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General Murphio's Meanderings

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General Murphio's Meanderings

I don't think the 123 is an admission of defeat at all it's just bringing things up to date and making them more reliable. I have never heard of a 123 distributor failing completely and leaving anyone stranded. If it ever happened it's a 10 minute job to swap out the 123 for the original points setup distributor, if you carry it as a spare. It's a lot easier and quicker than playing around with points and condensor at the roadside.

Fiat themselves did it when they eventually went to the dual coil and a distributor with points and no king lead. Followed by the 126 which eventually when to the fully electronic ignition made by Magneti Marelli with the sensor on the flywheel that has no timing adjustment at all. They just removed some of the potential points of failure to do improve reliability.

I can't remember the number of times when my 500 was running a bit rough and I have checked the obvious bits only to find the points have had a mind of their own and adjusted themselves for no apparent reason.
 
With his points working well, I could hear that Murf was feeling much better and so we decided to test out all the re-assembled bits and pieces and hit the road again.
FOR_2582 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
This time we were heading on a 250 mile round trip up the Pass of Glencoe and to Port Appin, a tiny village on the opposite coast of Scotland to where we live.
FOR_2971 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
At Appin I had to leave Murphio by the roadside as even he was too big for the tiny passenger ferry I took to the island of Lismore.
FOR_2843 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
Everything seems back to normal apart from the fact occasional backfire that I used to have when over-running is back. I've weakened the mixture a touch and tomorrow I'll retard the ignition a bit. Setting the static timing with the continuity tester of the multimeter is so accurate that I guess it shows up any minor misalignment I made have made with the timing marks.
All oil leaks completely sorted after some very hot running tests.:eek:
What a day...the right weather, the right scenery and obviously...the right car.:)
 
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That's quite a trek! How long did that take you to get there?

Good to hear he's behaving again. Probably wanted a rest.:D
 
Vitesse said:
That's quite a trek! How long did that take you to get there?

Good to hear he's behaving again. Probably wanted a rest.:D
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No rest for Murphio...he's got a lot of lost years sleeping to make up for.

It took about three and a quarter hours for the 125 miles each way. I could have saved 15 minutes and a litre of fuel by using the modern, but he's got a broken spring so I preferred not to chance it....I prefer a more solid vehicle:D
I could have used Sheila's modern 500 but it's too cramped.:rolleyes:
 
Glad to see that Murphio is back to robust health Peter---the mileage that you regularly achieve with your 'wee beastie' is a credit to both you and the car! Who quoted you for the Swiftune 'Competition Condenser'? According to their web-site, the condenser is £30.24p (inc. VAT)---I can't believe that they want to charge over a tenner for postage---I bought mine direct from Swiftune and the figure of £32 springs to mind, inclusive of postage.
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the hobbler said:
I can't believe that they want to charge over a tenner for postage
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Almost everyone (in the UK) seems to consider The Scottish Highlands as fair game for extortionate postage...often, even when they use the universal Royal Mail.

I'm thinking, take the £40 off the £200 that the 123 costs and (using the sort of economics that politicians use), the 123 seems a lot cheaper.:D
 
fiat500 said:
Almost everyone (in the UK) seems to consider The Scottish Highlands as fair game for extortionate postage...often, even when they use the universal Royal Mail.

I'm thinking, take the £40 off the £200 that the 123 costs and (using the sort of economics that politicians use), the 123 seems a lot cheaper.:D
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Or 5 condensor and loads of money saved on points.;)

You know it makes sense!!!!

I started Luigi yesterday, I am sad to say first time this year, as I am I fair weather driver. You wouldn't believe how smoothly he ran, the engine was purring, it didn't miss a beat. I am convinced this is due to the 123.
 
Vitesse said:
Or 5 condensor and loads of money saved on points.;)

You know it makes sense!!!!

I started Luigi yesterday, I am sad to say first time this year :mad:, as I am I fair weather driver. You wouldn't believe how smoothly he ran,:) the engine was purring, it didn't miss a beat. I am convinced this is due to the 123.
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:D:D:D
I started Murphio at 08.45 for the first time today:D and he growled smoothly all the way to the Post Office. I daren't tell him that such a thing as the 123 exists; he knows he deserves the best. He'll have to make do with his blue Bosch coil for the time being.:D
 
Enough of sitting on the fence over the 123 system. The distributor was not the cause of my recent problems, nor has it ever given me any concerns.......apart from one thing. The drive gear is fixed to the shaft by a tight-fitting pin with peened ends. The pin is very slim as it doesn't carry a great load. The pin on mine was damaged by removal when restoring as the distributor was stuck in place after 43 years at a standstill. I obtained the appropriate sized, stainless roll-pin but was never really happy with it not having the original, presumably silver-steel pin. When I took it out the other day I found a certain mount of play in the fit if the drive cog....not good. This is a photo of the spare I have carried for the last six months, which came from my rusty wreck; it also has a sloppy fitting pin.
FOR_3223 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
So one of my reasons for considering the 123 was that you get a new distributor with this item factory-fitted. One of the advantages of the 500 unit over the 126 is that the bottom half of the distributor is separate from the business end. I now see that Axel Gerstl stock rebuilt driven ends for the very reasonable price of E35.00. I'm going to order one and think about the Swiftune condenser. I'm currently using an tidy, original condenser from my 900 van and have the new spare which has served me well these last 8,000 miles.
 
