[angenzo]

Hello users this is my first post (not the last, as the forum looks amazing) so please bear with my errors. Thanks in advance.

I have a 97 Alfa Romeo GTV which I have since almost new (it was a press car and I bought it with under 10k km). I have always loved it dearly and love to drive it but recently due to outside problem I have not been able to drive it for around 4 months. This has caused the battery to go dead, to solve this I bought a battery charger and maintainer (Black and Decker BDV090) which I plugged in to charge the battery (after of course thanking the mother of the engineer who decided to put the battery in its lovely and accessible location).
The battery is now charged but not completely (as the battery warning light on the dash stays on when turning the key to marcia).

My problem is that the Alfa Romeo Code light also stays on, after reading the manual about it and consulting all the forums and trying most of the solutions I am unable to start the car (the starter spins the engine but it doesn't actually start). To try and fix this I have:
- Disconnected the battery for over 2 hours (meant to reset everything).
- Tried to start the car with both the Normal and Master keys.
- Tried starting the car with one key while wiggling the other close to the CODE aerial.
- Disconnected the battery and disconnected code box (yellow with greenish lable) and sprayed contact cleaner on both the male and female parts of the plug.
- Dissassembled the steering wheel plastics to check the aerial and sprayed contact cleaner on it.

I also tried to do the emergency start up procedure with the throttle and the numbers. But the injector light never flashes.

None of these have solved anything as the code light refuses to turn off and the car doesn't start. Are there any other checks I can do to avoid having to tow the car to the garage?

Thank you very much in advance,
Angel

 

[sussexspiderman]

remove the battery and touch both the battery terminals together, reconnect the battery after an hour. Check your earth terminals are clean and not corroded.Check and clean with electrical cleaner all fuses.
At worst I sell secondhand ecu kits at £120 some are more some charge less they are also listed on Ebay.

This is a problem I often encounter in the spring when owners try starting spiders that have been laid up over the winter the code nearly always sorts itself out.

Whilst im stating the obvious in this case don't bother turning it over if the code light does not go out.

 

[angenzo]

remove the battery and touch both the battery terminals together, reconnect the battery after an hour. Check your earth terminals are clean and not corroded.Check and clean with electrical cleaner all fuses.
At worst I sell secondhand ecu kits at £120 some are more some charge less they are also listed on Ebay.

This is a problem I often encounter in the spring when owners try starting spiders that have been laid up over the winter the code nearly always sorts itself out.

Whilst im stating the obvious in this case don't bother turning it over if the code light does not go out.

2 quesions.
Where is the earth terminal?
And how do I disconnect the fusses, do I simply pull them from the box?

Thank you for the quick reply.

 

[JRow]

The battery is now charged but not completely (as the battery warning light on the dash stays on when turning the key to marcia).



I also tried to do the emergency start up procedure with the throttle and the numbers. But the injector light never flashes.

Welcome,and i hope someone can help

The battery light should stay on with the key at marcia,it only goes off when the engine is running.Worth testing the voltage from the battery with a multimeter though, just to rule it out as the problem,should be over 12.4 volts

Odd the emergency procedure doesn't work,i use it on my donor car all the time.
Ign off, acc to the floor and held down ,ign on, wait for quite a few secs and the code light goes off, release acc and then the flashing count starts

 

[Cromwell]

When you say the injector light never flashes when trying the emergency start. Does it come on at all when you turn on the ignition or does it never come on? If it doesn't come on at all then you likely have either no power going to the ecu or no earth for it.

 

[angenzo]

When you say the injector light never flashes when trying the emergency start. Does it come on at all when you turn on the ignition or does it never come on? If it doesn't come on at all then you likely have either no power going to the ecu or no earth for it.

I think Sir you have found my problem.
The injector light in my car never comes on, not when I turn the key to marcia nor when I try the emergency start procedure.
Today I checked the ECU connection (passenger footwell) and the connection seems firm. The repair manual is very unclear on this so please help me. How do I determine if it is receiving power and where is the earth for it and how can it be tested?

Thank you for the fast reply
Angel