Project 1994 Rover 414SLi - Fin.

[Craig the Princess]

 

@CtP: I'll give that a go too, though I suspect nothing will happen.

Thinking about it, that might be just how you stop the alarm sounding. Worth a try as free, but don't think it will work.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I can recommend this Technozen dude, you send him your fob and alarm box, he can overhaul your fob and make sure the fob and box are synced together.

 

You can get the EKA code but if your Rover has ever had a new ECU or Alarm box the code it had when it was new may not still be valid.

 

http://www.technozen-electronics.co.uk/

 

I think he charged me about 35 to overhaul and sync my fob, plus provide a duplicate fob.

[mercedade]

If the fob is dead but possibly repairable, could be worth considering http://www.imber.me.uk/keyfob.htm or one of the many similar services around.

 

I've currently posted off one of my dead 800 fobs to him to see how he gets on, but he'll be able to give it a going over. £12.

[oldcars]

Sill looks good, i would be more than happy with that. Hope you get the key working and don't get fobbed off by it

[michael1703]

http://www.mgrovercodes.com/eka-codes

[rrsix]

That £17 site looks the ticket.  I guess mine is some sort of custom version having no doors or locks.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

If it's anything like a typical 90's immobiliser, find the control box and take the bastard out. The actual key won't be chipped and iirc these were dealer fit and therefore can be removed.

[Lacquer Peel]

Great stuff vulgalour, nice tidy repairs, I hope you can get the immobiliser/key issue sorted easily.

[gdhaydock]

A bit pricey, but i've used these guys before for Land Rover stuff (same basic immobilser / fobs etc as the R8) and they were very good and helpful.

 

www.remotekey.co.uk 

[vulgalour]

Happy, happy days! The Rover is working again. Many, MANY suggestions were made by lots of people as to what was causing the immobiliser to stay on and the fob not to work but it turned out that gregg106 over on RetroRides had the winning solution when he said "Assuming the fob battery is ok check the soldered joints for the little frame that holds it in, resoldered a few of these to get them working again."

Time to check that out then. I had looked at the circuit board but nothing appeared amiss, I was too distracted by the weird treacle which has once again started to appear from somewhere.


Looking at it, all was well.


Then we paid closer attention to the solder that holds the battery cage to the board.


Really obvious crack on this side. Didn't seem to be enough to stop it working but nothing ventured nothing gained.


Mike resoldered it (because I'm rubbish at soldering) and it only went and bloomin fixed it! It now works better than it ever has in my ownership and I'm absolutely delighted. A free fix of minimal effort and hassle to resolve an infuriating issue and no need for work arounds or finding EKA codes (which I definitely don't have) or any of that. Cheers gregg106, have a virtual bevvy on me!

With that done we booked it in for a retest, luckily that could be done today. Chucked a bottle of injector cleaner in the tank and prepared to go for a blezz. Before we did I gave the weather strips a scrub, a job I've been putting off and for some reasons I needed to do right now. Windows operate better after having done that and it's hardly surprising.


For the blezz we took to the A19 and ended up slotting behind a very low, very rorty little Honda Civic. A little further along an a prestige car (couldn't tell you what, maybe a Merc?) alongside gave us a big old thumbs up, he seemed to really like the Rover. That's a first for me and made me feel pretty happy. Of course, he might have thought I was in convoy with the Civic, I'm not sure, but either way I'm enjoying that moment in the proverbial sun.

Back for the MoT and a check of my welding which they were happy with, emissions were okay and the blown bulb found good too. Job jobbed I got me one of these!


Clean sheet, no advisories, happy days! Getting home was even better because the Applause was there to keep the Rover company. I'm very attached to both these cars, even though the Applause isn't mine. They're very different to drive with the Rover being a bit slower but better at corners and the Applause making some very satisfying noises when you give it the beans. I almost don't want to give the Applause back to my brother, it's super.





Car mojo is sailing pretty high right now, I definitely needed today.

[320touring]

YAAAAS! Congratulations:)

[Felly Magic]

Glad that was a simple fix for you, and MR MOT MAN say YES!!!!!!!!!!!!

[purplebargeken]

Always cause for celebration, an easy fix and an MOT pass

[stuboy]

it aint over for the rover...

[vulgalour]

It's the same colour as a happy dogs lipstick.

If it doesn't behave itself, tap it gently with a cold spoon.

I should have tried that first really. Not sure why I didn't.

[Noel Tidybeard]

HA HA angyl has got the clap!

 

 

 

 

it had to be said- sorry

[vulgalour]

What's worrying is that I got it off my brother.

[Pillock]

"Weird treacle" on the PCB for your fob is probably just leftover flux from when it was made. Doesn't normally do any harm, you'll find it on a lot of less-than-precision circuit boards (i.e. they tend to clean it off computers and stuff). Tastes awful, sticky on your fingers, can be cleaned off with a bit of alcohol if it's really bothering you.

[Noel Tidybeard]

What's worrying is that I got it off my brother.

 

fnar fnar

[MikeKnight]

What's worrying is that I got it off my brother.

 

And he likely got it off his kids.

 

[Noel Tidybeard]

 

...more tea vicar?!

[vulgalour]

New keyfob case finally arrived from that there China today.  Not a thing anyone else will really notice.  It is nicer to handle than the old shiny one with the sticky disintegrating buttons and better yet the buttons are much easier to operate than they were.

