australian lada niva forum

Hi,
I'm new to Lada Niva......... I've got a '92 from a friend just 2 days ago.
I'm impressed by it overall, and hope to get a bit of use out of it.

I've been involved with "weird" cars (Citroen) for over 30 years now......... and am quite used to fiddling with mechanicals to keep things going.

My friend was the 3rd owner of the Niva and used it for several years, but it has been sitting unregistered for the last 18 months.
It has had the wiring "modified" over the years, and electric issues were the main reason for its more recent non-use.

I'm intending to use it unregistered as a farm vehicle to check the stock water and fencing etc.

I'm having a bit of trouble getting it to run, and think the main problem is no spark.
The engine turns over smoothly, with good compression, and appears to be getting fuel in the carby.
It has a Bosch electronic ignition unit fitted in place of the original cccp unit, but a few connections were off, and I'm not sure which way they go........ mainly on the coil..... and to the ignition switch.
Also the alternator has a Bosch regulator fitted........ sort of.... Similarly the wires have been pulled off the connections.... and I'm not sure which way they go.

Is the fitting of Bosch components common ?
Some advice on connecting these would be appreciated............

Thanks,

Bob

hi bob,and welcome.

some people will tell you bosch is better,but being with lada since 1983,i can tell you,contrary to popular belief,there is nothing wrong with the genuine lada electrics.

we hear a lot of stories,but most of the problems are through peeps playing with the electrics themselves.

most common reason for no spark with electronic distributor is through the module packing in (unit mounted on drivers inner front guard with 7 pin plug)

wires to volt reg. df = grey d+ = orange/red

coil-k= brown
blue/black trace to upside down g

ign.switch.

30/1-large brown
int- black
50- large red
30- large pink
15- blue with black trace

if you still havr thin pink wire, DO NOT connect,cut short & tie back into loom.

have fun

andy

Thanks Andy,

That's just about got it............ I've got it running.......
Ignition seems good........ but I don't think its charging the battery.

One more Q... does the alternator need a circuit through the dash indicator lamp, to +ve, from ign switch ?
If so does that come from the D+ orange wire ?

Now that its running .......... I'm liking it more and more.

Bob

ButtercupBob wrote:Thanks Andy,

That's just about got it............ I've got it running.......
Ignition seems good........ but I don't think its charging the battery.

One more Q... does the alternator need a circuit through the dash indicator lamp, to +ve, from ign switch ?
If so does that come from the D+ orange wire ?
Bob

??

don't think so,no orange wire on switch

just a quick note i always pass onto new lada owners


most people forget to adjust the timing chain,make sure it is done every 10,000kms (you owners handbook in the glove box even shows you how to do this-2 minute job)
the owners h/book is like a mini w/shop manual,shows how to do most adjustments etc.yourself,including carb.float level,valve clearance etc.,if you don't have one,would be well worth talking to the guys and investing in one,even a repair manual,if you do the work yourself.
you'll find the lada is very easy & simple to work on (if only more cars were like this)

few simple things to do:

adjust t/chain every 10,000kms (every time you change oil filter)

use only genuine oil filters (we have a lot of problems with the cheap & nasty filters failing,and causing engine damage.,most non gen.are usually made in places like china,pakistan etc. (YUCK)

only place prone to rust is at bottom of front guard,take plate off under guard now & then,and give good hose out,fills up with muck & dirt behind it (don't be lazy like some people & leave the plate off,there are drain tubes coming down from corners of windscreen,will block them,and then rusts around cnrs of screen)

only weak spot mechanicaly (same as landbruisers,slowluxes.pajeros etc.) is 5th gear,if you have a 5 speed,don't use 5th under 90km/h (book says 80km/h,since we have been telling people 90,we hardly sell a gear now)

use only premium unleaded,book says not to use under 93 octane,highest grade std.unleaded is only 91 octane,and can drop as low as 85 octane.,
don't look at the price at the pump,will only cost an extra $1-$1.50 to fill,but you get better performance,economy,car stays in tune longer,so much cheaper to use,don't mix with std.,makes more expensive to run.DON'T use ethanol fuel
also,std.unleaded is such a crappy fuel,and so dry,you burn valves out in the head,dry diaphragms out etc. TRUST ME we don't get anything from the fuel companies by telling you this.
doesn't matter whether it's a jap crap,lawn mower,chainsaw,motorbike,premium is mucher better..........

DO NOT put suzuki wheels on,offsets are miles out,will go through wheelbearings,ball joints,tierod ends.and even crack steering boxes

DO NOT fit gas shocks,they are a lot harder/heavier,you would be struggling to hold the car in a straight line on a rutted dirt road,affects offroading because they fight the suspension,and break all the mounting brackets off.

these are the best off road cars you will ever find,and the only time we find people have problems with them is when they start playing with non genuine stuff,like fitting non gen.wheels,non gen.parts etc.etc. (even non gen.brake pads are no good.,they are too hard,make the car harder to pull up,and wear the disc down quickly)
for some reason,some idiots think non gen is the go,but can turn out very expensive (i come back to the oil filters)

hope this info helps

some people mistake waterpump bearing rattle for t/chain noise,grab fan blades make sure not excessive movement
may need damper in the head

oils:

engine oil: penrite 20/60
gearbox/transfer case: castrol vmx-m
diffs: 85/140

make sure g/box is o/fill by 1/2 litre

Thanks Andy,

Got all that........... Yes, I do all my mechanical, over the past 30 years I've re-built maybe 20 engines, around 10 gearboxes, brakes, electrics, hydraulics, suspension etc including Citroen, VW, Toyota, Holden, Landrover..........

