General Murphio's Meanderings
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General Murphio's Meanderings
The term "reconditioned engine" is a long term much abused description along with "great little runner" & "low mileage" etc etc. It can mean anything from "it has been water blasted and now looks good" to the engine has been totally stripped , inspected by an engineer then rebuilt with all new parts where required. Either way you may still be dealing with some parts that are up to 60 years old in a rebuild. You could take a chance on a rebuilt unit but if you are able I would say have a go yourself if you are able to and you can call in experienced people when you need advice. Failing that get a reputable person to do this for you then at least you know what you have in the engine compartment at the end of the day.
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David, I will echo Toshi's advice.
I have had two engines in that car and stripped and reconditioned both of them; each time without feeling it necessary to have every component professional checked or machined. I have replaced some parts and with the first engine I fitted new pistons and had it rebored.
The current engine is a 650 and really does kick the car along. It accelerates to easily match most small modern cars and I am certain it will pass 70mph once I am brave enough to try.
The only reason the first engine failed on me was because the valve seats gave in and for a few months before that the performance had been deteriorating. In the days immediately before it kicked the bucket, I had one day when I struggled to hit 50mph which I blamed on a very strong headwind; I now think it was the valves.
You can remove the cylinder head whilst the engine is still in the car and it might be worth trying your hand at doing that. You can find out a lot about its condition and maybe pin down some causes of the problem from doing it. You may find it gives you confidence to go the whole way and if not, it would at least give you a "heads-up" before searching for an engineer. Of course all this assumes that you have already eliminated external causes of its lack of breath.
You're probably too far away from most of us to make it economical, but I think the best Fiat 500 engine and bodywork restorers are on this Forum and there are several I would be happy to have build me an engine if I didn't get such a kick out of it myself.
I have had two engines in that car and stripped and reconditioned both of them; each time without feeling it necessary to have every component professional checked or machined. I have replaced some parts and with the first engine I fitted new pistons and had it rebored.
The current engine is a 650 and really does kick the car along. It accelerates to easily match most small modern cars and I am certain it will pass 70mph once I am brave enough to try.
The only reason the first engine failed on me was because the valve seats gave in and for a few months before that the performance had been deteriorating. In the days immediately before it kicked the bucket, I had one day when I struggled to hit 50mph which I blamed on a very strong headwind; I now think it was the valves.
You can remove the cylinder head whilst the engine is still in the car and it might be worth trying your hand at doing that. You can find out a lot about its condition and maybe pin down some causes of the problem from doing it. You may find it gives you confidence to go the whole way and if not, it would at least give you a "heads-up" before searching for an engineer. Of course all this assumes that you have already eliminated external causes of its lack of breath.
You're probably too far away from most of us to make it economical, but I think the best Fiat 500 engine and bodywork restorers are on this Forum and there are several I would be happy to have build me an engine if I didn't get such a kick out of it myself.
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Yes, I see your points and thanks for encouraging it. My compression has been lowish and without taking the engine apart I suspect general wear. I felt it better to pay someone who understands engines to do it and have less time off the road. I'm in the W. Mids where there are still plenty of engineering shops around. Its nice to see the pictures of your adventurous travels Peter!
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I misunderstood and thought I was seeing the NZ flag waving under your moniker.
If in the UK there are plenty of places where you could get an exchange, rebuilt engine. You could minimise costs by getting a short engine without all the ancillaries.
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The odometer is now heading towards the 50,000 miles mark and we did a hectic 250 miles today towards Glencoe and Glen Etive. This is the time of year when you can see lots of other classic cars in the Highlands, but usually they are in big convoys for "safety" and camaraderie...I've just got Murf to rely on and he's just got me.
MAL_0653 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
MAL_0642 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
MAL_0653 by Peter Thompson, on FlickrMAL_0642 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
250 miles, that's a lot of hours behind the wheel in one day. How's the 650 going, I bet you appreciate it on days like yesterday?
I'm making good progress on the two door range rover classic, but I'm still a few months a way from getting it on the road. Hopefully it will be done by the end of September.
Cheers, Steve
I'm making good progress on the two door range rover classic, but I'm still a few months a way from getting it on the road. Hopefully it will be done by the end of September.
Cheers, Steve
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That looks excellent Steve. I hadn't realised just how much you could dismantle one of those...t looks like fun and would be very helpful if welding repairs were needed. You are faster than me with your restorations but I hpe you start rom better foundations.
!The 650 engine is much more of an advantage than I expected; the combination of faster accelereation, less (or no!) slogging on hills, easier high speed cruising, the ability to overtake when needed and maintain high speed when trapped with a convoy of other, more aggresisive drivers, has made journeys like this even more fun and not tiring at all.
I liken it to the effect of having a 1200 engine in a bigger car.
Yes, fortunately coming from Grenada in Spain, it was light on the rust front. Rear seatbelt mounts on rear arches, rear window frame on LHS, minor patch to front inner wing and finally RHS footwell..That looks excellent Steve. I hadn't realised just how much you could dismantle one of those...t looks like fun and would be very helpful if welding repairs were needed. You are faster than me with your restorations but I hpe you start rom better foundations.
and as you say the steel frame on ladder chassis with outer panels does make for easy dismantling and good access though. Also hides a lot of sins on U.K. based RR's
I just have the fun of LHD to RHD conversion to finish. The awkward rear window frame section is the last piece to weld in. You can see the section cut out in this pic....
