hi, i have a 1999 1.2 petrol clio. Appologies for my ignorance regarding cars and engines :) Ever since weve been having colder nights ive been going to start the car in the morning and as the ignition is turned (be it starting the engine or not) both the fuel gage and engine temp gage etc will rise to indicate a level of measurement and then suddenly they will fall to zero and then rise again. As in, the needle on the fuel gage will shoot to the top then the lights will go out on the dasboard, the needle will fall to the bottom, and then come back and rise to full etc seconds later. On top of this the clock will reset and i will lose my trip mileage. This will happen several times, although the engine will start without any problems and the sterio, lights etc all work fine without cutting out. I believe i have linked a cause and effect with this problem to the engine being cold as the dials function normal once the engine gets up to temperature. This is becoming quite a problem as it affects the speed gauge aswel while im driving as it will indicate a speed and then suddenly drop to 0mph, this is quite frightening if im going through a speed camera :) I would be greatly appreciated if anyone could help me with this
thanks
{amendment to subject line. You don't need to put make/model in it as the choice made from the drops down menus does that for you}
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 12/11/2008 at 18:45
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That could be an internal fault with the pod itself; but fitting the wrong make of sparkplugs can cause mayhem with Renault pods.
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That could be an internal fault with the pod itself; but fitting the wrong make of sparkplugs can cause mayhem with Renault pods.
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Okay then, i replaced the spark plugs about a year ago from ones which i believe were manufactured by Bosch to some NGK ones? could this be where the fault lies?
and if this is a problem with the pod im assuming i can just replace the housing around these?
thanks
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They don't like NGKs; so it might be worth trying some genuine ones.
Yes the whole instrument pod can be changed as a unit - but it's not cheap and needs dealer coding.
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The fact that you say the fault has only occured since the cold weather tends to suggest this could be a battery related problem.Good idea to get the charging and battery systems tested.Also does this car have the horrible plastic screw down battery terminal and claw arrangement that usually give problems.Worth a look.hth
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oh dear .. fingers crossed that its the spark plugs then
thankyou for your time and help
regards
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I'd be looking in the battery/terminals area first then check cranking amps.
Ford Focii exhibit a similar fault when the battery voltage is getting a bit marginal and I have had a couple of occasions when the dash insert has been renewed when a new quality battery would have sorted the fault.
Incidentally, does the car get a good run each day? I notice you mention lights, stereo etc and in the cold weather with all the consumers on it will take a decent run to fully recharge the battery.
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>>Also does this car have the horrible plastic screw down battery terminal and claw arrangement that usually give problems.Worth a look.hth
Yes it does have the horrible arrangement :) could i try cleaning the connections to make sure they have a good contact?
>>does the car get a good run each day?
i only use the car to get me from uni and back. This is usually only 20mile's or so and the car is running for around 30minutes at a time. I dont usually have al the consumers running off the battery, it is usually just the radio and heating.
Incidently, could this be a result of a bad earth or even loose connection. Sorry for all the questions but with my lack in motoring knowledge i want to get an idea of what im looking for before i start messing wih the engine :)
note: i am off today to pick up some new spark plugs, air filter etc for the yearly service of my motor, will keep you posted with the result. :)
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result .. turns out changing the spark plugs has fixed the problem .. not to mention one of the caps was loose on the top of the plug :s
thanks to all for your input
regards
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If it's any consolation, SWMBO's 2000 Clio did exactly the same thing - odd goings on with gauges for a few secs after starting on cold mornings. I reported it to the selling dealer, who said 'it could be several things, just keep an eye on it'. It recurred a few times but never seemed to affect the running of the car or any equipment, so we just ignored it. It only seemed to happen if the temp went negative - maybe the computer worked out something strange?
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indeed, it has never affected the working of the car
but that was the advice i was given that it could be lots of things that are causing the problem
and i dont think id have the time or money in that case to check/change everythin
just hope the problem is fixed as it does seem to be now :)
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