Talbot express talisman 2 dead

Talbotowner

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I have a Talbot express talisman 2, 1989 2.0 petrol.

It recently stopped starting, and slowly the issue has developed into a dead van. I originally changed the battery and no joy. It would try to start but drain the battery doing so.

Long story short I have now changed almost everything I can think of. Starter motor, coil, ht leads, distributor cap, fuel pump, spark plugs.

The dash lights were coming on, but when I turned the ignition everything went off. Now they don’t come on at all.
It simply will not do anything. I charge the battery, then turn key and no lights on dash or anything.

What could this be? I’ve checked all the cables and fuses I can find and seem ok. Disconnected the VSR to the leisure battery. Please see images attached - there’s a brown connector that comes from the back of the engine and goes nowhere. And a relay on the right side under the spare wheel that has some cable cut. There is an alarm fitted although this was disconnected prior to the van having this issue. The cables were all unplugged.

Anyone had this before and or have any suggestions of where I should start looking now? Maybe there’s a connection near the battery that’s incorrect or the relay and brown plug need connecting?

E2A34D76-F638-43FF-8D87-D939EEA12CA5.jpeg4EB90627-50FB-476B-A8F0-A0B136069624.jpegF7F5B6C8-B663-467D-BB7E-D48B5FBFEE13.jpegB518DBF4-2F39-4F6F-9AFD-581B7A8395D3.jpeg106ED649-33DE-4857-AF03-C1F6BFF761BC.jpeg074144E6-0382-4B3F-B685-AAF64124D1D0.jpeg5AFE713F-DDDE-4AF3-993C-527B979AF082.jpeg
 
I think Jeff's absolutely right.

There will probably be something like a flat braided wire strip connecting the bottom of your engine to the chassis. It's either a broken strap, or a broken/duff connection either end.
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Think the terminal on the starter motor often goes green on Talbots . Remove lead and good clean up.
 
Thanks all. I have added to the Talbot forum also as you never know.

I will check all the connections.

If it’s the earth strap - can I swap this for a thick cable or does it need to be the same flat braided type you mention?

There is power getting to the starter motor, but not the coil. No dash lights at all now.

How could I test if it is the ignition that is faulty?
 
Welding cable is ideal but not a length of cheap jump lead, they are rubbish.

While on the subject of a jump cable, attach one end to your engine block and the other to the negative terminal on the battery. If the engine turns over, it's an earth fault.
 
Earth strap don't look the best certainly wouldn't hurt to change it there cheap enough on ebay don't need to bother making one
B518DBF4-2F39-4F6F-9AFD-581B7A8395D3.jpeg
 
Should I disconnect the ground that’s on the negative terminal when I do that? Or just leave all as is and attach the jump lead across to the engine from the negative?
 
Should I disconnect the ground that’s on the negative terminal when I do that? Or just leave all as is and attach the jump lead across to the engine from the negative?
The more the merrier. Add an extra earth lead, but leave that one connected.
I think it looks OK in the photo, though. Your problem is probably elsewhere.
I'd start by removing and cleaning up the battery terminals, making sure they go back on good and tight. Sometimes they split, or the bolts corrode and won't tighten. If so, fix that. To be honest, in your photo both of them look shot, particularly the one with the green wire. I think I'd replace them.
Whilst they're off, remove, clean up and replace the main power connection on the starter. And check that the cable looks OK.
Also, in that photo, the little tell-tale indicator is showing red. I think that indicates that the battery is flat. If so, take the battery off, and charge it for AT LEAST 48 hours.
 
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Well I'm quite relieved, after reading the suject of this thread I thought I was going to be reading about a double fatality......anyway, back on topic, what was the result of trying the jump lead as temporary earth cable? We're all on tenterhooks!
 
So, it's back up and running.

I think it was an issue with the grounds. When I tried the jump lead nothing happened. So went through changing all grounds in the bay and cleaning up the contacts. It didnt work.

But then I connected all the cables in the blocks together and it all came on and in the end fired up and now shes good!

I think the earth was the problem originally. Then changing out the block added to this.

Wish I came here sooner. Thanks to everyone for your help.
 
Saved a fortune and a good result. I reckon you better sign up as a full member. It will be like having free membership for many years given the money you saved. Bonus is you also get membership of wildcamping.co.uk

Davy
 
Delighted to hear you are up and running again. 👍

One of the many truths from my father was "When something goes wrong, what was the last thing you worked on, 'cos just maybe, that's the cause."

Even today, decades after he left this planet, I can clearly hear him say in his North Wales accent "Petrol, electrical, mechanical" and guess what.... It's as sensible today as it was then.
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