Pluggit

I have had a very strange symptom on starting for the last 6 months or so. I may have hit on symptoms connected with this problem on previous posts. I have solved most of them with alternator, battery and inhibitor switch replacement but I now find that the single and weirdest problem still exists.I would appreciate a second opinion on this. Symptom: Stop car after driving(faultlessly) and "sometimes" the whole car will go dead. Nothing. No clock, interior lights, horn. Zilch. The main bus-bar is effectively cut before the very first circuits. Its akin to disconnecting the battery at either terminal. IT HAS to be a disconnection rather than a sinking of current as no protective devices blow. HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN. I am a very qualified and experienced electrical/electronics engineer and have all schematics at hand. I have changed all but the ignition barrel and traced all wiring from battery to sub-assemblies and can find no obvious reasons for these symptoms. I have contacted the chief technical chap at Scorpion(sigma) who didnt have the decency to even acknowledge, never mind give suggestions, and Subaru are clowns. I need a rocket scientist. Any takers...

2003 Forester. Been having bad electrical/electronics gremlins lately. I may have narrowed it down to knackered alternator and badly fluctuating battery voltage(as low as 9v..) but I also suspect the alarm. The alarm can be taken out of the loop but in doing so,it defaults the immobiliser circuits on. Does any one know which pins on the multi-plug on the sigma are the two circuits and can they be just joined together to enable the ecu to allow the two circuits to function again. I suspect that Thatcham specify unrecognisable colour coding for the circuits which is a nightmare if problems occur. Any suggestions ?

Have a Forester 03 2.0X. Love it but its started with a weird problem. Cut a long story short, I have just replaced the neutral inhibitor switch because it was giving problems. The last symptom before I changed the switch out was a complete shut-down of the whole electrical system. I would stop the engine, pull the key, try to start it again and there would be nothing. Everything electric would just shut down. It was just like the battery had been disconnected but what was even weirder was that the alarm was dead as well. I have a disconnector on the battery so I turned it off,back on and it would be ok and started as usual. I am an electronics engineer and am still at a loss as to what is going on. Any thoughts before I go out and poke around again tomorrow? ..and as anyone got a blower fan for the auto a/c, the one with the control module on it. Thats just burned out on me. Not a good week this..

Ive got a classic BMW E30 just restored. I took an old boys advice and did the rust with Hydrate8-!Removed! marvelous stuff, hasnt come back in 3yrs so far and then with a non-bituminous sealent. Wax-oyl is good stuff but its more a preventative measure on good metal and shutz rather than rust. Treat the rust then start covering it. If you wax rust you have made an untreatable surface for anything else for.

About to collect a nice little second-hand Forester in next few days and wondered what insurance companies people would recommend contacting.I know a lot dont want to touch jap cars so you have to search around a bit. Any suggestions. regards, Chris