So, to try to round up the odyssey...
1) Got a butt-load of new parts: head bolts, HG set, timing and aux belts, timing belt tensioner, water pump, spark plugs, etc.
2) Got a butt-load of new tools: two torque wrenches (low and high range), some extra spanners and deep sockets, a spark plug removal socket, a valve spring compressor, a valve grinding suction cup stick, etc.
3) Since the cheapest I found an (untested) head for was £80
, I decided to do a £97 reweld, clean and skim off the old rusty cylinder head instead. Thank God for F J Payne here in Oxford!
4) Cleaned up all the valves and their components, ground the valves in and reset them all with new oil seals, with the spring compressor.
5) Screwed together the camshaft (bearings, sprocket), cleaned mating faces on head and block, laid down freshly opened, beautiful new HG, bolted down with the new head bolts (in correct order, torqued to 30Nm, then unwound 90 deg, then to 30Nm again, then 90 degrees tighter, then 90 degrees again, as per the instructions on the bolt box), screwed together the inlet and exhaust manifolds, the throttle body, the thermostat, the coil pack, etc.
6) Put on the timing belt, with new tensioner, tensioned it, put on timing cover, with cords wrapped inside.
7) Put on aux belts, going to tension them tmrw... Plus screwed back the ECU, all the wires, bits and bobs, etc.
Finally, we get to the last remaining questions before I can FINALLY take Frankie for a well-deserved ride...
1) I've found a couple of stray pieces while putting everything back together. I suspect they were left by previous work, as I'm pretty sure I didn't ever remove them...
First of all, there's this soft rubbery nipple-sort of thing, which I assume is for covering some plug or something. Any ideas?


Then, there's this brass-coloured collet, which has oil on it, but other than that, I can't for the life of me figure out where it belongs, if anywhere in the car?!


2) On a related note, there's an M8 bolt (coarse thread, i.e. x 1.25), about 45mm long or so, which seem to belong together with a 90 degree bent metal piece that says "Fiat Lancia" on it. I've tried to be really good at keeping all screws and pieces well organized, but this one has me stumped. I suspect I removed it (as opposed to the two previous miscellaneous finds), but can't figure out where from.


The only other immediately obvious M8's I can think of are to hold the inlet and exhaust manifolds to the head, but they're all nuts, not bolts! :bang: I've got the camshaft and crankshaft sprockets screwed in with their bolts, I've got the alternator and power steering block screwed in with their original bolts (never removed them, so), Never unmounted the engine block itself. I just can't figure out where it comes from!! To whatever extent it helps, here's the bits I've unscrewed at some point:
ECU, TB, cylinder head, crankshaft pulley, camshaft cover, camshaft sprocket, camshaft, water pump, inlet and exhaust manifolds, coil pack. That's it...
3) Finally, how on earth do I go about setting proper tension for the alternator and power steering belts? Pry bar against the engine block? I just can't seem to get the "adjuster bolt" to adjust, as per the Haynes manual, but trying to push them to tension just results in slack belts!
Thanks in advance, people. You've collectively made me into a fledgling mechanic! :slayer:
Cheers,
/oboojoe
PS - Soon to come: total expenditure on parts, tools, etc.
1) Got a butt-load of new parts: head bolts, HG set, timing and aux belts, timing belt tensioner, water pump, spark plugs, etc.
2) Got a butt-load of new tools: two torque wrenches (low and high range), some extra spanners and deep sockets, a spark plug removal socket, a valve spring compressor, a valve grinding suction cup stick, etc.
3) Since the cheapest I found an (untested) head for was £80
4) Cleaned up all the valves and their components, ground the valves in and reset them all with new oil seals, with the spring compressor.
5) Screwed together the camshaft (bearings, sprocket), cleaned mating faces on head and block, laid down freshly opened, beautiful new HG, bolted down with the new head bolts (in correct order, torqued to 30Nm, then unwound 90 deg, then to 30Nm again, then 90 degrees tighter, then 90 degrees again, as per the instructions on the bolt box), screwed together the inlet and exhaust manifolds, the throttle body, the thermostat, the coil pack, etc.
6) Put on the timing belt, with new tensioner, tensioned it, put on timing cover, with cords wrapped inside.
7) Put on aux belts, going to tension them tmrw... Plus screwed back the ECU, all the wires, bits and bobs, etc.
Finally, we get to the last remaining questions before I can FINALLY take Frankie for a well-deserved ride...
1) I've found a couple of stray pieces while putting everything back together. I suspect they were left by previous work, as I'm pretty sure I didn't ever remove them...
First of all, there's this soft rubbery nipple-sort of thing, which I assume is for covering some plug or something. Any ideas?


Then, there's this brass-coloured collet, which has oil on it, but other than that, I can't for the life of me figure out where it belongs, if anywhere in the car?!


2) On a related note, there's an M8 bolt (coarse thread, i.e. x 1.25), about 45mm long or so, which seem to belong together with a 90 degree bent metal piece that says "Fiat Lancia" on it. I've tried to be really good at keeping all screws and pieces well organized, but this one has me stumped. I suspect I removed it (as opposed to the two previous miscellaneous finds), but can't figure out where from.


The only other immediately obvious M8's I can think of are to hold the inlet and exhaust manifolds to the head, but they're all nuts, not bolts! :bang: I've got the camshaft and crankshaft sprockets screwed in with their bolts, I've got the alternator and power steering block screwed in with their original bolts (never removed them, so), Never unmounted the engine block itself. I just can't figure out where it comes from!! To whatever extent it helps, here's the bits I've unscrewed at some point:
ECU, TB, cylinder head, crankshaft pulley, camshaft cover, camshaft sprocket, camshaft, water pump, inlet and exhaust manifolds, coil pack. That's it...
3) Finally, how on earth do I go about setting proper tension for the alternator and power steering belts? Pry bar against the engine block? I just can't seem to get the "adjuster bolt" to adjust, as per the Haynes manual, but trying to push them to tension just results in slack belts!
Thanks in advance, people. You've collectively made me into a fledgling mechanic! :slayer:
Cheers,
/oboojoe
PS - Soon to come: total expenditure on parts, tools, etc.