please need help

[DRUE1]

my battery went flat on my maestro turbo i jumped started it with my other car but i put the plus and earth the wrong way round i tryed starting my other car but would not start i got out ov the car and smoke came out ov the maestro i know i fcuked up ive looked and the autonator wires r well burnt but what other damage can this cause thanks 4 your help :banghead: :banghead:

[H48HPE]

Any semiconductor i.e diodes and transistors are potentially destroyed. depends what circuits were switched on, ive not looked at any wiring diagrams but ignition amplifiers, alternator rectifiers and regulators, radio if it was switched on all spring to mind, ECUs may well have suffered as well as they are packed with electronics

Andy

[E_T_V]

you could potentially have destroyed just about everything electronic on the car, however you may be lucky and get away with a lot of things. Unplug the alternator and anything else that looks fried and try starting it with the battery the right way round. (You may need a new battery to start it). That is the only think I can suggest. BEWARE that when you connect a new/borrowed battery to the car, try to just touch the terminal on the battery to start with. There should be a small spark as you connect it (the clock etc draws a little power). If there is a HUGE spark then immediately disconnect the battery as there must be a short circuit somewhere and you don't want the car to catch fire.

[DRUE1]

cheer 4 your help the car was not switched on the only wire i can c is the autonator wire which is fried i will start 2morrow and have a good look might get a car electrian 2 have a look and give me a price all the stuff on the car still works ie lights indercators windows all the ingnion lights come on so hope it will not b alot ov damage

[tony]

do we have fuseable link wires on our cars?

[H48HPE]

do we have fuseable link wires on our cars?

I have them on mine so i would assume we all do.

Andy

[H48HPE]

which car are you trying to fix? the turbo or the other car? and what happens exactly when you try to start them? exactly which wires have burnt?

Andy

[E_T_V]

Good point about the fusible links. There are 3 or 4 thinner wires that basically power all the car electrics. There is also a big fat cable that runs to the starter motor. These fusible links are designed to melt/break in the event of an overload situation so maybe they have done there job.

If you didn't switch anything then you might be lucky and only have fried the radio/clock and the alternator. Unplug it and try starting it as I suggested. You may have had a very lucky escape.

[DRUE1]

the only wire which melted was the wire from the autonator to the starter motor and thats it the clocks work and every thing else on the car im trying 2 ring rovers 2 find out how much the wires from the starter motor 2 the autonator

[E_T_V]

Unless you are very lucky and have a great Rover dealer I don't think you'll have much luck. I'd make up your own cable to fix the problem. If you need a new alt, then if you can get one with ring connectors on the rear (rather than the plastic plug) then that will make your job easier. Make sure you use a decent sized cable (70 amp), and you don't have to go to the starter motor, you could go straight back to the battery if you find that easier. (i.e. a ring connector on the alt wired to a ring connector on the battery terminal or the starter motor). If that is the only problem then you've had a lucky escape! Long live maestros they are almost indestructible!

[DRUE1]

cheers 4 your help all good news fitted a new wire all looks good and the car started a ok i do need a starter motor which was the cause ov y the car did not start in the first place i got the car started drove it down the road sweet as a nut so new starter motor and im sorted cheers again:) :)

[E_T_V]

Excellent. Great news. Maestros truely are indestructible!