Elise won't start - help!

[Simon813]

Hi,

I have a 2001 Elise S2 sport tourer. Over the winter the battery has been allowed to run flat a few times resulting in it giving up. I replaced the battery last night and the car fired up straight away with no issues. The engine was not idling correctly and the mixture smelt too rich so I turned it off again. I know from reading the manual that after a total power outage the ECU needs a run out to "re-learn" the right settings so I planned to take it out after the kids were in bed. When I went back out to it later on it would not start. The symptoms seem to be variable, but at present I have the following;

When I approach the car and push the button on the key in activates/deactivates the alarm so I know the key and alarm are talking to each other. When I put the key in the ignition and turn the ignition on I get all of the lights on the dash. At that point I would normally push the button on the key again which would put the alarm light on the dash on solid red for about 20 seconds and then I could turn the key and start the car. However, now when I push the key fob button the light flashes a few times then goes off again. I can hear what sounds like a single click from the engine bay and the fuel pump priming(?) but no turn over at all.

Interestingly when the ignition is on the MIL light stays on (along with several other lights). I can't recall if it used to do that before the problems or not. I have plugged it into a diagnostics tool but there are no fault codes showing.

I have disconnected the battery again and reconnected it but no joy. I am wondering if the immobiliser is stopping it from starting for some reason. Or perhaps the ECU didn't like the first start up I did last night and is stopping it starting again?

I'm hoping someone out there might have experienced similar problems and can advise?

For clarity the car has the alarm with interior sensors (I think this was a factory upgrade) and the key fob only has one button on it.

Thanks in advance

Simon

[Moggy]

Im sure that on the S1 the fuel pump wouldn't prime if the immobiliser was set.
That one click sounds like it could be the starter solenoid, can you test the starter turns (power it separately) or swap it with another one?

[Goldwing1]

Does your fob need re-syncing to the car,mine had similar start issue last week,followed sync steps and whoopee,car started straight away.

[Moggy]

As you have recently changed the battery it is worth checking the clamps are firmly fastened to the poles.

[Simon813]

Thanks for the replies so far. The clamps are definately connected to the battery properly. I will see if I can check if the starter motor is working.

I've read about syncing the keys but did not think that would be the problem because the key fob button is arming and disarming the alarm suggesting they are synced already. Out of interest how did you sync them?

Simon

[El-ahrairah]

Thanks for the replies so far. The clamps are definately connected to the battery properly. I will see if I can check if the starter motor is working.

I've read about syncing the keys but did not think that would be the problem because the key fob button is arming and disarming the alarm suggesting they are synced already. Out of interest how did you sync them?

Simon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obFco5z3OA8

[Simon813]

Still no joy. I watched the video above but that is for later s2's with a different alarm. My fob only has one button. In any case I found out how to re-sync it and it still won't work. The alarm works fine but I suspect the immobiliser is on.

I think I am going to have to get an immobiliser bypass kit from EliseParts and give that a try! Unless anyone has any other ideas??????

Simon

[Moggy]

I think I am going to have to get an immobiliser bypass kit from EliseParts and give that a try! Unless anyone has any other ideas??????
Simon

Is the fuel pump still priming?

[Simon813]

Finally got it going yesterday!

Jumped the starter motor and it turned over so I knew it was an electrical problem. Eventually tracked it down to a blown 20A fuse labelled "start immobiliser" in the engine bay fuse box.

£2.49 and all fixed! Phew!

Thanks for all the replies.

Simon

[Moggy]

Glad that you have finally sorted it.