So compared to yours, very light on welding.
Cheers, Steve
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Hit the big five-o today on a visit to Skye. The roads on Sleat are just perfect for a Fiat 500.
MAL_1640[1] by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
MAL_1613[1] by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
MAL_1640[1] by Peter Thompson, on FlickrMAL_1613[1] by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
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I have to report that today I found a road and a mountain pass which are new to me. Seventy-five miles from home is the road to Lower Diabaig on the west coast. It's a really winding, up and down route for nine miles....perfect for the 500. I could hardly get out of third gear or I would have had no real control
It ends at a tiny crofting village where there's a stone pier and all the appearance of a movie location (which I think it has been).
This is Bealach na Gaoithe (Pass of the Wind)
MAL_4064 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
Lower Diabaig pier.
MAL_4072 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
It ends at a tiny crofting village where there's a stone pier and all the appearance of a movie location (which I think it has been).
This is Bealach na Gaoithe (Pass of the Wind)
MAL_4064 by Peter Thompson, on FlickrLower Diabaig pier.
MAL_4072 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
Days like that make you feel good to be alive. Just a shame it's 90 minutes drive away
The stone pier is impressive too.
Cheers, Steve
The stone pier is impressive too.
Cheers, Steve
Days like that make you feel good to be alive. Just a shame it's 90 minutes drive away
The stone pier is impressive too.
Cheers, Steve
I really have to get my 500 back on the road...
Hi Peter
Your best picture (in my opinion), is the winter scene you posted in response to Waterdawg earlier. A superb shot and really very artistic. You should send it into the Axel Gerstl 2017 Photo competition, themed:
"With my Fiat on a trip into the countryside!"
You could win a prize?
Cheers
Hugh Jarce
Your best picture (in my opinion), is the winter scene you posted in response to Waterdawg earlier. A superb shot and really very artistic. You should send it into the Axel Gerstl 2017 Photo competition, themed:
"With my Fiat on a trip into the countryside!"
You could win a prize?
Cheers
Hugh Jarce
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Thanks for that kind comment about the image. I have sent it to AG and also sent a recent one for their September photo.
Unfortunately, for an unknown reason I took that image at a reduced quality but I have quite a few other images which I like a lot and there's always another good one round the corner.
MAL_8010 by Peter Thompson, on Flickr
It's a co-incidence that I posted earlier urging everyone on the forum to put up images of their cars out and about.
Unfortunately, for an unknown reason I took that image at a reduced quality but I have quite a few other images which I like a lot and there's always another good one round the corner.
MAL_8010 by Peter Thompson, on FlickrIt's a co-incidence that I posted earlier urging everyone on the forum to put up images of their cars out and about.
It seems like around every corner in Scotland there may not be sunshine but there is a stunning scene, your photos are great.
Once mine is on the road I plan some coastal drives so I'll be showing off some sun and open roof driving
Once mine is on the road I plan some coastal drives so I'll be showing off some sun and open roof driving
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It seems like around every corner in Scotland there may not be sunshine but there is a stunning scene, your photos are great.
Once mine is on the road I plan some coastal drives so I'll be showing off some sun and open roof driving
....and there are a lot of corners!!!!
I look forward to the photos; they're in short supply round here. But despite there being lots of photo-opportunities around me, I was lazy and took one of Murf on the half-finished driveway.
IMG_20170929_171424 by Peter Thompson, on FlickrIt's to celebrate us getting our fourth and final MOT. The number plate is temporarily stuck on the bumper because I wanted to avoid the tester saying that I it was now obscured by the bumper-bar.
Before the test, my own inspection suggested to me that the driver's side kingpin was worn beyond limit so I changed the whole assembly for a brand new one I had in stock. Does anyone have facilities for reaming the bushes as I now have several worn stub axles siting around? I had also scraped all loose paint from under the floor and after derusting any suspect surface corrosion it was painted with epoxy primer. This stuff really works in a way that all the wonder products I have used don't. There are areas from last year, where I had done the same treatment, and there is no sign of rust whatsoever.
There was an advisory notice of a "minor"! engine oil leak and that the brake pipes had some paint on them. Last year the tester warned me that the three-year old pipes at the front were rusty; he suggested that they were the originals from 1969! The rust was genuinely just on the surface, so I de-rusted them completely until they were shiny and then gave a light coat of epoxy paint; now he thinks I'm hiding something. Modern pipes are all plastic coated so old-fashioned stuff comes as a surprise to the tester.
Having said that, the MOT man was genuinely delighted with the experience and did a couple of celebratory laps around the building. At the discounted price of £20 at Kwikfit this was a perfect way to celebrate the last time Murf will ever be visiting the MOT station.
It's good to have that out of the way because we have around 500 miles to do next week.
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If you get the later king pin kits that were made for the 126 , but same as the 500 , they come with precision steel backed bushes that are a press fit into the axles and give you the right fit on the king pin without any reaming. If you get the old bronze type bush then you will need a reamer.
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He'd never seen one before, being a mere slip of a youth as they all are at Kwikfit, couldn't find the "VIN" number and as he said, he thought Citroen 2CV's were insane but this was unbelievable!
He thought the sunroof handy as he was quite a tall chap. Good job he was a youth though; no way I could have read the chassis number and he couldn't proceed without it.For a Fiat 500 the oil leak is almost non-existent so he should actually have been complimenting me. :worship:
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