Non starting BX16TRS auto with manual choke conversion

[Eccles60]

Hi there, I've driven my 16TRS auto just once, 100 miles back from Hertfordshire and it's been sitting in my lockup for just over a fortnight. It was a lovely day today so I thought I'd play BX and take it for a run. Sadly, it turned over slowly and wouldn't fire. It has an official manual choke conversion on it but the knob only moves (very stiffly) by no more than 5mm. I could tell the battery was struggling so I shut the door and left it. Tomorrow I shall probably remove the battery and bring it home to recharge it but what then? This choke operation seems wrong to me and (I need to check) but I doubt if it's shutting the choke flap. Any thoughts? What's involved in reverting back to auto choke, or to a single point fuel injection system? Thanks.

[tobytronic]

Converting to mono-point EFI is in my opinion not the best way to go. Parts too scarce?
A Megasquirt ready-made PCB system is feasible, but a lot of reading and time learning to make it a success. A Bosch LE2 system with the type that has the ECU piggy-backed onto the airflow meter is very feasible. 0280000605 is a part number that will show the basic part to build a system around. I visit my sister in Rolleston on Dove every few months. If you want to pick me up from there, i'd have a look at it for you for...
Nowt.
I'm having a biopsy on Thursday, so it may be a few weeks before I'm there again.
New member, perspective owner, see my intro post of it gets approved

[saintjamesy89]

Hi there, I've driven my 16TRS auto just once, 100 miles back from Hertfordshire and it's been sitting in my lockup for just over a fortnight. It was a lovely day today so I thought I'd play BX and take it for a run. Sadly, it turned over slowly and wouldn't fire. It has an official manual choke conversion on it but the knob only moves (very stiffly) by no more than 5mm. I could tell the battery was struggling so I shut the door and left it. Tomorrow I shall probably remove the battery and bring it home to recharge it but what then? This choke operation seems wrong to me and (I need to check) but I doubt if it's shutting the choke flap. Any thoughts? What's involved in reverting back to auto choke, or to a single point fuel injection system? Thanks.

Hopefully I can be of some use to you! I have an 85 16 TRS auto with a manual choke conversion, and a 1985 GT manual that I converted to a manual choke. The TRS has a weber carb and quite a stiff choke, I think it is an old conversion though as before I bought the car it had sat for over 10 years. In contrast my GT with a NOS manual choke is freer - I plan to try and lubricate teh TRS' choke cable and mechanism on the carb.

To make sure the choke is being operated, you could move the mechanism attached to the carb by hand - if you had a glamorous assistant inside the car, they could see if this allows the knob inside the car to move further or not. Don't forget that even with a manual choke, if the car has been sat the float bowl will be empty and a fair bit of turniong over will be needed to get fuel into the carb and engine, good old mechanical fuel pumps! My TRS benefits from a bit of pedal action (it is an off the road, unregistered French import so sits a long time bewteen starts), but the GT in contrast is used several times a week and starts up straight away on the manual choke only.

I would stay away from the autochoke, mine interfered with hot running and was rubbish in cold starts - so worse than useless!

[Eccles60]

Many thanks. Very sorry for the delay in getting back to you but your words are very useful. I've found that it just needs a very firm pull and my arthritis riddled fingers (from 21 years old - I'm now mature but not geriatric) struggle. I pull with my right hand and support the fascia sub-panel with my left and with a little churning (to fill the float chamber I assume), it starts. I've found one then needs to sit for a minute or two just so it doesn't cut out dropping it into Drive, but back off the choke a little so the idle isn't too fast. I think the idle speed needs a tweak since it's lumpy ticking over against the torque converter.

What it really needs is EFI - perhaps the single point manifold and throttle body from the BX16TRI or TZI (?), or the Peugeot 406 1.6i. The ECU could be DIY Speeduino or Megasquirt - as an ex-RR aero engine control software specialist I could certainly manage the electronic and code but it's the mechanical bits I'd need help with. I'd then have a reliable and automatic cold start system and anti-stall control. Just a thought. Anyone else considered this, or actually done it?