Why won't my 2CV start? Let's fix it!

Elly the 2CV conked out the other day. Let's find out why! Can we get her running again?
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[@andrewriley1664]

Loving the old school Hubnut vlog…it’s what attracted me to the channel all those years ago😊

[@andrewriley1664]

Although it was a successful conclusion so unlike a lot of early Hubnut vlogs😉

[@nickhaag7803]

yes, I prefer this type of video, spannering is good.

[@Involvod]

Rolling around on a shed floor with a 2CV engine reminds me of the good old days, just missing the brew and pony tail

[@iainmacleod4007]

Worth a look at The Late Brake Show. A 2CV resurrected and running sweet as a nut having stood in a garage for decades. The simple engineering means that these vehicles can be left for years and will simply start and run.

[@Laz_Arus]

Just looked here to see if anyone else commented about Jonny's recent release. Perhaps Ian should consider putting in an offer for it and transfer all the working parts into Elly!

[@Phil-1969]

@@Laz_Arussomeone gave Ian basically a complete 2cv in parts a few years ago , it’s in that lock up somewhere I think

[@thomasfrancis5747]

Coincidental to see the socket handle wiggle trick to get the fan off again.

[@paultaylor9652]

What a lovely bit of old fashioned Mr HubNut tinkering. Great to see the old girl running again to.

[@workonesabs]

At least Elly made the prom and not let everyone down by conking out before, not after getting back, Phew!

[@allanwinter4991]

Enjoyed the tinkering mate. After owning a car for such a long time, your ears are the best diagnostic system available.

[@SheldonElectricals]

Old HubNut is back! Love a bit of tinkering on a smartphone. Just like the old days!

[@MrTrundleon]

At least Elly had the decency to conk out at The Unit.

[@danpeters5028]

I love how simple old cars are

[@johnlladron735]

Thank you so much for a great video of old school tinkering. No faff (apart from the standard integral faff), no multiple angles. Just a well set up frame and you talking away. Only surprise was this tinkering was successful!

[@glidb4]

Great to see some tinkering again Ian. Loving the safety sandals...

[@PB_657]

Well that was very un-hubnut - you're quite the master 2CV mechanic! Enjoyed watching you tinker and the old stories. Reminded me of your videos from a few years ago.

[@daler2577]

I would tie the car keys to the Peg then you have to take the peg out in order to start it.😊

[@twocvbloke]

It'd be interesting to see how the 123-Ignition has failed, may be a fun idea to have a cross-channel thing by sending one of the dead units to BigClive, as he enjoys taking such electronical things to bits, and you never know, might even find a fix for it too... :)

[@Simon-ui6db]

or to mymatevince

[@olik136]

that is about the 4th time I have seen a 123-Ignition fail on youtube retro channels.. they might introduce more problems than they solve. But that might also be just bad luck.

[@twocvbloke]

@@olik136 In general, an engine is the worst place for electronics to be attached onto as it introduces vibrations, heat and contamination if there are any oil leaks, the other issue is lead-free solder, that stuff is just dreadful for such environments too as that'll fracture and cause parts to become disconnected, so could just be a case of needing a reflow with juicy lead-based solder to revive it, but that's just at a guess without seeing it inside...

[@olik136]

@@twocvbloke sure sure- but on the other hand the standard ignition system has never failed me- you have to change some parts from time to time- but the failure mode is often just "runs a bit worse". Now that might be different on a big V8 with 300hp, but on all my cars I had zero problems with the up to 62 year old tech. But I might just have gotten lucky.

[@twocvbloke]

@@olik136 Personal choice though, some people want to have the improved response times, smoother power curves and with the fancier models, the ability to adjust timings and whatnot on the fly, it's not for everyone, but it's their choice to go with or without...

[@221hillsteve]

Nice and easy fix and Ellie is back on the road..and no notes released from the wallet, happy days 😁

[@brianreardon159]

She delivered & collected the important cargo. ❤

[@alansmith1770]

A Labour of love with Elly. Glad she is running again. Well Done Ian.

