Voltage Regulator / Ignition Failure

[Max]

Hi everybody,

I have a little problem with my Fulvia 3. It occured today for the first time. I was driving and everything was totally normal. then suddenly the whole ignition system switched of i. e. everything that switches on, when you turn the key just went off and i was stranded in the middle of the road without being able to operate the indicators or the horn or anything else. But I could still operate the driving lights etc. and all those other things, that you can normally operate without the key. First, when I tried to restart the car, it cranked, but no ignition. After a couple of tries, the ignition was suddenly back on again and everything went back to normal.. Do you have any idea what the reason for this might be? Could it be a bad electric connection in the ignition lock? How can I check this?
I also have had another problem some time before. During driving, the red light for the generator on the dashboard switched on and the rev counter failed. This did happen a couple of times but it was just for a couple of seconds, and nothing at all happend, so i decided not to do anything about it.
I' ve heard that this could be an indcator for a broken voltage regulator. So where can I find that voltage regulator, and is there a method to check, if it's still working?
Could this be somehow connected to my ignition problem?

Thanks a lot for your help

Max

[Walter van Gruythuysen]

Max,

I had something similar with my Fulvia 1. If it is the ignition lock you can check it by turning the key a few degrees back when it happens again. Do not press the clutch! Ignition should switch on inmediately then.

It could also be a bad connection in the fuse box.

The regulator should be checked by a professional with testing equipment.

Walter

[tim]

Suggest a fuse has blown - happened to me - I think 2nd or 3rd fuse in from left but you will see if you open row of fuses in central console.

Tim

[Max]

fuses are all ok... i'll check the ignition lock as soon as it occurs for the next time..
thanks a lot for your answers!!

Max

[Max]

today, i've disconnected, cleaned and reconnected all the cabels in the fuse box.. was quite a lot of work, but both problems seem to have totally disappeared..
i drove about 75 km afterwards, and none of the problems has reappeared..
thanks a lot
max

[Fulvia aa.i. Claire]

I am perplexed ? how did you determine that you needed to do this ? was there visual corrosion on the cables or on the cable fastenings ? Your first adventure could have been a major and life-threatening disaster ! In any casem "Good Job"; I look forward to your reply

[Ed Levin]

Fulvia aa.i. Claire wrote:
>
> I am perplexed ? how did you determine that you needed
> to do this ? ...I look forward to your reply

I think it you read the entire thread, you'll see that Walter van Gruythuysen suggested that the fuse box connections might be the problem.

[Max]

I thought this would be easier than checking the ignition lock, as it is hidden under this very solid looking metal thing, so i decided to try the fuse box first.
Of course i didn't deconnect all the cables at once, I would have been totally lost in that "cable chaos", I just slowly deconnected, cleaned and reconnected one after the other. it did definitely take a lot of time, and you need very small fingers... in fact, i had to use a doctor's tweezers (by the way, is that the right word?) but it seems to be successful so far
But to be honest, I wouldnt wanna do it for another time

[Johnny48]

thanx Max; now it makes sense that you approached a possible cause & solved the problem with no additional hassle. I am relived that you didn't go through "all that work" and then suffer same problems as before "all that work".
Ed, right you are. However, I (falsely) assumed that the problem would be either some/several/all corroded fuse-ends (the copper tips) or some/several/all corroded fuse clips (that hold the fuse in); assuming that if 1 fuse / clip corroded, they would all be corroded. I never would have guessed that was the wires & only the wires.