My original distributor is a 126 one like you describe i.e. You can't separate it. It was fitted to the car when I bought it, so I have never the joy of removing half it to have a tinker about, which is one reason why I finally went 123. In the past I had to pull the whole thing out and make sure I remembered that it went back in the right place.
 
Vitesse said:
I have never the joy of removing half it to have a tinker about
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You're not missing much Tony. I have only ever needed to separate it when originally trying to extract it from the crankcase.

Question: Which is better for transporting four grandchildren and two grandparents?....a classic or a modern Fiat 500? Answer: Neither.
We ended up using both. The overwhelming vote was to be taken in the "old car", but in the end, the load was spread 50/50.
IMG_20160424_133422284_HDR by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
No real oil leakage occurred over the 60 miles, but there was a slight burnt oil smell at times. By cleaning the engine it had made it easy to see a very small seepage from (hopefully) only one of the four studs screwed into the crankcase which secures the exhaust brackets. Out is came to be cleaned up and be replaced with a wipe of threadlocking fluid. One more job done.:)
 
The sun was shining at 6am this morning, so it would have been churlish to take the modern car all the way to Laudale on Loch Sunart on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula.
http://www.unique-cottages.co.uk/co...namurchan/sunart-moidart-ardnamurchan/laudale
However, the weather deteriorated significantly on the way so here we are, over a hundred miles from home and wondering are we going to get back today?
FOR_3452 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
Luckily the weather went back into reverse on the way back and little Murf, who had attracted a great deal of attention and lots of compliments on the short Corran Ferry and from the owners of the cottage I was photographing, really pulled out the stops on the way back. And it was an even better driving experience than usual. Here's just a three minute sample sequence as we tackle a fairly challenging hilly section.
[ame]https://youtu.be/QxSw_Ew0vlY[/ame]
 
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Flying along!!! I like the way the two cars on the other side of the road moved over and stopped. They must have thought what is that little blue thing flying towards us?????

How fast did you get up to on the long straight after the cattle grid? I would have been giving it foot to the floor down there, lovely bit of road.
 
Vitesse said:
Flying along!!! I like the way the two cars on the other side of the road moved over and stopped. They must have thought what is that little blue thing flying towards us?????

How fast did you get up to on the long straight after the cattle grid? I would have been giving it foot to the floor down there, lovely bit of road.
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Yes, there is a certain etiquette to using these single-track roads and when you're a local you generally get quite good at it. If you do it right then it's give and take so that you have to pull in roughly 50% of the time. But in the Fiat, I find that the confidence I gain from knowing my tiny car can squeeze past in most situations leads to me keeping the foot down when most other drivers would be hesitant. It's that hesitance that looses the game. Although some drivers might read this as aggressive driving, most of them are smiling and welcome the chance to get a slightly longer look at the little blue bomb.

The road I was on starts with a very steep (2nd gear) hill for about two miles but then zooms along like a rollercoaster for about ten miles. Murphio has started feeling more comfortable at nearer 55mph now and on the fast bits today it would have been about 60 for short periods. Downhill on that straight bit I am sure we could have touched 70 but I am a bit nervous of spinning the engine over past 4000 rpm.(n)
 
Hi Andrew;
Sorry for the slow response to your question----been away doing grand-fatherly duties. The Swiftune condenser that you gave me is still on my distributor and doing a sterling, 'never broke down' duty. The condenser that I got was for a (non-UK) friend who was struggling with condenser/ignition problems. He has fitted it to his car--never missed a beat since! the plan in the very near future, as I have about 3 weeks to my next show, is to fit a simple 'Hall Effect' electronic ignition (AccuSpark) and keep the distributor with the Swiftune condenser built up as a 'pop-in' spare should I ever need it. I was very grateful for your gift, it turned out to be a 'fit it and forget it' part.
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I am planning to get "Swiftuned" quite soon. It has been a revelation to me what a difference even a good ignition coil can make. Murf is a smooth-running machine, but the substitution of a blue Bosch coil has made him so regular that I have started drifting up towards 60mph when I previously found the natural speed to be about 50. This was preparation for possibly installing the 123. I had wondered what the fuss was all about regarding the coil and frankly I was sceptical, but I did my research, finding there were lots of variations and counterfeits.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/360651813520?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
This turned out OK.
Today we made it to one of our local-ish castles.
FOR_3664 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
This is a private, family house called Kinkell. The castle was restored from a derelict shell (a bit like Murphio)in the early '70s by a renowned and very talented artist. It has a beautiful cottage which can be rented.
http://www.unique-cottages.co.uk/cottages/highlands/ross-cromarty/bj6-kinkell-castle-cottage
 
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Peter;
If you (or anybody else for that matter) do fit a 'Swiftune' Condensor, I found that the easiest way was to get a rubber coated 'P' bracket, and secure the 'P' bracket in the same place that the standard condenser fitting bracket fits with a slightly longer screw--putting the 'Earth' lead between the 2 parts of the 'P' bracket. You may find that you have to make up a new lead to your coil--simply put a male/female union on the wire to extend it and a ring terminal to affix to coil---simples!
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