[@josephjardine32]

I saw a blue 2CV here in Finland a few days ago and my first thought was Elly, a car that really touches a lot of peoples hearts

[@Jerrydudebad]

Love it, felt like watching the Croatia-trip preparation calamity all over again. Plus the title card at the end came so out lf the dark it got a proper laugh out of me.

[@Phil-1969]

I’ve sat watching this in my underpants, I think it’s appropriate being a 2cv , well done Ian you do know your onions when it comes to the 2CV

[@Laz_Arus]

The video quality from the new Samsung is looking good. Looking forward to its continuing use. 👍

[@wessler77]

Glad Elly did the business for little miss hubnut. Good to see you tinkering too, but in the name of all that is holy, please tidy the garage. The amount of space you lose, not to mention the time it takes you to find stuff.. rope the fam in, make a day of it, put a video out of you doing it and I promise i'll buy you all a cake of your choice via superthanks 😉 #fanbribery #incentive #tidygarage #hastag etc.

[@gg_vard]

Some classic tinkering time with Elly! Very enjoyable

[@martinneumann7783]

Success! Elly is happy again. And Ian also. And us HubNutters as well. Have a nice trip with her… ☀️🤗☀️

[@jonathanscripps917]

Safety sandals, love it. Standard operating procedure if you drop something heavy on foot: Swear, eyes tight shut, deep breath, count toes, if 10 found, resume task, if not, call Miss Hubnut 👍

[@stuartmcdonald5772]

Good use of the socket,screw driver, breaker bar 😅😅 Great vid. Evey home mechanic ever has been here with a points job.

[@Dadsterful]

What could be more agreeable than learning how to fix stuff while the teacher gently rabbits on about all sorts of random stuff? Sir. I salute you!

[@romac9516]

Very enjoyable tinker sesh, didn't Elly sound lovely in the end

[@BokorRider]

I was sitting listening to you whilst munching a few pistachios when you mentioned the new phone I look at the video...well from here it looks like a huge improvement in picture quality! Well done on the repair !

[@HakanKoseoglu]

It's so nice to see a simple engine almost anyone can work on. I wish my cars and bikes were this simple to fix!

[@siriax1691]

Elly dropping all the hints she can for a larger engine.

[@karstentopp]

Voting for an old school 2 valve BMW boxer engine. Or, even though I don’t think that Ian could pull this off, maybe a BMW flying brick engine?

[@karstentopp]

Hmmm... I've seen a few cashed Gold Wings/Valkyries. Would that lovely flat 6 fit by any means?

[@robertbills4290]

Liking the tinkering videos always nice when a plan comes together. Well done Ian sounds good

[@anthonygregg862]

absolutely marvellous to see a tinkering video on Elly. Good times all around.

[@paulgoldsworthy5971]

nice to be back in the garage ian with some good results. all the best.

[@jennydonne8946]

So good ellie is up and running. There is no better sound than a citroen flat twin engine

[@paultasker7788]

Well done. Good fix. Sounds really sweet when she fired straight up. Amazing that she'll also idle on 1 cylinder.

[@AndrewwMK]

“I was shown this technique to remove the fan” - proceeds to hit various parts of the engine around the ratchet before one good blow frees it. 😂 Thank you for being the home mechanic most of us are. Love your videos and the return to tinkering

[@HubNut]

I generally prefer the jiggle technique.

[@AndrewwMK]

@@HubNut Though, there is something to be said for scareing it first.

[@mk2astra]

Good old HutNut tinkering, I've missed this, more please.

[@-DC-]

Been years since I worked on a 2CV incredible to think it's basically a 90 year old design what a Masterpiece of Engineering.

[@williamdeegan7840]

It would be great if you could come to the US with Elle to the Import Show in Carlisle PA. The biggest assembly of French cars anywhere. Big JDM gathering. Citroën and Volvo, and Saab all have a lot of cars. I finally was given a ride in a 2 CV a few years ago.. I'm still smiling. Great video and channel.

[@robinwells8879]

The tinkering format on the old stuff is so very very satisfying to watch. Modern stuff is an achievement when you finish successfully but the old stuff is pure joy to watch. They may not be reliable like modern cars but so much easier to work on. I’m off to see if I can get electronic ignition for the DAF.

