General 90 elx

[rawill]

I am wondering about buying a 1996 Punto 90ELX.
It has 150,000km and is for sale for NZ$2500.00

I wonder how big a job a cambelt change is on one of these.
I haven't found a guide or comments about it on here yet.

What other "special habits" do these cars have.

I am a longtime Uno owner.

 

[blu73]

the 90 is the 1.6 engine.. The 1.6 is a strong engine but its ancient and heavy. Personally i'd try find a 1.2 16v one over the 90 - so thats a Punto85 or 16v sporting. The engine is few bhp less powerful but you will find the car is alot lighter so it is lighter on its feet and a bit quicker.

 

[rawill]

So is the 1.6 the Lampredi engine like in the Fiat Tipo.

 

[blu73]

i know nothing of the tipo but i would imagine so.

(edit: clearly i know what a tipo is lol)

 

[rawill]

Thanks.
Loved the shambles when we were there in 2007.

 

[blu73]

it's certainly a mad little road, my parents had a shop down there when i was younger Its just kinda a shame all the shops are generic gift shops down there though if you ask me.

 

[fostertom]

The 90ELX is basically a long-stroke 8v Uno engine so ought to be familiar. Hard to understand how the original screamer (e.g. in 128SL) could be turned into such a plodder, ideal for Turkish 131 Estates, but really wrong in a Punto. Get 16v 85ELX instead, or even 8v 75ELX

 

[J.R Racing]

I'm going to go against the grain here and say if you can get a 90 go for it. Much of the engine design is similar to the GT so timing diagrams and maintenance parts are still easy to come by here in the UK.

Reasons as follows :

The 1.2 16v unit is notoriously hard to extract more power from and has a lot less torque than the 90 engine. Being a larger engine of course low down grunt is far more use-able on the 90. The 1.2 16v engine is an engine that needs to be driven hard to be appreciated. The 90 engine is much more docile and has more grunt on tap around Town etc....

The 1.6 engine was actually rated at 88bhp but is not highly strung as standard. It is common for an exhaust and intake modification to boost a 1.6 to near 100bhp, the 1.2 16v will struggle to make 3-4 horse power with the same modifications. There is also still that massive hole in low down torque too.

 

[fostertom]

I agree - don't expect to modify a 1.2 16v - for me it's perfect as-is - the revviness suits the car perfectly. For more power, a mk2 Sporting 1.4 16v + 6sp box (or Panda 100HP) is something I've been considering, but more likely to put into the 70SX Uno instead. In either case unmodified, but complete with all the engine electronics.

For lots of power, the older 1.2 8v ELX75 has great tuning potential, or yes the even older 1.6 8v as in ELX90, GT2/3 and later Fiats.

 

[blu73]

well if we're all gonna start about talking about fast/modded cars, just get a GT. Like a little rocket ship out of the box

 

[bluejohn125]

I would say go for it - precisely because of the engine.

It is the final incarnation of the superb Fiat SOHC engine that ran through the 127, 128, Ritmo / Strada, X19, and Tipo / Tempra. Very tough and well proven.

It got MPI as opposed to the basic SPI that the Tipos and (early) Tempras got, so BHP is good for the 1.6. With SPI the 1.6 had barely more HP than the 1.4, but more torque. In any case I've had 2 x late model 1.4 Tipos, they don't rev too bad (very restrictive filter / inlet setup) but they pull like a train.

I've also got a 1.2 16V Brava and that is indeed a wonderful little engine, punchy, revvy and economical. But I wouldn't worry about seeking one of these out for a Mk1 Punto, instead of a grunty, classic 90HP SOHC.

Spares etc should be fine, cambelt dead easy (need special tools for the 1.2 16V).

 

[fostertom]

It is the final incarnation of the superb Fiat SOHC engine that ran through the 127, 128, Ritmo / Strada, X19, and Tipo / Tempra

Not the 127 - that was similar, but shorter, smaller bore longer stroke different-everything 'Brazilian' engine - installed other way round in the engine bay and rotated opp direction.

Don't forget Uno and Puntos in that list - and according to [ame]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat_128_SOHC_engine[/ame] it runs on to present-day models, incl GM (USA) designed twin cam version.