Tuning 700cc of Brutality

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Tuning 700cc of Brutality

Phew! great to hear that it is all back in and running well. But, don't forget---you still have only drum brakes, and there is a fair chance that you will be tempted to drive the car more than a tad faster! If you can find them, try to get hold of a set of MK 1 '126' wheels. They have the same wheel-bolt spacing as the 500 (190 pcd), but are a shade wider.

I have got two of the early 126 wheel rims. As Tom says they are 1/2" wider than the 500 ones. I just sent them away for sand blasting to make them more saleable so they will be up for grabs when I get them back.
 
I have got two of the early 126 wheel rims. As Tom says they are 1/2" wider than the 500 ones. I just sent them away for sand blasting to make them more saleable so they will be up for grabs when I get them back.

Thank you, but I think I already have the larger rim as I've got 145/70R12 tires on it. Eventually I'd like to put a better looking 13" and front discs, but it's going to be quite some time.
 

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I feel a bit embarrassed by this, but can anyone tell me if this is the correct way to connect the newer alternator? I read through some previous forum articles and couldn't find what I needed. The first picture is original, the second is how I connected the original wires to the new alternator. I suspect it's not correct or there is another issue, because the battery is not being recharged while driving and the voltage reading while engine is running is very erratic. ??
 

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No, not at all. Should I have?

Yes the alternator on your beast looks a bit different to most? I don’t know if it’s because the black plastic cowling is missing that sits over the green bit?

The red and green wires appear to be going to a built in regulator on the side of the alternator, so it doesn’t need the original voltage regulator anymore. What a lot of people do is a to take the guts out of the existing mechanical voltage regulator on the firewall and use it as a junction box. In my case I just sourced a old one and gutted it, in case I ever want to revert back to originality.

Chris aka Bambino wrote up a little guide on what needs doing on this thread.
https://www.fiatforum.com/500-classic/209605-generator-alternator-conversion.html?p=2943093

Also Tom will be along soon to tell you to get rid of the fuel filter!:) It does look a bit dangerous, as both fuel pipes look split and you really don’t want it emptying out all over you electrics, as it could get a bit messy. The general consensus of opinion is they are not needed.

Also it looks like one of the nuts to hold the alternator to the tinwork is missing? Or it could be my eyesight?
 
From memory you have to connect the main big cables together, I’d have to dig out the drawing....

Search my 650cc engine swap thread, there was good info relating on that.
 
Me? tell anybody that they need to get rid of that fuel filter? Me-thinks you know me too well! And you have no need to worry, your eye sight IS sound---the top washer and nut securing the shrouding to the alternator IS missing.
 
Sorry everyone, but I'm just not getting it. I've read through the referenced threads and some threads referenced off of those, but there's a lot of mention of numbered terminals and colored wires. Mine has no numbers on the terminals and multiples of some wires. Doesn't help that my ohm meter isn't reading steady. Really struggling here. Does my regulator wiring look normal?
 

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Sorry everyone, but I'm just not getting it. I've read through the referenced threads and some threads referenced off of those, but there's a lot of mention of numbered terminals and colored wires. Mine has no numbers on the terminals and multiples of some wires. Doesn't help that my ohm meter isn't reading steady. Really struggling here. Does my regulator wiring look normal?

Looking at your first picture left hand terminal is 51, middle 67, right hand terminal 30.

What you are trying to do is shown below. Whoever drew the dynamo diagram did it physically the wrong way round but the wires are correct. You are only using the voltage regulator as a junction box, if you are going to do it that way you need to take all the guts out of it. The alternative is to use a simple junction box where you can join the wires together but it must be able to handle the current.

The two wires on the right hand terminal 30 need to join to the brown wire on the left hand terminal 51. Then the green wire on the left hand terminal 51 needs to join to the black wire on the centre terminal 67.
 

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I made the wiring changes as described but the system still isn't charging. Voltage at the battery while running is only 8.8-10.2 volts. Voltage tested between ground and the alternator terminals is highly erratic between about 10-14 volts. Should any of those wire combos have been mounted to a ground? And what about that wire mounted to the right of the case in the picture? I left it attached assuming it is a needed ground.
 

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The black "earth" wire does not exist on the standard 126 set up but a black wire does go to a spade connector located on the alternator to the left of the block spade connector from the rectifier unit. It is almost impossible to see with that white plastic block connector in place.
 
Mine doesn't have that condenser looking part on the top left... also, getting erratic readings still when I disconnect the 2 wires from those posts. Even stranger still, my multimeter goes nuts as soon as it and the leads are in close proximity to the running engine, as if it's wildly spitting out electromagnetic energy to a profound extent.
 
I made the wiring changes as described but the system still isn't charging. Voltage at the battery while running is only 8.8-10.2 volts. Voltage tested between ground and the alternator terminals is highly erratic between about 10-14 volts. Should any of those wire combos have been mounted to a ground? And what about that wire mounted to the right of the case in the picture? I left it attached assuming it is a needed ground.

It looks like you've left all the internals of the dynamo control-box in place. As Tony Vitesse said, that is redundant when using an alternator and wired as shown is probably not helping at all.:eek:

Have you tried using temporary connecting blocks in order to keep the old regulator out of the setup and wiring up as in the diagram he provided?

The basics are that you need the output of the alternator connected exclusively to the battery. On the Fiat 500 that's done indirectly by connecting the thick wire from the A+ ring-terminal post on the alternator to the main starter terminal. That can be done directly with a new cable or by adapting the existing circuit.

And to "excite" the alternator you need a switchable feed to the input of the alternator; so that's the thin wire from the ignition lamp which carries battery voltage whenever the ignition is switched on..

You could try to arrange this basic setup and tidy things up afterwards if you get a good result. Some existing wires will be redundant.

PS. I am famously not an auto-electrican. Please correct me someone ....QUICKLY. :eek:
 
It looks like you've left all the internals of the dynamo control-box in place. As Tony Vitesse said, that is redundant when using an alternator and wired as shown is probably not helping at all.:eek:

Have you tried using temporary connecting blocks in order to keep the old regulator out of the setup and wiring up as in the diagram he provided?

The picture was taken before I changed the wiring, sorry for the confusion. At the moment the wire sets are connected to each other by bolts and nuts, and insulated from the other components and each other, until I have success and will then mount them more permanently.
 
Mine doesn't have that condenser looking part on the top left... also, getting erratic readings still when I disconnect the 2 wires from those posts. Even stranger still, my multimeter goes nuts as soon as it and the leads are in close proximity to the running engine, as if it's wildly spitting out electromagnetic energy to a profound extent.


I would say your alternator may be faulty in the first instance or at least the rectifier......Mine does not have the condenser either, I'm assuming it may be a regional requirement?
 
As Dave (Toshi) says the black wire at the alternator end needs a female spade connector on it to plug into the male spade connector on the alternator. On the male connector on the alternator there should be 12v+ when the engine is running, all is does, is it joins the green wire up by the old VR and the green wire then goes to the generator warning light, so none of the wires need to be grounded.

The brown wires that join to the red, one goes down to the alternator, the thicker brown goes to the starter motor where it bolts together with the battery + lead to send the charging current back to the battery. The red wire goes to the fuse box. The condenser is probably an EMI suppressor to stop inference on a radio.

The fact that the alternator is giving out a voltage suggests the voltage regulator on the alternator is faulty. I would try that first. It looks from Toshi’s picture that it is a Magneti Marelli RT114A.
 
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