[@graemew7001]

Us Graeme Wilson's are quite resourceful 🤣. Little Miss H has taste, she looked fab for her Prom. I really doubted we'd get a tinkering fail on Elly as you really know her well.

[@sigurbjornl]

Lovely video. Also very much love the higher bitrate on the video, everything looks very crisp!

[@johnwaga3702]

Excellent work!

[@jimg492]

Yay, 👍 well done Ian. You're a braver man than me trusting that bonnet stay lol

[@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain]

Great little tinkering video, good to see it was not too complicated a fix for Elly.

[@terryatkinson899]

Jonny Smith did a 2cv just like this, you'd have loved to find it in a barn. The sweetest engine you ever heard on the one he found..... for sale as well.

[@KiwiStag74]

Yep. Been there, done that with a Triumph 2500S and Accuspark / Powerspark EI module, so you have my empathy there, Ian. The first time it died, it would cut out temporarily and as I slowed down with no engine running, suddenly come back to life for 5 mins or so.....and then wash, rinse, repeat. Caused a huge belch of flame out the exhaust accompanied by a loud bang when she did it going down a hill! That first EI unit lasted 3000km, so I replaced the coil with a new one when I picked up the new EI unit.....which lasted about half that distance and just quit and would not work again. So, I bought a Lumenition one - a well respected brand - that lasted around 7000km. At this point, I looked at the money I had spent on EI units versus the cost of points and how many sets of the latter I could have purchased with the same amount of cash and decided to go back to 'old school' tech. However, it was not long after this that I discovered how bad the modern condensers are and having had issues with both burnt points and weak spark, I gave in and bought a cheap Chinesium knockoff of the Lucas 45D6 distributor, set it up with a relay so it got a constant 12v from the battery when the key was on and she's been right as rain ever since - 25000km and counting. I do in fact keep the old dizzy in the boot of the car, set up with a new set of points, just in case the EI decides to let go somewhere inconvenient though. Even after all this time, I'm still not sold on their reliability eh!

[@lesklower7281]

A successful tinkering video Elly lives

[@wxcferdts]

Nice new camera, Ian, but is it me/my pc, or does the audio ever so slightly runs ahaed of sync after some time? I've refreshed a few times, and initially all is well, but some minutes later, the audio advances slightly.

[@HubNut]

No, it is very slightly out. I need to work out if it's the mic, the phone or the editing software.

[@derek-press]

I have the same ,strange

[@MrOvershoot]

@@HubNut The spoken bit was out but I could ignore that as I just watched the tinkering, it was the impact noise when you were persuading things that was most obvious 😉

[@robames1293]

EXCELLENT Hubnut at his best working on a car on which he is an expert. Be careful handling leaky oil coil could be PCB which is considered a cancer risk

[@gleng6812]

Hubnut a legend of the highest order and sets the new fashion in Safety Shoes for the Workshop.

[@lesklower7281]

Success Elly running well😊

[@sUASNews]

I loved my 2CVs and only moving overseas 30 years ago stopped me owning one.

[@andysalter4473]

Ellie lives again! Love the phrase, " The container of things"

[@PRG888]

Loved this, these videos start to give me confidence I can have a go tinkering with my 2cv

[@geraldmellon740]

Tinkering video is spot on Ian. More of the same would not go amiss. Great job!

[@mikehallett9638]

Tinkering is what we need. Your c*ck ups make the learning process that much more grounded. Love it.

[@daniellee9015]

Absaloutly brilliant video Ian ❤👍 well done for fixing Ellie brilliant

[@mikeg8835]

....and that.s why I've never bothered with electronic ignition, it seems less reliable then good old points Ian.

[@HubNut]

In 20 years and over 130,000 miles, I've had three electronic ignition failures, only one of which left the car non-running. When I had that camouflage Dyane, I had the condenser fail within 10 miles...

[@Efferpheasants]

Luminition is the grandad of bolt on electronic ignition, very reliable and usually lasts the life of the car.

[@persevere777]

Ahhh nothing like a good tinkering!!! Harley went with water cooled heads due also to temperature control moreso for emissions.

