Very strange car fault - Citroen C2 - fuse box? BSI? BSM? Please help

[DPG]

One of the techniques for finding problems is to disturb the cables. This checks for poor connections . Given you documented this above , it becomes likely that there is a bad connection either in the positive or negative wiring . It is also possible that this is temperature related.

in older times, I had a car that would start and fail when driven a few feet. Wait 5 minutes and it started again. Fault was a loose connection which broke with the vibration and settled back when stationary.

let’s hope it’s a bad connection and it fixes very easily. Tampering with the wires is a recognised technical method

'Wiggle test'

 

[stanwelbach]

Car is at mechanics now, can't check it myself at the moment. I hope he'll find out what's wrong in there.
The fuse box he replaced before was the engine bay one, which did not help in the end.

Did you manage to get it sorted?

 

[agi1190]

The car still at mechanics, the guy can't find the problem, says the car is starting every day, but obviously not fixed the problem, so I don't think anything will be done about it.

 

[Ziggie]

The car still at mechanics, the guy can't find the problem, says the car is starting every day, but obviously not fixed the problem, so I don't think anything will be done about it.

Probably need to drive it as this will cause vibrations. The problem also could be temperature related. This would show if the car heated up ( may de dependent on your weather forecast

 

[agi1190]

Probably need to drive it as this will cause vibrations. The problem also could be temperature related. This would show if the car heated up ( may de dependent on your weather forecast

I'm not sure as some days car would start no problem after standing all night on the drive, and then the next morning it would bring up the fault again and not start... I'm lost and really fed up, I feel like just selling it to we buy any car and get £500 or whatever. No one seems to have an idea what to do with this without stripping the whole car, which might not even show the fault.

 

[DPG]

Sadly this sort of fault can be incredibly difficult to find, even by decent diagnostic places.

Someone I knew a few years ago had a Vauxhall Astra which started having electrical problems from when it was nearly new. After many trips to the dealers, and much work having been done (including replacing a lot of the wiring), they scrapped it and supplied an alternative car.

I do hope you can get it sorted though. It's one of those where at some point you may have to cut you losses though.

 

[agi1190]

So - I have my car back, nothing fixed. The mechanic said that car was starting every day when it was round his garage, and he said there isn't much he can do without going to Citroen for proper scanning and fault finding, which they charge a fortune for, not worth for such an old (and cheap) car. Probably going to sell it for parts, which will see me end up with £400 for it (tops), while in April I've paid for the vehicle £1700. Either I've been terribly unlucky with the car or the fault was masked by the seller back in April, I'm glad to see it go as I honestly hate it now.

 

[agi1190]

At least the mechanic didn't charge me anything as he couldn't fix it over the last week.

 

[DPG]

Yes it seems like it's time to cut your losses I think.

 

[ruston]

The auto electrician is correct about the codes. There are some codes that only the manufactures and approved dealers have access to. It is expensive to have them scanned.
Just maybe to take the sting out of it a bit, I doubt that the seller would of been able to mask that fault if a trained auto electrician could not find it.

 

[Ziggie]

Perhaps the man has fixed it and you will be ok

 

[Griff0n]

Did you find out the cause of the electrical problem? I have a C2 with similar symptoms (electrics are dead most of the time but will sometimes come to life and work perfectly). Seems like a bad contact but earths are all OK. I'm starting to suspect its a faulty BSI relay.