Or a slight modification to the bodywork maybe

fiat500 said:

It looks like the rear hinged doors work better for this kind of thing.

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Amazing but why would you???

must have been bored & likes playing with metal. sound familiar?

Franko500 said:

must have been bored & likes playing with metal. sound familiar?

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Ummmmmm! me told , but I equally like driving my metal around so onto today; another 150 miles and the big four-"O" for Murphio. Not in age as he's already nearly 47, but 40,000 miles. That first numeral hasn't been seen on his clock before and it also signifies us being just 120 miles short of doing 8,000 miles together.
PT1_1640 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
Bear in mind he had already done four times that distance in his previous life!
The sun came out for the occasion and we even had a photoshoot beside some interesting-looking garages. Do any little Fiats lurk behind those doors?
PT1_1909 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
PT1_1890 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr

Although the engine is giving off the regular clatter in this clip it's actually sounding quite smooth after all these miles.
[ame]https://youtu.be/DP_eHeMhsvs[/ame]

Sometimes the car has to have a pit-stop and today I decided to investigate the oil leaks on the engine. I wanted to eliminate the push-rod tubes as a source and so off with the thermostat housing.
PT1_1938 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
Of course, the distributor also had to come off, but I already know that the gasket needs replacing. This is probably due to the time when the distributor was coming loose.
PT1_1946 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
Anyway, I was pleased to find no leaks from that area, but the downside is that the leak is either the crankshaft end seal or more likely, the timing chain cover gasket.

Hopefully it's just the timing chain cover gasket. You should be able to change that with the engine in situ by removing the rear cross member and jacking the lump up.

I can't remember did you need to rebuild the engine at all last time?

Vitesse said:

Hopefully it's just the timing chain cover gasket. You should be able to change that with the engine in situ by removing the rear cross member and jacking the lump up.

I can't remember did you need to rebuild the engine at all last time?

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I did rebuild it with new pistons and a rebore. I didn't buff it to a shine and powdercoat it so it does look a little shabby compared to every other engine I see here But I did pay attention to all the things that really matter.
KNO_6884 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
I have a better quality seal I can fit if it is leaking. I will redo the gasket using some US-made, high-torque silcone gasket I got for my chainsaw. You do up the screw finger-tight and then fully tighten after 24 hours when it has set.
I think I was originally just a bit timid when tightening all the little screws on the cover. I had to tighten it a little after a few hundred miles.
Fortunately, everything else I can see is looking good.
Good new too with the leaking driveshaft on the gearbox. I checked to day and its actually dry. There was a build-up of road dust on the little skim of grease I had put on to slide the seal over the shaft....no wetness at all. Next thing is to sort out the gear selector weepage.

Re: Removing timing chain cover

Open heart surgery today as I decided to renew the timing chain cover gasket and replace the crankshaft pulley seal.
PT1_1957 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
First I had to reset the points and timing after removal of the distributor yesterday. I found it tricky to create a big enough points gap. There was nothing obvious wrong but maybe they were worn. But after replacement, everything was good.
I was impressed by how little was the crud that had collected in the filter; you can see one section scraped in the photo to show this. This is at 8,000 miles so maybe with modern oils and fuel the 12,000 mile service interval could be safely extended if necessary?
PT1_1959 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
The new seal is silicon rubber and is much softer than the Corteco origiinals and doesn't have the micro-ribbed pattern in it.
PT1_1962 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
The gasket was very brittle and I'm guessing that was the cause of the leak. There may be a problem where the two M10 studs, which hold the engine mounting load, go through the cover. Perhaps they get nipped up a bit tighter than the rest of the M6 screws causing a strain on the cover. Whatever, I have used top quality silicone sealant as used by modern car manufacturers. I have to wait until tomorrow to put it through its paces.
At least I've tried.

Re: Removing timing chain cover

Good news on the filter. Good luck with test drive, but as you say it should be fine, and hopefully this seal lasts a lot longer than the other type.

cheers, Steve

I have always used Hylomar Blue sealant and never had any problems. Its also easy to remove later.

