Lancia Motor Club

I was coming back from a short drive this afternoon in my S3 when the engine just cut out. I suffered the ignominy of having to push the car home, fortunately just for a few hundred yards.

The number 1 fuse had blown (the first on in the left) and a new one blew as soon as the ignition was turned on.

Can anyone please suggest where to start?

Dig out a wiring diagram and trace back the wires from fuse n1. One side is 12v supply and the other side is where the problem lies. One circuit is going to ground. Could be ignition switch wiring coming out of the steering column….

I think power from No1 fuse goes to the front junction box that mainly powers the lights including flasher control, stop lights and the switch etc. so i am guessing a short in one of those circuits. Think about the exact second before the engine quit. Had you put any services on? Lights, brakes, indicators, flashers, even reverse gear (back up light). Careful thought may give you a clue. Best of luck

Thanks guys that’s very helpful. I had just been testing my brakes by using them very hard at relatively low speed. All of a sudden the engine cut out. When I got back home I found the fuse had blown.

I’ll have to spend some of tomorrow trying to read the wiring diagram. I’ve taken a photo of it so I can zoom in so it’s legible to my ageing eyes!

Hmm - one step back and one and a half steps forward!

The fuse that has gone is the first one on the left, which most people would allocate the number 1 to. In the wiring diagram however, they seem to be numbered the other way around with the one numbered 1 being the one on the far right!  I spent ages carefully tracing the wiring diagram (or at least my blown up photo of it on my Mac screen) highlighting the wires in colour from their fuse number 1 and wondered why they weren't present when I went back to the car to locate them. Now I know.

Perhaps one day someone with a week of spare time will produce a full colour diagram for the S2/3 wiring!

I have a full colour high definition wiring diagram for Series 2 which I would be happy to share.  I'm not sure who it was developed by originally.  I keep a laminated A3-size print of it on my garage wall for easy reference.  The S3 diagram, only available in black and white I believe, has different  numbering from the S2, but I think the coloured S2 chart would still be useful to S3 owners to help trace cable runs.

That's an answer to a prayer if ever I heard one!

Thank you - shall I send you an e-mail?

Yes, that would make sense.  And we can decide the best way to send it.

Could you not post it on here in the Technical Information thread please?

 Posted as requested

To avoid the engine cutting out in a dangerous situation I have moved the coil feed to the incoming side of the fuse.  The ignition switch supply is unfused anyway so I just make sure the harness containing the coil wire is well insulated where it passes through the bulkhead.

Sean

Ha! Thank you. Just what I was thinking before I read your message today. I have a feeling that I won’t find the fault and it would always be lurking there ready to strand me.

I hadn’t got as far as working out the best way to make the coil independent, but I’ll probably put an inline fuse in an appropriate place.

Perhaps a suitably fused override switch from 12v supply to the coil.
  I have the opposite. This takes the form two 'kill' switches, one dash mounted and one engine bay mounted.  These are used in the event of the engine not switching off with the key. Also a security measure.
 
Richard

I found a loose wire that was meant to be attached to the handbrake warning flasher unit which might have been the culprit. All seems ok now, but I think it’s wise to take the live feed for fuse 9 and attach a separate fused lead to the coil via a switch.

The way I see it is that so long as you’ve at least got ignition power you can always bump or jump start the car.

Hi Richard, I suggest you move the coil feed wire to the input side of the Fuse Box (on the same terminal as the Blue/Black wire from the Ignition switch). That way you won`t have a possible dangerous situation of losing ignition if the Fuse No.9 blew. You do NOT want a fused feed to an ignition coil. I had a Race car with a fused coil supply and the fuse blew right on a fast corner causing a potentially disastrous accident!
But it`s your car your choice.
Good Luck.

Thanks John. I’m not sure it’s as bad as the standard setup!

The blowing of fuse 9 stopped my engine when I was underway, fortunately on a quiet country road near home. I think that bypassing the fuse, which also supplies power to some relatively non essential items, is a good thing to do and indeed that’s what I’ve done by taking a live feed off the input to fuse 9.  But not then putting in a fuse inline seems strange. It’s unlikely to ever blow unless the coil malfunctions and shorts out inside, in which case the engine will stop anyway, so an unfused positive wire seems an unnecessary risk. Maybe I’ve misunderstood your suggestion?

Isn't protection of the wiring supplying a component, the purpose of a fuse? This month this happened 100 yards from me.

  Richard   

Richard, as I said, it`s your car, you do what you feel comfortable with. As you say, if you only supply the coil then put an inline fuse in if it makes you feel happier. As Sean commented earlier, the main feed from the Starter motor that supplies the whole Fusebox and the ignition switch is unfused.
Richard I think that`s a boat fire and anything could`ve caused it, not necessarily an unfused wire.

Yes, a boat fire.  An electrical problem seems to be a possibility. I understand the boat was unattended and the battery isolator could have been left on. Our mooring master reports 25 moorings now out of commission until localised pontoon damage is repaired. Insurance claim in progress I think.

  Richard