General Introduction and my new 1969 500L

[Katie B]

Hi Katie;
looking at some of your earlier messages, are you planning to retain your old gearbox or fit a 126 gearbox as well as a 126 engine? If you retain the original gearbox you will need to change the bell housing on the gearbox as the 500 bell-housing will NOT fit onto a 126 engine (among other things, different starter location). I can supply a source for 126 bell-housings.

Hi, I am planning to purchase the engine and gearbox from ricambifiat in Poland. I've read some good reviews and their prices seem good. It comes with a reconditioned starter and driveshafts to fit a 500. Are there any ancillaries that I'll need to replace that are different to the standard 500 ones?

Thanks,

Katie

 

[Katie B]

Wise words from Andrew. I'm a tight-fisted chancer and tried to get away with slightly worse corrosion, cleaned-up well and repaired using epoxy putty etc. After a couple of months' use, the stink of petrol indicated that I needed a new tank.

Hi, I didn't think it looked too bad? (although this is new to me) The pitting looked fairly minor and was cleaned back to bare metal then treated with rust converter. Here is a pic of the pitting before rust treatment, let me know what you think.

Thanks for the replies, I appreciate the advice.



Thanks,

Katie

 

[AndrewHarvey]

These tanks are constructed of very thin material.
In my opinion I would put a new one in......they are small beer in relation to your overall spend - but if it leaks the results are potentially catastrophic
I would replace all of the rubber fuel line as well
It's all 45 years old and rubber degrades.....

 

[Katie B]

I have a FACTORY workshop manual for the 500--if you would like copies of the pages relating to chassis measurements and suspension angles, contact me direct with your address and I will put them into the post to you (or, if you wish as I am only about 28 miles from you, bring them over)
Did you get my e-mail regarding the fact that I have some details of the 2nd rotisserie that I was chasing on your behalf? Again, if you contact me I will let you have all the info that I have on both of the rotisseries that I was trying to find info on.

That would be awesome thanks! I'll PM you me address for postage.

 

[fiat500]

Hi, I didn't think it looked too bad? (although this is new to me) The pitting looked fairly minor and was cleaned back to bare metal then treated with rust converter. Here is a pic of the pitting before rust treatment, let me know what you think.

Thanks for the replies, I appreciate the advice.



Thanks,

Katie

That is quite deep.The trouble is that it gets porous and seeps out rather than floods out and petrol seems to dislodge even the best of plastic-based sealants after a time. The good thing is that the tank is fairly easy to remove if you decide to go with it and it eventually fails. The downside is that the leaking petrol damages paint; now how do I know that?

 

[Michael Dranfield]

Hi, I didn't think it looked too bad? (although this is new to me) The pitting looked fairly minor and was cleaned back to bare metal then treated with rust converter. Here is a pic of the pitting before rust treatment, let me know what you think.

Thanks for the replies, I appreciate the advice.



Thanks,

Katie

For what it's worth if you want to make a perfectionist job I would be using a rust dissolver rather than a rust converter and inspect all the pits with a jewelers eyeglass before priming with a zinc galvanising paint and then top coat with black Finnegan's hammerite.

 

[jackpe]

Nice project!

I've just driven mine back from italy and am also going to do a 126 conversion over winter. I bought a second hand engine and gearbox and the driveshaft kit.
Good luck with yours!

 

[Katie B]

Nice project!

I've just driven mine back from italy and am also going to do a 126 conversion over winter. I bought a second hand engine and gearbox and the driveshaft kit.
Good luck with yours!

Thanks! I watched the video in your thread, made me jealous I didn't do the same. Mine was imported from Italy earlier this year by the previous owner.
Good luck with the conversion, I look forward to reading about it.

 

[Michael Dranfield]

Katie.if you want some tips on de rusting small parts search my post.How to remove rust with just water.

 

[Katie B]

A little update...I haven't done much since November. Mainly concentrating on stripping paint and underseal at the moment and installing a new airline set up for tools and spraying (when I eventually get to that stage!) Here are a few pics. I will find a better way of doing this soon as I have so many! Maybe an instagram account or something.

Katie

 

[Katie B]

Heat gun works a treat

 

[Katie B]

Many layers, looks like a gobstopper!

 

[Katie B]

Coming along

 

[Katie B]

I find these bits quite satisfying. Looking good underneath all the sealant so far...

 

[Katie B]

I've taken a high res copy of this in the hope of getting it printed and put back on

 

[Katie B]

Air line including moisture traps

 

[Katie B]

Hooked up to this

 

[thepuddlejumper]

Looking good, I also like the air setup.

Ralph

 

[enzothe500]

Great work. i've had a 1970 500L for a little over a year and you are miles ahead of me on the restoration. i've subscribed to the thread to keep up to date with you work.

 

[Katie B]

So I'm currently sorting through the parts and ordering replacements for those that need replacing and I have a few questions I'm hoping you can help with (sorry there are quite a few!)

My front panel is slightly bent from what looks to be a slight tap on one of the bumper sides. This has slightly pushed in the area where the bumper mounts, and distorted the battery tray, so I’d like to replace both of these. What’s the easiest way to remove the front panel? I presume its spot welded around the inner/lower flange, so do I drill these out and carefully chisel them apart? Where sells the best quality replacement panels? Van der Laan, Alex Gerstl etc.

I am ordering a reconditioned 650cc engine from a 126 along with (I think) a 500R gearbox. I wish to retain the original pedal box and hand choke so I assume that end of the associated cables will need to be the same as a 500 but the 650 version is presumably different (e.g. shorter cables, different ends). Which version will I need to buy?

Also for the starter pull cable, I’ve assumed I’ll need a 126 cable – will this fit the standard 500 pull lever in the cabin?

Also, I assume when fitting a 650 engine I need to blank off the return line from the carb, and fit a standard 500 fuel sender?

Can I do away with the hand throttle cable?

Thanks!

Katie