Franko500 said:

I have always used Hylomar Blue sealant and never had any problems. Its also easy to remove later.

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I used to use that product on the paper gaskets of my old car and I'm sure it did the trick; but it was a bit too thin and tacky for my liking.
But here's my thinking: what's the point of having to coat both sides of a gasket or both of the faces to be jointed? If the gasket isn't needed for its packing value or heat or petrol resistance, I find it makes sense to dispense with the gasket and just use straight sealant like most manufacturers now largely seem to do.
The problem then is to get the right quality of sealant as there are countless horror stories on the internet , of sealant being sucked into the workings of an engine.
This is what I used although not direct from the USA as on this listing:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Permatex-...er-/151427202899?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368

If im really honest i am not a lover of sealant. As you say a lot of people are over generous and it gets places where it shouldn't.
A lot of the time i make sure the mating surfaces are all flat and therefore need no packing. If they are ok i use grease on either side of the gasket. This tends to do the trick and also makes it easier to remove later.
Otherwise if there is surface damage then hylomar it is.

I also use Hylomar Blue and never had a problem with it but as you say, you just have to make sure you get the correct amount on it and don't over do it.

I can recommend Loctite 574 flange sealant. With the tube it comes in it is dead easy to apply and control the amount

Oh another question Peter seeing Murphio has clocked up loads of miles. Where did you get your windscreen wiper blades from and have you had to change them?

Also I was tinkering around on Luigi and I had noticed a while back that the pattern part windscreen washer jets that I fitted a couple of years ago. That the little metal ring on the new ones that fits over the rubber that protects the bodywork was starting to corrode and had surface rust on them. Fortunately I still had the old ones, so I retrieved the old chromed rings, they have a little patina on them but you need a little patina in your life.

Whilst doing it I noticed that both blades had come away from the rest of the rubbers on the wipers. Which considering they have hardly been used is a little disappointing. I am thinking maybe I could buy a set of rubbers from Halfords or somewhere and cut them down to fit.

I bought a set of stainless blades from Axel and the rubber separated as I set them up - utter rubbish
I'm going to purchase inserts as used for decades and see if that works better
Didn't even get to the MOT!

Re: Removing timing chain cover

fiat500 said:

I was impressed by how little was the crud that had collected in the filter;
PT1_1959 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr

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I did mine a couple of weeks ago, there was about 2.5mm of crud in the catcher.
I wondered where it had all come from, was like hard metal paste.
Engine runs perfectly, will do 65 on a dual carriageway.
I did wonder if it had ever been cleaned out.

Are you using non detergent oil that does not hold the crud in suspension.
A classic motor bike mate of mine said that modern oils are designed for filters, old fashioned oils are better with centrifugal crud catchers.

H A

My wipers failed on the first run in the rain
Halfords' refills are great and have lasted for ages. Just bend back the tab on your existing stainless blade and its a slide out and in job.
I lost my washer jets during the rebuild (later found them).
The replacements have mirrored the way yours have gone Tony. Give me original p_t_n_ every time.
On really old cars with no more than a gauze in the sump for filtration you definitely want low or no detergent oil. I believe the centrifugal filter to be a very efficient and sophisticated design; there are aftermarket centrifugals available for big trucks and the like. You need the particles of crud to be in suspension so they are taken along to the filter, otherwise we would be cleaning out the sump on a regular basis. For the time when these engines were designed, the filter "change" interval was relatively extended, which i think shows how good it is. I use classic 20W50 but I'm confident that a synthetic alternative with a wider viscosity range will be a good move at the next oil change.
Incidentally, perhaps we need a thread about sealants? I just discovered that your Hylomar has been bought out by my Permatite.

Cheers I'll take one of the wipers down to Halfords next time I am down that way and grab some refills.

Mine were the same ones Andrew bought by the sound of it as I got them from AG as well.