General My New 100HP POS

[ChrisPRSA]

Alright guys, as promised, here is my little project.

2007 Fiat Panda 100HP. She has 170 000km on the clock and bought her from an owner who should not own a car, EVER.

When I got her she was poorly fixed with a hammer and 30kg of silicone after a severe overheat. Took off the head, acid bath for three days to get the burnt sludge out as well as a fresh skim. New seals, gaskets and welsh/freeze plugs on the head and block. Replaced the thermostat, heater radiator, coolant radiator and a few radiator hoses. Fresh cambelt, tensioner fanbelt, air and oil filter as well as cleaned and reoiled the box air filter. New plugs dropped in too. Engine flush with new oil and radiator flush with new antifreeze was done.

The car is on the lift now as I have just dropped the sump, cleaned out the oil pickup that was severely smudged as well as the pressure valve and resealed it all back. Sealant should be set by tomorrow and we can pump some oil in.

It was clear that the car was in an accident, removing the front bumper revealed broken headlight and broken radiator support. I replaced the radiator support and am still waiting on new headlights and fog lights. The one taillight differs to the left one so waiting on that too.

Moving forward I still have plenty work to do to take it from scrappy to happy but all in due course.

Next step will be to drop in a new engine mount, fit fresh tyres and recondition the wheels and alignment.

Future plans will most definitely include a turbo upgrade but I need to prep the car for that first doing the ground work initially

 

[JustApanda]

Hi from another RSA member! Just read the other thread of this... some Fun but not so fun work had been done. My panda is basically exactly the same. Colour and interior, except i have steering controls... hopefully I don’t have such bad engine issues though[emoji28] although after digging around it seems a muppet worked on the engine... not sure whats in store for me. Will be following this thread to see what you get up to... for some inspiration!

 

[DaveMcT]

The wheels really do not cope well with rough roads. They will buckle and can be straightened but once bent they'll go again more easily. To keep the car original it's worth swapping the alloys for steels. Something with circular holes around the centre would look better than plain steels.

 

[ChrisPRSA]

Hi from another RSA member! Just read the other thread of this... some Fun but not so fun work had been done. My panda is basically exactly the same. Colour and interior, except i have steering controls... hopefully I don’t have such bad engine issues though[emoji28] although after digging around it seems a muppet worked on the engine... not sure whats in store for me. Will be following this thread to see what you get up to... for some inspiration!

Hello! ? So does yours have the bigger color coded mirrors then?

It's a pitty to hear that your mechanical work have also been short handed but its okay... It gives you a chance to do some repairs and familiarise yourself with it.

Let me know if there's perhaps something I can assist with. The work I have done so far I can definitely give a guide or perhaps shed some light on tricky areas.

This forum is awesome and the guys on here really help a lot... Especially if you're new to fiat.

I work in the states and we have a contract coming up again soon but ill try do as much as possible before we go and then I'm going all out when we come back in a couple of months.

Groundwork, after all cosmetics have been sorted will include: Brakes, suspension, wheels, interior changes.

As far as squeezing a bit more power. I'm hoping the Mito motor pulls through otherwise low comp pistons and forged rods on this motor, clutch upgrade, custom alli intake manifold, stainless turbo manifold and exhaust system, intercooler, even, bigger injectors, oil cooler, stand alone edu and mire... Ill post it all up as I go.

I love this car to bits. Reminds me so much of my uno turbo

 

[JustApanda]

Hello! [emoji3] So does yours have the bigger color coded mirrors then?



It's a pitty to hear that your mechanical work have also been short handed but its okay... It gives you a chance to do some repairs and familiarise yourself with it.



Let me know if there's perhaps something I can assist with. The work I have done so far I can definitely give a guide or perhaps shed some light on tricky areas.



This forum is awesome and the guys on here really help a lot... Especially if you're new to fiat.



I work in the states and we have a contract coming up again soon but ill try do as much as possible before we go and then I'm going all out when we come back in a couple of months.



Groundwork, after all cosmetics have been sorted will include: Brakes, suspension, wheels, interior changes.



As far as squeezing a bit more power. I'm hoping the Mito motor pulls through otherwise low comp pistons and forged rods on this motor, clutch upgrade, custom alli intake manifold, stainless turbo manifold and exhaust system, intercooler, even, bigger injectors, oil cooler, stand alone edu and mire... Ill post it all up as I go.



I love this car to bits. Reminds me so much of my uno turbo

Nah it doesn’t have the big mirrors unfortunately... thanx for the offer, i will be picking through the threads to get ideas for how to’s and such. I think ill need to do thermostat soon as my temp fluctuates too much and doesn’t seem to heat up right. Will have to do a full coolant flush and hose refresh it seems too. Just to rule out any possible leaks. Ive never owned an Italian car but have always admired these and even with the issues I still enjoy it!! Would love to slap a turbo on but thats a completely long term goal... will
Watch your thread closely for the conversion! What interior changes can be done to these would love to have a slightly less upright seating position for an even more sporty feel...

 

[ChrisPRSA]

The wheels really do not cope well with rough roads. They will buckle and can be straightened but once bent they'll go again more easily. To keep the car original it's worth swapping the alloys for steels. Something with circular holes around the centre would look better than plain steels.

