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Don't Leave Home Without It

Discussion in '348/355' started by billyfitness, Nov 1, 2007.

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  1. billyfitness

    billyfitness Formula Junior

    Feb 14, 2006
    581
    Overland Park, KS
    Full Name:
    Bill Leavitt
    #1 billyfitness, Nov 1, 2007
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    I took a 400 mile road trip this past weekend, stopped to get a milkshake in the middle of nowhere Missouri, came out and the car wouldn't start. Checked fuses, turned battery off, BUT THEN checked the starter.
    The wire that leads in came out upon touch.
    It seems the wire goes into a simple electrical connector that mounts to the plastic housing which snaps into the starter. My connector was completely broken in half.
    A simple trip to the autoparts store for connectors, wire cutters, and strippers got me through the weekend.
    My car has 40K miles on it so this might be a possible heat realted wear/break item?
    Maybe we should start a post with people's past experiences regarding what to pack in a makeshift emergency toolkit??
    -Billy
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  2. PAP 348

    PAP 348 Ten Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Dec 10, 2005
    100,224
    Mount Isa, Australia
    Full Name:
    Pap
    #2 PAP 348, Nov 1, 2007
    Lucky it was an easy fix Bill. :):)

    Heat gets into ALL wiring in the engine bay over the years and pretty much 'cooks' it so to speak. :):)
     
  3. Gershwin

    Gershwin F1 Veteran

    Feb 21, 2005
    6,415
    Kentucky
    #3 Gershwin, Nov 1, 2007
    Good thread.

    I never leave home w/out my towing companies number and my cell phone. I ain't about to go walking down a highway w/ the F-car behind and it would be a long time before a search party was sent.
     
  4. vegas1

    vegas1 F1 Rookie

    Jul 28, 2004
    4,202
    Australia
    #4 vegas1, Nov 1, 2007
    .... and living in Mt Isa exacerbates the problem
     
  5. No Doubt

    No Doubt Seven Time F1 World Champ

    May 21, 2005
    72,740
    Vegas+Alabama
    Full Name:
    Mr. Sideways
    #5 No Doubt, Nov 1, 2007
    Nice diagnosis and fix!
     
  6. UConn Husky

    UConn Husky F1 Rookie

    Nov 11, 2006
    4,425
    CT
    Full Name:
    Jay
    #6 UConn Husky, Nov 1, 2007
    I wonder if that resulted from a careless clutch install - IIRC when you take the clutch housing off the starter is hanging by that wire unless you rest it nicely somewhere.
     
  7. Janzen

    Janzen Formula Junior

    Oct 25, 2005
    420
    Oklahoma/Texas
    Full Name:
    Janzen
    #7 Janzen, Nov 1, 2007
    UConn is right, good call- in any event a great "side of the road" fix. Very nicely done. Did you have any recent service work performed? Seems odd it would just break like that, especially considering the age of the car.
     
  8. Dean355

    Dean355 Formula 3

    Sep 4, 2006
    1,101
    South Florida
    Full Name:
    Dean
    #8 Dean355, Nov 2, 2007
    Great post Bill. How did you get to the autoparts store from there? Was there one nearby? Or did you have tools to fix it on the spot.

    Great idea to have an emergency toolkit in the F car especially for longer drives. We need the experts like ND, Ernie, Miltonian etc... to make a suggestion as to what to have in that kit.
     
  9. No Doubt

    No Doubt Seven Time F1 World Champ

    May 21, 2005
    72,740
    Vegas+Alabama
    Full Name:
    Mr. Sideways
    #9 No Doubt, Nov 2, 2007
    Here's the old emergency toolkit recommendation: http://www.club348.com/technical/Tech/348.html#RoadsideKit



    But the 9006 bulb suggestion in it seems dated and redundant (9012 HIR, Baby!) if you already have your 348 factory toolkit in the car. Can't find Rescue Fuel or a clone knockoff anymore, either.
     
  10. billyfitness

    billyfitness Formula Junior

    Feb 14, 2006
    581
    Overland Park, KS
    Full Name:
    Bill Leavitt
    #10 billyfitness, Nov 2, 2007
    The Clutch has not been replaced since I have owned the car; a year and a half and 10K miles.
    The wire was still secured in the neck of the connector but the connector itself was severed inside of the housing. So if it was a mistaken hit of sorts during a service I think it would have been the wire broken or cut at the neck instead.
    I got it started by just shoving the wire in as far as I could and ran into the cockpit to start the car and got to the autoparts store in 50 miles. The fix itself took literally four minutes. Now today to get it fixed for real. There is a special tool required to remove the broken portion from the plastic housing.
    Anyway, how terrifying to be stuck in the middle of nowhere and your Ferrari won't start.
    I am defintely putting a little toolkit together this weekend since I got screwed and bought my 355 without the factory one included.
    Doesn't that piss you off when you see toolkits for sale on Ebay?? They should be left in the cars.
    -Billy
     

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