 

 

Got a trek down to Maidstone on the weekend all being well which will be about a 600 mile round trip.  Not particularly looking forward to that much motorway because I don't enjoy motorway driving but the Rover did the trek with aplomb before the MoT so I have every faith in its abilities.  I also have up to date AA cover, just in case.

[Lord Sterling]

Great stuff Angyl. Glad to see Rover in rude health again.

[They_all_do_that_sir]

 

New keyfob case finally arrived from that there China today.  Not a thing anyone else will really notice.  It is nicer to handle than the old shiny one with the sticky disintegrating buttons and better yet the buttons are much easier to operate than they were.

 

 

Got a trek down to Maidstone on the weekend all being well which will be about a 600 mile round trip.  Not particularly looking forward to that much motorway because I don't enjoy motorway driving but the Rover did the trek with aplomb before the MoT so I have every faith in its abilities.  I also have up to date AA cover, just in case.

 

 

​its something I do notice! About to order a Chinese replacement for the modern, how does the quality compare to the original?

[vulgalour]

The quality is surprisingly good, it's a faithful reproduction.  Doesn't snap together quite as easily as the old one but that's probably because it's less worn.  Certainly feels nicer and the buttons work better than my old one did.  Recommended.  I paid about £2.60 delivered.

[vulgalour]

Little update in that I finally got that driver's side gutter trim fixed down properly with the spare trim clips I got from Krujoe last year.  It's a job I've been putting off because it's horrible and fiddly to do involving shunting the trim back and forth until it locates on the tiny little plastic lugs without tearing them off.  Should resolve the annoying scooshy wind noise it's been making for what seems like forever.  I'm getting stuff together to redo the roof too.  Got something interesting planned so I can resolve the poor finish from water getting on it last year and me never resolving that or applying the final coat of paint.

 

Speaking of paint, the top of the boot spoiler has done something that I'm not sure I'm happy about.  Some, but not all, of the satin black has rubbed off in the most perfect way so that the spoiler finish looks age appropriate to all the little knocks and blebs on the bodywork.  I can't decide if I want to repaint it or not and I'm not entirely sure why it's done this, it was prepared exactly the same way and with the same materials as the rear bumper and that's still perfectly fine.

 

Today was also the first time this year that I've waxed the car which it was well overdue for.  I really want the weather to improve so I can get all the little bits and pieces on the bodywork sorted, the red hides a lot right up until I'm washing the car.  I'll do a panel at a time, starting with the filler I know about on the passenger side sill end/arch juncture and then working around the doors.  I can't afford a respray any time soon so I'll just work with what I've got.

 

[vulgalour]

Trip to Maidstone cancelled this weekend.  I got as far as Wetherby services (about 45 miles) and managed to convince myself the car was making a weird dudududu noise.  Coupled with my anxiety being in overdrive for no reason I could fathom I decided to chat to Mike (who was back at home) and boyfriend I was going to be visiting this weekend to figure out what to do.  Decided to hobble back home to investigate.

 

Here's where it gets a bit odd.  We jacked it up and found a lot of play in the driver's side front wheel.  Hub nut torques and any items that bolted to other bits of steering and suspension were checked because it didn't seem entirely right for a loose or damaged bearing.  You can wobble the wheel top and bottom but not front and back but it moves the whole hub with the wheel.  It also appears to move the driveshaft on the drivers side.

 

The problem only became apparent when I got to an indicated 60mph and got worse the faster I went, so I kept the speed down to an indicated 55mph where the car was happy to trundle.  We had noticed an unidentifiable minor vagueness in the centre of the steering for a little while but never been able to pin it down.  It seems the motorway run today has caused whatever the problem is to get worse.  The car is still perfectly fine at round town speeds but I shan't risk it on the motorway until I know what's amiss.

 

Oh, and I'm aware of the date.  This isn't a wind-up, it actually happened.

 

Current theory is that the driveshaft has worked itself loose recently, possibly a worn fixing somewhere.  When my headspace has sorted itself out we'll get it into the unit and pull things apart to see if we can resolve this.  Bit of an odd one this as I'm not really sure how it's happened, the car has done a couple of thousand miles since the driveshafts were out of the gearbox and no issue was highlighted at the MoT a couple of days ago.

[beko1987]

You know what, mine has this symptom. Loud drone at 55, up to about 65ish when it seems to fade out.

 

I'm hoping it's iffy brakes or some other simple fix, I know nothing about driveshafts, apart from they can go and I hope it's not that. It doesn't seem to swap sides with corners etc, just a constant drone at the same pitch/tone as speed

[vulgalour]

theory is that the driveshaft isn't properly located.  There's LOADS of play in the wheel, it's quite alarming when you get the wheel off the ground.   It doesn't make any of the typical driveshaft, CV joint or wheel bearing noises you might expect, just a dudududu at 60mph getting worse with a steering wheel wobble akin to an unbalanced wheel if you press on faster, which is why I didn't.  It's not a problem I've ever had before, I'm hoping it's a simple fix.

[beko1987]

Ah, mine doesn't have a steering wobble, just heavy steering in general. Plus my shafts have never been out in my ownership.

 

Hope it's a simple fix too!