[@anthonystevens8683]

Nice one Ian, as you say Elle when she's feeling unwell she will endeavour to get you so somewhere safe where she can relax and if needed get the doctor out. She's such a lovely car with a ton of personality and dare I say it a proud member of the Hubnut family and as such performed her prom delivery duty for another family member. Great work on the fix Ian, I thought I nearly saw a very slight smile from her.

[@thecontinuingadventureso-qs5zm]

I didn't have any joy with a 123, so I went points with vellman spark booster and two Lucas DB105 sport coils. and that system has served Me well without any problems for over 15 Years. Might I suggest a Harley Davidson coil at least. Ecas sells them. Best Wishes Dee

[@paulwatts2192]

You know Ellie like to be the star of the show.I got you to the proms. Now it’s my time to be on camera and have some love.

[@Farney-gy1qo]

I love your Timing Peg, I found that a Paint roller Handle good. Almost like the drawing to make one in the Haynes Manual.

[@HowardLeVert]

On a day when there have been dark and depressing mutterings about the ECU in my (currently dead) 530i 🙁, how lovely to see such an easy "fix"🙂. And yes, how good to return to the days of tinkering on Elly with a mobile phone recording it (which does produce superb pictures, by the way).

[@biker_dan]

I'm sure when the first fan fell off it sounded like you said "Fanny's off" . I remember a mate who had a CV2 when I lived in Scotland, he tried to get max power from his. I remember we did away with the fan and hooked up an electric one and controlled it from a switch in the car. We eventually hooked up a temp sensor and wired it through that so it would work automatically, however it could still be controlled manually. I'm not a fan of cutting blades off as it can cause an imbalance. But going electric might be an option for you. How about stripping that original engine and doing a rebuilt, get her bored out too. That would make great viewing. Love the tinkering videos best..

[@roseybut]

First class bit of tinkering! It's been a while since anything was fixed at the first attempt. Well done!😏😏😏

[@SmashingPistons]

This is a nice return to the ye olde Hubnut style video. Lovely little stories while fettling with an old engine. (Simon, WAS ProjectMGTF, now Smashing Pistons)

[@SiTeeVee]

Fully embracing the AU Falcon lifestyle with the mullet.

[@jorgefernandez-mv8hu]

It is so nice when you get it going again. Nice bit of tinkering.

[@alanpickering4497]

Took me back. I used to keep a spare coil under my 2cv seat as swapping it would get it started.

[@jameswallace7709]

Safety sandals!

[@bnrynlds]

Safety Mullet!

[@HubNut]

Redefining safety gear, inspired by David Freiburger.

[@zubeystinzen540]

Wow coincidence or what,on the late brake show barn finds they found a Citroen 2cv had the same problem on the old points. Great fix👍

[@I-T-S-M-E]

Like the 4k, sound sync good for me.

[@anthonyostell5776]

Great to see the tools back out. I'm really pleased you fixed the problem, I always feel a bit sad when Elly is not running properly . Great video as always 👍

[@micheltebraake7915]

It was too stressful for Elly to drive that prom, so she stopped afterwards. 😉 Successful repair Ian.

[@LesterLovesWatches]

My Amazon used to fail to start every year. You’d think being a London car its points would understand “Mind the Gap” but they never did. They just closed up like an extremely slow silver-screen kiss. After I got a 123 electronic ignition I never had another starting problem. Highly recommended. But always carry the old distributor as a spare just in case you take your daughter to prom and the inevitable happens!

[@policewitnesspoplar4865]

wow, back to tinkering ! now you need to tinker with your video editing software to get the sound to stay in sync .

[@copper6600]

So glad everything works again Juhu😃😃😃

[@harryharker9564]

I am always tinkering with my cars but theres something about a 2CV that always makes me happy.Love the elly content long may she reign

[@davefrench3608]

Nice to see some spannering going on Ian Good job She died in the yard not when taking LMHN to her do

[@craigmclean8260]

Congrats on the successful repair job! I think the "wasted spark" ignition was used on quite a few twins; may also explain why Harleys (and other motorbike twins) occasionally pop out the exhaust on startup. I wonder if "ThunderHead289's" "Carb Cheater" would work on the carburetors in Elly and Giselle? Looks like an interesting way to monitor fuel/air mixture, and as an aid to adjustments...Video quality w/ the new phone-cam is excellent; I did notice a very slight lag in the sound vs. the picture, though...Well-done on the tinkering!

