<p>Any
suggestions on where to
look? I didn't plumb the
coolant line through the
manifold to heat it, but I
don't drive too much in cold
weather so I didn't think it
would be needed. I thought
that the problem last summer
could have been vapor lock,
but starter fluid should
have worked if that was the
issue.<span> </span></p>
</div>
<div>
<div> <br clear="none">
</div>
</div>
<div>
<p>Thanks.</p>
</div>
<div>
<div> <br clear="none">
</div>
</div>
<div>
<p>--Steve
(1980 MGB)<span> </span></p>
</div>
</div>
<br clear="none">
</div>
</blockquote>
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</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
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</blockquote>
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</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
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