Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Morgan Plus Four, Supersport & Plus Six (CX & CXV Generation Vehicles) Morgan PlusFour completely dead

Car was in the garage for two weeks. Wanted to get the car out of the garage yesterday and could not open it with the remote control. Then opened the driver's door with the key and wanted to start the ignition. The PlusFour is absolutely dead. No display that lights up nothing. Have first thought of the battery and this overnight hung on the CETEC charger. This morning the same picture as yesterday. The car is absolutely dead.
I think I have read here before that you should disconnect the battery completely for a while in such a case. Can't find the thread though. Has anyone had the same case? What can be done ?

If the battery was totally dead a Ctek would not recharge it.

I am not sure if yesterday the battery was dead. That was just my first thought and that's why I charged it. The Ctec is showing green.

Of course it would take some time to completely charge a flat battery but a Ctek would certainly do it.

Not familiar with the plus 6 yet have we got a kill switch fitted. If the ctec is green its fully charged from dead it could take a couple of days to charge up. Em

If the CTEK is showing green, leading me to believe that the battery is fine, it could be the immobiliser. I left my Audi sit for a while once and I had to hold the key next to spot in the car that then forced a handshake between the key and the car. Does the manual show any info in regards to what should be done if the key isn't recognised?

I googled BMW Z4 Owners Manual and found the below which is supposed to rectify if a connect to the key is lost and would assume the Plus Four manual should have something similar.

Switching the drive-ready state on via emergency detection of the vehicle key:

It is not possible to switch on the drive-ready state if the vehicle key has not been detected.
Proceed as follows in this case:

1.Hold the rear of the vehicle key against the marked area on the steering column. Pay attention to the display in the instrument cluster.

2.If the vehicle key is detected:Turn on drive-ready state within 10 seconds. If the vehicle key is not recognized, slightly change the position of the vehicle key and repeat the procedure.

Good luck

P

Morning Clemens, on the Plus Six there are what looks like 4 primary fuses located in a black plastic box thats positioned on top of the battery, the Positive ( red) feed cable from the battery goes into this primary fuse area, power is then distributed out through primary cables, these power cables then feed other areas of the car, which I believe also includes the main fuse box. If the Plus Four is the same design and I think it is, then it might be worth checking these with a test meter if you are sure the battery is ok. If you find that one of the fuses has failed, that may not be the only issue, as it would take quite a power draw to blow these fuses. Also check the earth lead from the battery to the alloy panel is tight. The Plus Six and Four have had a few earth issues.
Sadly Morgan have not (yet) shared wiring schematics for the Plus Four or Plus Six to owners, so its either a case of trying to trace the power ( or lack of ) with a meter yourself or having the main dealer look at it.

I believe there is a black kill switch ( collision switch ) on the lower right hand side by the bulkhead under the bonnet on RHD cars. This may only supply power to the fuel pump though.

Just my two cents, Clemens. Without a key, I can at least switch on the parking lights on my 4/4 and see whether they are on or not.
Is there any power consumer (e.g. parking lights) on the Plus Four to see if the battery is still supplying power without the need of ignition or if it is dead as a doornail? If the battery has a short circuit, not even a consumer like the parking light would come on.

Re the Ctech. I charged a flat battery with mine. Not 100% dead as dash illuminated but not enough in it to turn the engine. An overnight charge brought it back ok. This was on an Odyssey battery about 6 years ( or more) old. Battery lasted another 4 years after that. Changed last year for another Odyssey.
I suspect that there could be a reset procedure on the Plus Four built into the BMW software. Anything from a cut-off reset to more complex. Might be a sequence of ignition switch on-ff as that is a fairly common method.
Out of curiosity, has anyone checked on a BMW owners website to see if a solution is posted there.
I’ve got a Plus Four coming in a few days so starting to read up on quirks, things to watch etc. Already downloaded an owners manual to read pre arrival. It will make the handover easier and pick out specific questions to ask.