[@SB-vb8ch]

With no ground you will see 12v on both sides....they are connected together! That's the winding!

[@TonyLing]

4:18 You will get 12V on each terminal if the points happen to be open at the time

[@edgarbeat2851]

At some point, I'd recommend fitting slightly harder brake pads for the downhill brake use. I did that to my bikes.

[@michaelstaunton1632]

A really enjoyable video , great to have some tinkering & conversation too and great pictures with the new phone so well done 👍👍

[@robertpenning3501]

I've got exactly the same problem on my 2CV6. I also did the usual coil exchange etc but to no avail. Like you I'm going straight to the 123 ignition and check it out. Thanks for the vid Ian.

[@fhwolthuis]

Great job, Ian. And great image quality of the new Galaxy S23 Ultra 😀😀

[@michaelwright2986]

So nice to have tinkering, especially successful tinkering that identified and fixed the problem by a thoroughly rational process. And the accompanying anecdotes were great, too--I love the thought of Elly turning into a fire-breathing dragon (or rather, fire-farting dragon--I've never seen one of those at a Chinese New Year celebration, and I've seen some good dragons). On your new phone: I haven't checked the comments, but I'm sure you've been told that the sound track is out of sync: I first noticed when you were giving the socket subtle persuasion with the hammer, which makes a good diegetic clapper board. But also out of sync when you're talking on camera. The image quality is good--stabilisation satisfactory, the zoom is a good addition, and detail good (splendid definition of the hair on your arm in the close up). But since one of your motives for changing from the DJI was a lack of oomph in the pictures (I thought the grey Honda on a grey day was rather moody, but probably not good for the algorithm), you might want to tweak the colour, which is quite subdued. I don't know what you've got on the Samsung, and it might be different for video than for stills, but a full set of controls will give you a slider for colour saturation; I think you need to push that up a bit, because the colours are quite muted even to my taste, and I like things quiet. There's also another control you sometimes get called "Vividness" or something like that; I don't understand it, but I think it increases differentiation between colours locally or summat--anyway, it gets you a little more punch in the colour without the overall effect getting absurd. It is such a relief to see tinkering on Elly, where everything is visible and most of it accessible, and the relationships between the parts are clear. It must be a relief for you, too: I sometimes look at you struggling with a turbo diesel with fuel injection plumbing and air plumbing and complex electricals cramming the engine compartment, and I frankly boggle.

[@_psv__]

thats a nice new camera/phone you've got 👍lovely video as usual. all the best to you and yours

[@H4lminator]

Great video! I really liked the garage tinkering videos’s in Devils Bridge.

[@pemlars]

This was interesting. I have the 1-2-3 on my charleston. Some time ago I install a rev-counter, but then the engine did not start. I did not find out why, so the counter was removed, and the engine startet. May be, after seeing your video, I can check why it did not work with the rev counter. I got some ideas after seeing the video. I will come back if I find what I did wrong.........

[@julianowens4071]

Love the video,what fun

[@daspoppy]

Well done. !!

[@paulwootton5378]

At 20.05 in the video, there is a flash across the top of the fan housing (right to left) maybe you have a short in that area?

[@2cvstan995]

Hahaha reminds me of the time the throttle cable snapped on mine (about 30 years ago!)… completed my (10mile) commute using the choke😂

[@HubNut]

Had that happen a few years ago. Tied a ratched strap to the carb and drove home with a hand throttle!

[@danr1920]

Last year my '65 Corvair electric ignition failed after about ten years of service. Not a lot of miles on it. I put points back in and will not be going back to the electronic ignition.

[@HubNut]

I've had so many condensers fail that I'd rather have a ten year failure...

[@adrianellis6902]

Super vid Ian, what you don't know about 2cvs isn't worth knowing, one thing was bugging me, a coat of black paint on your fan shroud, sorry mate bit of ocd , take care wonderful bit of tinkering.