5 GT Turbo Gritty spark plugs

[davemaygtt]

5 has been very difficult to start recently and then it's been running on 2 or 3 cylinders for a while before finally coming to life. Just taken a spark plug out and it's rusty and gritty on the thread and at the edge of the tip. Not sure what on earth could cause this, the pic has sort of captured it, if any others are like it I will get a better pic before cleaning.
Any advise on next steps would be great, I'm guessing dump the oil and see what we find?

 

[Red21]

The grit on the thread is the grit from normal driving that sits around the plug well & should be cleaned off before removing the spark plugs.
The corrosion is just that and is caused by water just sitting there. It doesn't always affect the plug operation unless gets so bad, but by then the plugs would normally get changed as part of servicing.

 

[davemaygtt]

Yeh, I noticed a build up of dirt around the plug hole once I moved over to the more visible plugs, cleaned it all up and put it all back together but it's still running terribly. I think I will get new leads and plugs and see if it makes any difference. Hardly done any miles since it was changed but other than normal service I can only think it's the carb.

 

[Red21]

Don't forget to check the distributor cap,
Just as eliminator, when the engine is running spray some WD40 around the carb base & manifold - head joint. It will smoke a bit but make note if the engine changes sound as this may indicate leaking gaskets.

 

[mick]

if you're moving it around (stopping and starting)they will blacken up in no time.........the car has to be driven to burn off the carbon,the plugs have to get really hot.......you can clean them with a small blow lamp when out

 

[davemaygtt]

Thanks for keeping the advise coming guys, I should have said that I replaced the cap and rotor arm last week.
There has been a lot of just moving around with no real driving recently so I will try and get it warmed up so it won't die, check the gaskets with wd and also give it a proper drive.
There is a healthy looking spark from each lead even when checking in day light.
Thanks again guys

 

[DaveL485]

If its sits about a lot, then the fuel will have gone crap, that affects my 9 badly. Very hard to start with months-old fuel even with a fresh carb rebuild. Could also be blockages in the carb. Try dropping an egg-cup full of fresh fuel down the choke when you try and start it up.

 

[Brigsy]

The plugs soot up if only running up to temp especially if the rest of the ign bits arent up to scratch. I would renew all the bits (decent bougicord leads, decent ducellior cap and rotor) job done.

 

[James5]

The plugs soot up if only running up to temp especially if the rest of the ign bits arent up to scratch. I would renew all the bits (decent bougicord leads, decent ducellior cap and rotor) job done.

@davemaygtt you need to actually drive the car mate

 

[davemaygtt]

That's where I'm going wrong! As soon as the roads aren't salted I will take it for a blast as long as I can get it running on 4 cylinders!
How much has the price of leads gone up in the last year or 2 !

 

[Mark Davis]

Ignition Cable Kit BOUGICORD 2451 - Ignition/Preheating

Genuine Bougicord leads from Mister Auto - Link above = £20.

Rotor, distributor BOUGICORD 160626 - Ignition/Preheating
Proper ducellier rotor arm = £5.

 

[davemaygtt]

Wow, that's a great price on the leads, I will be ordering those! Thanks very much guys, turbo Renault saves the day and my wallet!

 

[davemaygtt]

Well leads are fitted up, had to change the way the king lead ran as the replacement wasn't long enough for the standard run. Rotor arm and cap already replaced. Struggled to start again but was at least trying to start a bit quicker so didn't run down the battery like it was.
Once it started and has stopped just dying after a few seconds it had to be revved hard to keep it running and get it running on all cylinders. Once it was running OK blipping the throttle would make it run lean off the scale of the Afr and try to die but this got better with time. Went and got a Jerry can of fuel, dropped it in and went for a drive.
Car was pulling well once the foot was down, big puff of black smoke on first over run and then seemed OK on all pulls after this.
Just need to see what happens after being allowed to sit for a few days now. I did get videos of it trying to start and the Afr gauge once running but can't upload mp4's. Hopefully don't need to now if it's OK from this point.
Now the speedo doesn't work lol. Always something to keep it interesting.
Thanks to everyone for the help.