Waterpump was replaced relatively recently....... everything looks reasonably OK.
Not much serious rust..... yes, the lower rear corners of the front wheel arches are the worst (looks like the cover plates have never been off) and a couple of bubbling spots on other panels. It was a coastal car....... Now come inland, so the rate of decay will dramatically reduce.
I won't be fiddling with wheels, suspension etc..... the original setup looks just right for my use.
I'm not after a show pony..... just a farm wagon, to get around the hilly, stony, bushy, paddocks with 2 dogs and a bit of fencing gear and a bale or 2 of hay. The rear seat is now out........... and I doubt it'll ever get into 4th let alone 5th!

There's a big blue/white "Lada parts" sticker on the glovebox.......
Yes, I'd better get a couple of oil filters.
I'll check all the oils and timing chain....

Thanks again,

Bob

I like your login name.

Chua wrote:I like your login name.

It comes from my Citroen activities..... I have a 1957 DS19 (english built) which is well known in the Cit community.
It was called Buttercup by the previous owner (1972 - 1994), and as its such a rare car (only 3 or 4 on the road worldwide) I feel more like a custodian instead of the owner. So the name of the car stays, and I'm named by it, rather than it by me!

Bob >>

Hi Bob,

Welcome to the forum.

I like your Citroen. I too have a soft spot for them, if I had the space and time a DS or a CX would definitely be the go.

John

Lada & Korean Parts wrote:some people will tell you bosch is better,but being with lada since 1983,i can tell you,contrary to popular belief,there is nothing wrong with the genuine lada electrics.
andy

I must say I'm impressed with the quality of the cable and connectors.
Much much sturdier than the french equivalent.
However the layout of the front harness (in RHD form) is rather irrational.

Bob >>

how did you go with the charging thingy bob?? all sorted??

Lada & Korean Parts wrote:how did you go with the charging thingy bob?? all sorted??

No..... no charging evident.....sits at 12.5 volts regardless of all the connection combinations I tried.......

Maybe I need to inspect the alternator....... diodes..... ?

As a paddock car it'll never be far from home..... so in the short term I'll put it on the charger every few days.
When I get a bit more time I'll pull the alternator out and go though the system again.

Thanks,

Bob.

g'day ButtercupBob,
First of all you don't say what type of Bosch voltage regulator is fitted to your Niva or if the alternator is the original one. Could you post a couple of pics for me please, it may be that someone in the past has fitted an Australian Bosch alternaor. There are 2 types of these, internally regulated and externally regulated. My Niva had had an internally regulated type fitted before I got it. These internally regulated types have a black plastic box in the back of them (the voltage regulator and brush holder). The alternator field gets its supply through the ignition switch and the battery light on the dash. If either the D+ or DF wires are disconnected from the alternator it won't charge the battery. If your car has an internally regulated Aussie Bosch alternator (the one with the black plastic box in the back of it) there are only two wires you need worry about; the grey and the orange/red. The grey one goes to DF (a single small spade type terminal on the back of the alternator) and orange/red to D+ (a large single bolt and nut type terminal on the outside of the back of the alternator.

With this set up, when you switch the ignition on current flows from the battery through the ignition switch to the battery light and then from there to the DF terminal of the alternator, giving the field its excitation current (don't worry too much about the technical terminology) and the light will glow . When the engine starts and the alternator starts charging, there will be 14V or so either side of the battery light globe and the light will go out. If the battery light globe blows the alternator will not charge (no field excitation current). You can check the battery light circuit by simply touching the bare connector on the alternator end of the grey wire to a good earth with the ignition switched on. This won't harm anything. The battery light should glow. If you have a good earth and the battery light is glowing the circuit up to that point is ok. If it isn't glowing first check the fuse and then the globe and then any other connections. If the light glows when you touch it to earth but not when you connect it to the DF terminal the problem is internal in the alternator, more than likely the brushes are worn out. I hope I haven't confused you too much with techno babble but that's basically how an alternaor works.

Cheers,
Ross.

Hi Ross,

I can't see what type the alternator is....... access is not good.
It does not have a black plastic connection box.
The rear end has a cast aluminium housing with a round air duct exitting upwards.
The grey and yellow leads come out together at the side of the joint between the rear cover and the aluminium body.
The large rear lug terminal is located roughly centrally in the rear cover, and has 3 heavy cables going to the battery (and elsewhere)
The regulator is a Bosch RE55 (two pin), and is mounted to the inner wing panel, near to the alternator. It has DF and D+ spade terminals.

Thanks, all suggestions are welcome,

Bob >>

yours a bosch ross??

1700's came out with internal reg.


most common thing on these bob is volt reg.,or worn brushes