Post by thatolebluejusty on Mar 9, 2019 15:55:21 GMT -5
Hi, from Stroud, Gloucestershire, in the UK.
I'm on my 5th Justy. The first was an early carburettor version van MK1 van. Very useful little vehicle, but in the end it let me down too many times - and 15 years ago I was too ignorant to be able to fix it.
So - I bought a Mk2 from a local doctor - 1300cc - base on the Suzuki Swift - and I found parts much easier to source from breakers' yards here in the UK. So that saw me through several winters and a lot of farm work. In the end though a stone went through the radiator and - before I realised it - the water pump was cooked and the engine failing.
Since then I've had 3 more MK 1 cars - all manual transmission - and they've been great - very reliable - and they've taken me all over Europe - right down into Italy. I even sold the second one back to its original owner after we'd rebuilt it - as by then I had bought the blue one - which was much cheaper and I was running out of space to store two Justys.
My latest little blue MK 1 was a bargain buy locally from an older lady and for a couple of years has been great and easy to fix. However - the latest problem was one I'd not come across before - the distributor fell apart - or rather - one of the 'Hall Sensor' type switches shed its copper windings and I came to a halt. Now I'd never had to deal with manufacturer's original electronic ignition systems before. I was brought up in the age of contact breakers - and - yes - I had fitted capacitor discharge systems to my several Citroen 2CVs - but they were after-market bolt-on goodies with full instructions - so easy. I had never seen the inside of a distributor like the one on my 1994 Justy.
After a week of fruitless searching for secondhand distributors in the UK I have finally bought a very expensive re-manufactured one from the USA. BUT - I have discovered a 'bodge' repair that has got my original one working again. There are TWO Hall sensors in the distributor - the lower one triggers the sparks - and I haven't a clue what the upper one is for. So I took the upper one out and swapped it into the lower position to replace the 'sparks' one. Hey presto - it worked - and I'm mobile again - but the 'check engine' warning light is permanently on - so I'm driving it gently + living in hope!
Anyone out there got some relevant experiences to offer?
Cheers
P.
I'm on my 5th Justy. The first was an early carburettor version van MK1 van. Very useful little vehicle, but in the end it let me down too many times - and 15 years ago I was too ignorant to be able to fix it.
So - I bought a Mk2 from a local doctor - 1300cc - base on the Suzuki Swift - and I found parts much easier to source from breakers' yards here in the UK. So that saw me through several winters and a lot of farm work. In the end though a stone went through the radiator and - before I realised it - the water pump was cooked and the engine failing.
Since then I've had 3 more MK 1 cars - all manual transmission - and they've been great - very reliable - and they've taken me all over Europe - right down into Italy. I even sold the second one back to its original owner after we'd rebuilt it - as by then I had bought the blue one - which was much cheaper and I was running out of space to store two Justys.
My latest little blue MK 1 was a bargain buy locally from an older lady and for a couple of years has been great and easy to fix. However - the latest problem was one I'd not come across before - the distributor fell apart - or rather - one of the 'Hall Sensor' type switches shed its copper windings and I came to a halt. Now I'd never had to deal with manufacturer's original electronic ignition systems before. I was brought up in the age of contact breakers - and - yes - I had fitted capacitor discharge systems to my several Citroen 2CVs - but they were after-market bolt-on goodies with full instructions - so easy. I had never seen the inside of a distributor like the one on my 1994 Justy.
After a week of fruitless searching for secondhand distributors in the UK I have finally bought a very expensive re-manufactured one from the USA. BUT - I have discovered a 'bodge' repair that has got my original one working again. There are TWO Hall sensors in the distributor - the lower one triggers the sparks - and I haven't a clue what the upper one is for. So I took the upper one out and swapped it into the lower position to replace the 'sparks' one. Hey presto - it worked - and I'm mobile again - but the 'check engine' warning light is permanently on - so I'm driving it gently + living in hope!
Anyone out there got some relevant experiences to offer?
Cheers
P.