Northern Auto Tech - ECU and Blue & Me Repairs

General Murphio's Meanderings

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General Murphio's Meanderings

One small, but somewhat important, detail---you CANNOT time an electronic ignition 'statically'---you HAVE to use a timing light (AccuSpark do a very neat one for a sensible price).
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I do mine purely by the sound of the engine Tom. Slacken the distributor nut, turn until engine sounds good then tighten nut. Had a bad electrical fire when I tried using a timing strobe!
 
TBH, I haven't had problems with points or condenser and the engine runs like a dream.
So I'm not planning any changes in a hurry.
I set the timing spot on at 10 degrees and had a slight backfire on over-run. So, a bit like Damian, I tweaked it randomly to advance slightly and now it couldn't be smoother.
I think this is acceptable because each engine and even the fuel used is not identical.
 
Poor old Murf, still stuck on his ISO DIN rated ramp as I needed to let the infamous silicone gasket sealant on his gearbox have time to cure before refilling with oil.
But he couldn't really have meandered today as he would have barely been able to help on a mercy mission to "rescue" a 126 gearbox and engine from Fraserburgh.
FOR_3890 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
Even my very sturdy modern C3 Picasso really felt the weight as the lump was shoved in.
FOR_3887 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
The gent (for he was!) who relieved me of my hard-earned, explained that it had been removed from a 500. "A 126?" I suggested as a correction, but no, it was a 500 that his kids (the one I met looked nearly thirty) used to drive around his field.
So obviously I asked about the fate and possible existence of said 500, and where any other parts might be. But it was scrapped as it was too rusty.!!!:bang::bang::bang:
The engine turns nicely and the delapidated appearance is better than the Ebay pics showed. So, "WHY?", I hear you ask; the answer is the usual, "Why not?"
It was an amazing day and as I can't show Murphio on the beach, here is the beach on its own at the far north-eastern village of St. Combs.
FOR_3752 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
 
stevehg said:
Have you had the rocker and gearbox covers off to have a look at the internals?

cheers, Steve
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I didn't examine it before purchase, but I have now separated the two chunks so that I could get it out of the car. I've stripped part of the cowling and some of the ancillaries. So far, with the generous application of penetrating oil, I've not had any sheared or stripped studs or screws and it doesn't look like anyone's seriously messed with it before me.
The flywheel teeth are unchipped and the rockers are moving properly and not bent. Also, no leaks from the pushrod tubes (not that any of this matters as it's coming down to its components for a rebuild...it's looking promising.
 
Thats a bargain Peter. At least its the crankcase that you can use a distributor in, although i know some prefer it without.
The cowlings should be reusable after blasting, if not there are usually a few kicking around on e-bay. I might even have some spares!
Have you checked the gearbox yet for wear?

Lovely beach, my wife would like to swim in that sea, although she took a dip in ours 2 days ago and she said it was the coldest she has ever been in, so i imagine it wont be much warmer up there!
 
I'm going "off-topic" here and I'll try to resist going on about it after this post. But having stripped the engine of its covers I'm pleased with what I find. At one point, when turning it slowly, it puffed dust from out of the exhaust ports; so it's got good compression.
FOR_4117 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
The plan is to strip it completely, do a very careful measure of everything and then rebuild like Tony did; just replacing or machining where necessary.

The gearbox cover revealed the expected sort of "crunch" damage, but all is clean and seems to move correctly.
FOR_4120 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
 
Hmmhhh I like it, it's got plenty of patina, it has that nicely aged look about it.:D

So is Murf going to get a big brother in the shape of Mitchio with a big bore engine, oh ok a 650cc with synchro?
 
stevehg said:
Hi Peter

Do you have an aquablaster nearby, if yes they would do a great job cleaning up your casing and fins.

