technical assistance

[dublincooper]

Hi,

I have been having major problems with the cooper being sluggish to start appearing to have low battery power. after several charges i installed a new battery and although sluggish it improved. Now i find that the new battery is flat every morning but the alternator is also relatively new. I believe since the alarm was installed there is a permanent drain on the battery which may be causing this fault, however the alarm was wired into the factory alarm wiring loom.
A couple of questions if anyone can help

i took out the plugs to find a V grooved into the top. replaced the plugs and no problem starting the car for a couple of days

1. Does the distributor and rota arm have and effect on the power circulation or is it just the alternator i should be looking at ?

2. an amp tester shows battery power at around 13.80 dropping to 13.40 when lights are switched on but this does go back up when lights are off
does this indicate that the alternator is charging ok

3. I put a small bottle of injection cleaner in the petrol tank and twoce since doing so the car has back fired pulling away from traffic lights and feels like it hits a flat spot with no power... a split second later everything is fine again..

if anyone can advise what to look for please help a desperate cooper driver

[The Marcos Graveyard]

Which fuse box is fitted to your car, is it the 4 glass fuse type or the multifused blade type ?

[dublincooper]

Unfortunately when i went to start the car at work it would not fire up so i have had to leave it there. This time when turning the car over there was no ignition lights coming on at all. Not like a flat car, just sinply no dash lights what so ever...

the car is a 1993 SPI so i am assuming its the blade type but i will have to check once i get to work tomorrow

thanks

[The Marcos Graveyard]

Sounds like big gremlins in the 'lectrics.

Woody is the man to sort you out.

[dublincooper]

Its the four glass fuses. i have checked each one and they look ok.

[The Marcos Graveyard]

If there is an overnight draw on the current, removing one fuse at a time and leaving the car overnight will identify which circuit the draw is on.

[dublincooper]

Hi all,

the car had lost all iginition lights but would still turn over. On further investigation i found the main wire from the ignigtion had come away from a terminal. on fitting it back together i still have no ignition lights. i traced the four fuses and found that one leads to another fused wire but the wire had come away from the other end of the fuse. i connected it back up and hey presto i got all my ignition lights back....

i have now jump started the car and she is running

hopefully the ignition fault and recharging issue may both be associated to these to circuit breaks... fingers crossed.. my thanks to all for your assistance