Hey all!
So I'm new to the Fiat world, though I've been an Alfa man for some time now! I just picked up my first Fiat that I'm going to keep. (I had one a few months ago that my Alfa Super restorer had to have!)

I just picked up this 1966 Bambina in Scottsdale, AZ and hauled it back to San Diego.

The car is in great shape. It has obviously been re-sprayed, but the body work appears to be pretty good. Everything is acceptable for me to keep as is, except for the carpets, which need to be replaced. I've already sourced a RHD red carpet kit for less than $100! Love it!

This car is great, in that it is a proper New Zealand delivery car, with New Zealand documentation still apparent on the car. It has the 17 digit VIN and the Made Specifically for Torino Motors, Auckland, NZ tag on the gas tank! I've never had a RHD car before, so this ought to be fun. Getting a CA title for it may be interesting, but I'm pretty confident!

It does have a few quirks I need to sort. The first being that it doesn't run great without the choke on. I just ordered a carb rebuild kit, which I'm sure will solve the problem. I'm sure the jets are clogged a bit as the car sat for some time.

Next up will be the finicky wiring, which I'm not much of a stranger to, dealing with Alfas. The right headlight turns on with the ignition, two out of the three brake lights work, and I'm not sure any of the turn signals work. First instinct is that I need a new high/low beam and turn signal stalk. I haven't dug into any of that yet, that's just my initial opinion.

Here are a few pics! Looking forward to the Fiat life!

Chase

Welcome to the forum Chase. There have been a lot of new members recently.....cars as Christmas presents maybe?
Yours looks neat with original-looking seats and well-preserved in other respects from your description.
My kind of car.

Welcome to the Forum Chase. Must admit, I had a good chuckle when you mentioned that it is a RHD (ex New Zealand) car in the U.S. of A. Most of the cars coming up for sale here in the UK are ex Italy, so are LHD! The wiring is fairly simple (for an Italian car!), but if you need a copy of the wiring diagram, e-mail me direct with an address, and I will put a copy into the post to you. Enjoy your 'wee beastie'---you will get a lot of interest at shows and a great deal of fun out of her.

Hi Chase;
had a think about your carb problem. If the car has been sitting around for some time there is a fair chance that the lighter elements in the fuel have evaporated off, leaving gungy residue. (a) this will block up jets but (b) it will also block up the smaller internal passages in the carb. Do you have a local 'speed shop' with "ultrasound" equipment? On this side of 'the pond' this is normal method for cleaning out old carbs. If you can do this as well as fitting an overhaul kit, there is a fair chance that you will have cured the carb fault. The 'choke' is not a choke in the accepted way, in that there is no 2nd butterfly blanking (literally, choking) off the air flow to encourage a richer mixture, but a 'fuel-enrichment device'. Normally, this device gives very little problem.

Welcome ChiapC. I am looking forward to seeing another Fiat 500 in some San Diego car shows besides my own.

The carb on my car was a disaster when I bought it, not having been run for 6 years. I have a proper parts washing tank. But even that cleaning fluid was not strong enough. What worked perfectly was soaking the carb in lacquer thinner over night. Carb came out looking new. That lacquer thinner literally dissolved everything.
John
Here's the before pictures.

jjacob said:

The carb on my car was a disaster when I bought it, not having been run for 6 years. I have a proper parts washing tank. But even that cleaning fluid was not strong enough. What worked perfectly was soaking the carb in lacquer thinner over night. Carb came out looking new. That lacquer thinner literally dissolved everything.

John

Here's the before pictures.

Click to expand...

Any after pictures John? Also what laquer thinner did you use?

Damian

Sorry, I did not take any after pictures. I have attached a picture of the carb installed on the current 500cc engine.
The lacquer thinner is the cheap kind that you can buy at home improvement stores. See picture.
When using lacquer thinner you must use it outdoors. Also wear gloves. It is a very strong solvent. Make sure all plastics and rubber are removed from carburetor, needle valves, etc.
John

I have this in offer 28 Carb for €85 reconditioned like new

Hi Chase

Good looking car and nice to hear where a New Zealand car has ended up.

I'm in New Zealand (British ex-pat) and have also been restoring a 1966 500. Frustratingly close to being on the road.

New Zealand is a great source of RHD cars and parts, it seems to me. Let me know if you have any NZ specific questions.

Tim

Thanks for all the welcoming posts!

I've never heard of a New Zealand car being here in the states, as it had to cover quite the distance to get here, but sure enough.... Here it is! Not that it matters much, and I've seen a few threads, but I'm wondering if the RHD adds more appeal to the car. I've always thought it would be fun to own one sometime, and here we are!

It's a high probability of the carb having deposits inside that are blocking the proper flow. I'll do everything I'm comfortable with myself and see how it runs. If that doesn't work out, I have a good carb shop who will restore it to good as new for very cheap, as its TINY!

Ricambi - I appreciate the offer for the carb, I'll let ya know if I end up needing one once I tinker with the one on the car!

The Hobbler, I'll be messaging you with my address shortly! Thank you for the offer!

I agree that the car appears to be kept pretty original. I was initially going to re-do the seats, but they are in fair shape and the patina is quite nice, so they'll stay!

Hoping to have the carb sorted out by this weekend to see what she's like when she's actually running well!

Digging into my lights a bit more, its all a little strange, really leaning towards the stalk switches still.

Right headlight comes on with ignition. Stays on when lights turned on, both headlights illuminate when brights are turned on. Maybe the low filament is burnt out on the left and both headlights are supposed to be on with ignition?

Left turn signal works, slowly. Right turn signal will illuminate, but not flash....

Whoever painted the car didn't bother to remove the wires, so their all TAN until I clean them up a bit!

Hi Chase;
Your comment regarding the painter covering all the wiring with paint might be a clue to your electrical problems---check that all your 'earthing' wires are actually doing that and that they haven't just been bolted up against paint--which is a reasonably good insulator! I got your e-mail, will put a copy of the wiring diagram into the post "il piu rapidemente possible"
(just practising my Italian)

the hobbler said:

Hi Chase;
Your comment regarding the painter covering all the wiring with paint might be a clue to your electrical problems---check that all your 'earthing' wires are actually doing that and that they haven't just been bolted up against paint--which is a reasonably good insulator! I got your e-mail, will put a copy of the wiring diagram into the post "il piu rapidemente possible"
(just practising my Italian)

Click to expand...

Welcome

Reading this thread from the start, earth problems was my first thought as well. When i picked my car up it also had lights doing all sorts of strange things and they were all fixed by getting the earth wires to ground properly.

Cheers
Geoff

I'll work on the ground problems, but first I want her running right! Did a light rebuild on the carb, only to realize the gas was red, uh-oh!

Pulled the gas tank and sure enough there were plenty of rusty bits inside. Taking the tank to get cleaned and coated today. Then I'm gonna clean all the fuel systems and put her back together. Should be a world of difference!

Welcome to the forum
What a lovely RHD Nuova 500 F

Hi, although not a mechanical problem I made a soda blaster to clean the exterior of my carb,worked wonders and took 5 mins(I had to replace it in the end,the repair to the broken flange dud'nt hold)