Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Roadster electrical problem

My 2007 Roadster has been in my garage for 2 weeks unused.Just taken her out and after a 1/4 mile there was a little smoke inside the cockpit and a slight burning smell.
Am at present awaiting tha AA to get me home.Can anyone suggest the most likely problem. There is no power and the engine will not start.

Main fuse at the battery would be my first look.

Torsten

Please be very cautious. A friend lost all the electrics in his skuttle and may have to total the car. Please carry a Halon extinguisher and maybe even instal an electrical disconnect

There shouldn't ever be a smell of burning insulation: fuses are supposed to stop that happening.

A 2007 Roadster: does that have a fuse box under the dash, or are all the fuses in the electronics box under the bonnet? I know my 2009 had everything in the electronics box.

I also know that there were 2 fuses protecting power to the instruments and dash and both had to be OK for the car to start.

If the fuses are under the dash they all need checking, or preferably replacing. If the burning is one of the fuses then you have an idea of the cause.

If there are no fuses under the dash I'd take the dash off and check everything for signs of burning, before checking and replacing fuses in the electronics box.

Actually I think I'd probably get the car collected by a dealer...as has been said, the last thing you want is to have to re-wire under there.

Good luck....

Disconnect the battery before you do any poking around in either the dash area or under the bonnet. If there was a smell of burning, then there is a potential fire problem. You will have to use the power of observation to see if anything is charred or scorched.

If you are unsure of what to do, get a qualified motor mechanic to look at it, otherwise you might end up with no car, or garage.

Neil

Thank you for your help.
I had recently renewed my battery and the new battery did not fit the tray correctly.(I was sold the wrong battery).
The battery had moved slightly and the live terminal had touched the battery clamp which caused a direct short.
I then telephoned Yuasa technical dept to find out the EXACT correct battery for my car. They said a YB5063.I have just received the "correct" battery which now falls through the tray.
Tomorrow I will cut a piece of ply to sit in the battery support frame.Back on the road this weekend-yippee!

That sounds like more than your fair share of bad luck.

Good result, well done

Yep.....exactly what I had to do on my Roadster when I replaced my battery with a Yuasa! I had just cut the ply and soaked it in Cuprinol ready to fit when I bust my ankle that afternoon. The battery still sits on the garage floor!

Last summer Plymouth Battery fitted a Duracell Battery for me that had the same footprint as the original from build. The original battery had not done badly having lasted from early 2006 to summer 2014!

Pete