Engine Swap

You guys and ladies on fiat forum have all been so helpful so far with the brakes and everything else that im hoping you will be able to help me with a different issue. My bravo (1.6 Hlx) has so far got 106,000 miles on the clock, and up to this day (touch wood) has never given me any trouble BUT i know that my luck can't last forever so im contemplating buying a spare engine for it and keep it at home for the day that mine goes boom but although im impressed with my 1.6 ive heard many good stories of the 1.8 but now would it be more than its worth trying to switch to a 1.8, would i have to change the wiring loom and the ecu or could i use the same ecu and loom? If there is to much involved i would rather keep the same 1.6 in the car and also what are the chances of fitting a 6 speed punto sporting box in it?(not that 6 gears are really necessary but is definitely loads more fun )

You will need to swap everything over from the doner car, including wiring loom, ECU etc. 1.8 (115) have ABS as standard so if yours doesn't have it then your going to need to work around this. Basically its not worth the time or trouble. Alot more effort changing an engine to another.

I also wouldn't bother with another spare 1.6 engine. It is a straight swap as long as its the MK2 1.6 engine as there where small differences in the Mk1 engine compared to the MK2. However i think your best option is to not go throwing money away, the Bravo is a cheap car to buy nowadays, if it gets moderately damaged it'll be written off instantly.

Use your money to service the car per service interval and use good quality oil, drive your car sensibly, renew filters, spark plugs, basically keep up with general maintanence and the car will last a long time.

I also wouldn't worry about the engine going first, it'll more than likely be your clutch or gearbox first.

I will definitely do that but i dont think i will have the car here much longer as i want to send it back to south africa so the guys there can see what a fiat really is as they are so unreliable and besides we didnt get the bravo there but if i do get a spare engine it will be from a mark 2 and i will keep the 1.6 setup then but thanks anyway.

106k is nothing on a modern engine. if well maintained and not abused, it will do 200k before a major overhaul is needed. as Joske says there are plenty of other things that will need replacing first (pretty much everything in the drivetrain, suspension, steering and breaks).

if you want a 1.8 buy a 1.8, dont waste time and money converting your 1.6. bravo's are so cheap these days that it would be cheaper to buy a 1.8.

you cant fit the 6 speed box to a 1.6 or 1.8 engine. you could fit it to a 1.2 bravo (same engien as punto 16v). someone on the forum is already considering this project.

Yup no point having a spare engine lying around seizing up in the shed, after all you engine may be fine for many yrs to come and by that time you may want a whole different thing!

Cool thanks Jug i was wondering about the 6 speed box cos i saw a 6speed punto sporting in portugal and thought it would be interesting to see what it would be like in a bravo but i dont know what engine the punto had in all honesty.

my girlfriend has a mk2 punto 6speed sporting, its the same 1.2 16v fitted to the bravo. its a great gearbox, if i could fit it to my car i definately would.

the mk1 to mk2 1600 engine swap is possible, but its a ball ache to say the least, em and a mate did one last year and it involved stripping the cam belt pulleys off and retrofitting sensors etc etc etc... alot of work!