cheers, Steve
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We don't seem to have much of anything up here to help with car restoration, and as Tony's more than hinting at, I don't get too exercised by the "wrinkles" things acquire with age.
By the time engine bits have been cleaned and brushed thoroughly and been through a rebuild, they look OK to me.:eek:
Seeing as Tony won't try his 650 engine in Luigi,:p maybe I'll just have to do the comparison test myself. But really I don't have any particular reason for messing with another engine...it's just harmless fun.:)
 
fiat500 said:
But really I don't have any particular reason for messing with another engine...it's just harmless fun.:)
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Because you don't have anything else better to do with your time?
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Drive & maintain Murphio.
Rebuild Bluebell.
Rebuild Mitchio.
Finish the house.

Its amazing how solid these engines are under all those rusty panels.
They may have been a cheap car, but with a little maintenance these cars good go forever!
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You could leave the gearbox as it is and try it. Unfortunately the 1st gear always gets wear due to no synchro and drivers not waiting until stationary until slamming it into 1st. As long as the teeth are intact it should be ok. Otherwise you are looking at £180 plus for the gears. Unless of course like me you collect gearboxes and can salvage a good one.
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Yes, Sheila remarked today that I have a lot on.....she doesn't know the half of it.:sly:
I will check all moves correctly and change the seals. It should theoretically have the 500 drive shafts, but they look a bit rusty on the splines. I do collect gearboxes as Mitchio came with a dismantled spare. So I have good shafts.
To properly answer Tony, I am going to try the setup in Murphio so I have a comparison and Sheila can drive him for a bit. It's so easy to swap them back and forth.
 
We had a long trip today, even by our standards, covering 270 miles in a return journey.
FOR_4414 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
What a day and what a place to be hurtling round in a Fiat 500.
Our main destination was near Acharacle, which is out on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula, which is the sticky-out bit beyond Fort William.
FOR_4507 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
The pictures are all a bit samey...blue car, blue sky, blue sea.
FOR_4167 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
What a small world, both on the outward and return journeys firstly when filling with petrol and then when stopping for a bite to eat, I met a really nice man whose "Nonny" in Italy had a 500. It obviously had an emotional effect on him and on the second visit I was able to let his teenage son be photographed in the car; 500s bring out all the good people.
With such a hot day the engine was pushed hard but kept its cool and gave no problems. In fact, fuel economy was amazing...definitely in the late 50's mpg.
A problem with the new roof is that when unfurled, it flaps in side and tail winds. Today was particularly gusty and the banging was doing my head in; I need to think about that one.:mad: It's not often, in Scotland, that you need to drive with the roof and all he windows open.:)
 
Franko500 said:
you could try fitting the retaining bracket and strap that was fitted to the 500 D models.
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I could take a photo the strap on mine tomorrow for you to get an idea of the fitting. I can assure you it works well with East Anglian winds but I'm not sure about it dealing with those Scottish gales!:eek:
 
Excellent pics, as usual Peter, and murph it looks top notch with that background. Sounds like you made that man and his son have a great day too.

You'll have to stop posting these type of posts soon, as I've got to bite the bullet and put the 500 up for sale to make room and deliver the budget to do the RR. Especially as I know have two on the driveway, as I've sourced my donor for the 4.6 v8 and gearbox ;)

cheers, Steve
 
Steve, sounds like you're heading for fun and probably for a different forum. :)
Murf will fairly soon reach 10,000 miles with me at the wheel; at that point I think this thread better go to bed.
It seems to have turned into a mini-blog. .:eek:
 
fiat500 said:
Steve, sounds like you're heading for fun and probably for a different forum. :)
Murf will fairly soon reach 10,000 miles with me at the wheel; at that point I think this thread better go to bed.
It seems to have turned into a mini-blog. .:eek:
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I demand Murphio's Meanderings continue. It's not like you have anything else to do?

Oh apart from work, finishing the house, Mitchio, Bluebell and a 650 engine/gearbox rebuild. Probably loads more we don't know about.
 
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