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MG MGF Technical - Radio Reception

I have recently bought a 2000 VVC, the cd/player radio is the standard MG fit. The Cd player is great, but the radio signal strength is very poor, and i find it very hard to even tune into radio 1. When you select auto find, it just searches.....and doesn't stop.

Can anyone else help?
A Hall

Hi There

Is it the standard aerial... about 18" or so long or has it been changed for a short stubby aerial..

Most of the short stubby ones are pretty poor on reception...

Stu
Stu

No it is a standard 18inch aerial. Also i think i may have a problem with my fuel gauge. When i have filled up the car, i only have to do about 100 miles and the gauge is on halfway, then to get to red, it only does about 310....surely it should do more miles than this???

Aswell as petrol smells in the cabin, i am not having much luck!
A Hall

Hmm

Regarding the aerial, it is possible you have a bad connection. Try unscrewing the aerial (easy with a small adjustable spanner). make sure the screw threads look clean etc and replace... its also worth checking the aerial is plugged into the player properly.. it could have worked loose..

If you are saying you get 420 miles on a tank your doing pretty well.. i average about 320-350 depending on how i drive...
the gauges are not very linear.. mine tends to go to halfway slowly then drop to the red much quicker...

The petrol smell is a known problem, try searching the archives.. you'll find plenty of threads on it...

I'm sure someone closer to you could have a look for you if your still stuck...

Come on guys ...

Stu
Stu

i have unscrewed the aerial and there isn't any rust or anything. Where would the aerial plug into the player (sorry....i am a girl).

I only get 310 to a full tank......so do you think that this is about average?

"The dreaded petrol problem", I have searched all the archives and i know it could be a number of problems, but the dealer did not want to know. I am trying to find somewhere else, like an mg specialist who might take a look. In the meantime i have bought a very good air freshner!!!!

Thanks for your help!
A Hall

A,

Petrol smell and consumption points towards the engine running too rich. Might be as simple as a dirty air filter.

The aerial lead plugs into the back of the head unit, and looks a bit like a TV aerial plug.

If you pull out the centre console vent, you might be able to reach down and check this connection.

Sam

PS - Nothing wrong with being a girl.
Sam Murray

Thanks very much for your help!
A Hall

>> http://www.sfforever.co.uk/viewgallerypicture.asp?id=3-29-35-36-37-38-39-40-41-42-43-44-45-46-47-48-49-50-51-52-53-54-55-56-57-58-59-60-61-62-63&queryon=13 <<

Shows how to remove the top air vent. You need to grip it firmly and pull (it can be quite tough to remove).

With the vent out you should be able to look down behind the clocks and see the back of the stereo (you may need a torch). The arial lead will be on your right hand side, it's a black plastic cable, approx 5mm in diameter and is quite different from the other wires in there so it should be easy to spot.

The cable should be fully inserted into the back of the radio (approx 35mm) and there should be very little of the end of the cable showing.

The air vent goes back in the same way it comes out, it's just a push fit item.

------------

If you are getting 400 ish miles from a tank then i can't see the car running rich. It could be a problem with the fuel sender unit (picture here):

>> http://www.sfforever.co.uk/viewgallerypicture.asp?id=10-34-291-292-293-294-295-296-297-298-299-300-301-302-303-304-305-306-307-308-309-310-311-312-313-314-315-316-317-318-319-320-321-322-323-324&queryon=25 <<

This is under the parcel shelf lining, behind the passenger seat.

As a guess i'd say that this is possibly the cause of both your petrol smell and fuel guage problem. It seems a coincidence that you are having two fuel related problems at once, so i feel they probably both have the same cause.

Needs checking out, as far as i'm aware, your nearest non-MGR specialist is Mike Satur Automotive in Rotherham (they advertise on this site on the top right of some of the pages). Mike however is away on the Treffen (an EU driving tour/holiday) at the moment though - i assume Trish is holding the fort but would imagine you will have trouble getting the car looked at until he comes back.

Good luck

Andrew (SF)
Scarlet Fever

There is also an aerial connection about 50mm from the aerial. Remove the grill above the engine. Where the aerial screws into the car body, follow the wire about 50mm and check that connector as well. They just push together.

Richard
Richard

Thanks Andrew, but i am only getting approx 310 miles to the tank, do you think it is still the fuel sender unit?

I was just about to go out a try and investigate the aerial......but it has started raining! typical!

Andrea
A Hall

Andrea

I get only 320 miles per tank "running around" but about 450 when in France or on longer runs.

Mine also smells of petrol, usually after I over fill it. There were/are problems with porous tanks on earlier cars but I thought this was almost cured by 2000. Also, the fuel filler pipe can become twisted and kinked (a bit like me) causing slow filling and consequent smell.

Before I bought mine 18 months ago I printed about 150 pages from archive on fuel smells etc.
John Ponting

Andrea,
I had the same poor reception problems with my stereo. I changed it twice, for differenrt brands, and changed to a stainless steel stubbt arial. I never did cure the problem, wgich was worse with MW than FM. However, I've since been told the most likely cause is a bad earth connection. I don't know if it's true, But it sounds feasible to me, @cos I know the arial and associated connections for that were all fine.
I regularly got 430-450 from my 1997 VVC.

Cheers

Kieren
Kieren Gibson

A

Driving around London in and out of town every day I normally get around 300 miles out of a tank. On a long journey it can get up to 400, caning the **** out of it it can drop to 250!..... and I've only got a 1.8 MPi!!!!
Billy Bob

Andrea, you put the same message on The MGB Technical board.

If you want a giggle, or maybe an argument have a look!

He He

Adam
A J Cooper

i know....what an idiot i am!!!!

Andrea x
A Hall

ANTI-FREEZE

How can I check that the anti-freeze in my 1996 MGF is of the correct mix for adequate frost protection. The coolant is yellow/green in colour and I believe it to be the Unipart Superplus?

Nev
Nev

Nex,

I've re-posted this as it's own thread rather than a rider tacked onto this one. You should get a better response as not everyone reads every thread and the people who (hopefully) will be able to answer this question are less likely to read this thread as they are different topics.

Good luck.

SF
Scarlet Fever

Hiya, Just to let you know that i have taken my car in to a garage today, i thought i would let you know that outcome, for peace of mind sake.

Radio reception was a faulty coax cable,it had split.......fitted a new one, and the radio now works fine.

Still has got to the route of the problem with the petrol smell, but is leaving the car on the ramp over night and doing a pressure test tomorrow while it is cold.....so hopefully will get a result tomorrow....will keep you posted.

Andrea x
A Hall

Another update and question if thats ok???

Got to the bottom of the petrol smell, apparantley the breather pipe wasn't connected properly and vaporiser wasn't collecting all the vapors. Has been fixed!

One of my rear tyres is illegal, i have been informed, is £88.00 + vat for a Goodyear tyre cheap?? This is the price that the garage has quoted?

Andrea
A Hall

Andrea,

Glad you got the radio and fuel smells fixed.

Why only one worn tyre - has the tracking been checked?

If the one on the other side is getting near to the end of its life - you should consider changing both.

Price looks about right, and probably not worth the hasle of shopping around to save a few bob. (IMHO)

Sam
Sam Murray

The other one is on its way out aswell, but not as bad

Just wanted to check whether the price was ok or not!

andrea
A Hall

The price for the tyre is not bad from a garage but you will probably get a cheaper price by going direct to a tyre specialist. Garages often just take the car to the specialist anyway so you end up paying the markup!

Bruce
Bruce Caldwell

This thread was discussed between 11/09/2003 and 18/09/2003

MG MGF Technical index

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