I hear you..

Are you referring to steelies? I love steelies. I had a nice set on my Alfa giulia super to give it a GTA look.

What steelies design would you recommend. Obviously the altitude on the car needs to come down a bit.

 

[ChrisPRSA]

Justapanda: where in sa are you located. I swapped around my thermostat and I have a guy this side that gave me a smashing deal on it. I had to send it back twice as their listing differed to the one in the car but it was perfect in the end and came with a new sensor.

I also did a coolant flush on mine. There was quite a bit of corrosion in my motor but I did put a new water pump, radiator, some hoses, heater radiator and thermostat. After the flush there wasn't much contaminated water coming out but perhaps it's what was left in the block and the pipes. I used wynns radiator flusb and carried out as per the bottled instructions.

I couldn't get the bottom radiator hose to nudge so I just removed the clamp and pulled it off.. Didn't want to risk cracking the plastic radiator.

I'd say 80% of my cars have been Italian, mostly Alfa and I've had over 80 cars by now. They are truly amazing despite their bad reputation by those who don't know how to maintain them.

As far as interior goes... The high seating position does get to me too.. Ill be shopping for different seat options as well as a gauge cluster for turbo needs: oil temp, afr and boost. Also airbags deployed on mine so its between a momo steering and replacing bags and ecu.

I'm toying around with a few other ideas but I'll keep them posted

 

[ChrisPRSA]

Update: after driving a couple of Km's, entering 1st gear has more than normal resistance and 4th 5th and 6th had a slight whine that dissapears when clutch is pressed. So I'm going with the obvious attempt to fix. 1.6 litres of 75w90 castrol syntrans api gl4 fully synthetic. History of the car in definitely sure its shorting oil or the has the incorrect oil. Fingers crossed

 

[ChrisPRSA]

Baby soft gears now. Significantly less noticeable whining from 4th 5th and 6th, no more trouble slipping into reverse. Yay!

 

[JustApanda]

Justapanda: where in sa are you located. I swapped around my thermostat and I have a guy this side that gave me a smashing deal on it. I had to send it back twice as their listing differed to the one in the car but it was perfect in the end and came with a new sensor.



I also did a coolant flush on mine. There was quite a bit of corrosion in my motor but I did put a new water pump, radiator, some hoses, heater radiator and thermostat. After the flush there wasn't much contaminated water coming out but perhaps it's what was left in the block and the pipes. I used wynns radiator flusb and carried out as per the bottled instructions.



I couldn't get the bottom radiator hose to nudge so I just removed the clamp and pulled it off.. Didn't want to risk cracking the plastic radiator.



I'd say 80% of my cars have been Italian, mostly Alfa and I've had over 80 cars by now. They are truly amazing despite their bad reputation by those who don't know how to maintain them.



As far as interior goes... The high seating position does get to me too.. Ill be shopping for different seat options as well as a gauge cluster for turbo needs: oil temp, afr and boost. Also airbags deployed on mine so its between a momo steering and replacing bags and ecu.



I'm toying around with a few other ideas but I'll keep them posted

Im in Cape Town. Still need to get some parts together but called around and surprisingly the stealership price is relatively reasonable. Thought it would’ve been worse to be honest. Ive also got some wynns flush that i got when i bought the new expansion tank. Didn’t realize i needed a new thermo or id have gotten that one time too. But oh well.

 

[DaveMcT]

I hear you..

Are you referring to steelies? I love steelies. I had a nice set on my Alfa giulia super to give it a GTA look.

What steelies design would you recommend. Obviously the altitude on the car needs to come down a bit.

Style is all down personal opinion so I would never recommend.

I like the steels with a ring of holes just inboard of the wheel rim. Not so keen on the "solid" versions. I would go the the OEM diameter, width and offset (ET). To be fair, I prefer the look of the OEM alloys but they are a bit fragile for my liking.

 

[ChrisPRSA]

So it seems as though the gearbox had been previously opened and it is just leaking out the new oil like crazy so I'm going to pull the box, fit a new clutch (Perhaps something that can support the turbo project) Pop in a new crank seal and send of the G/Box to be opened and resealed, also have them check the internals whilst they are at it.

 

[DaveMcT]

A full set of gearbox bearings and seals costs about £250 to £300. But you probably only need the grease filled rubber sealed bearings for the input shaft - much lower cost. I have looked at ePer but it's impossible to know exactly which part they are showing and they don't cover the 100HP six speed box.

On RHD cars, the Punto Mk2 gearbox was noted for failing input shaft bearings and seal on the gearbox input shaft. I believe it was due to the bearing running dry when the engine started from cold but we never really worked out why it happened.

This explains the repair process for the Punto Mk2. Not especially difficult and the Panda will not be significantly different.

https://www.fiatforum.com/punto-ii/158346-input-shaft-bearing-renewal.html

While you are in there also replace the gear shift shaft oil seal. They wear and leak so might as well do it when access is easy.

 

[ChrisPRSA]

Thanks again for pulling through Dave. I'm getting a new engine mount, safety belt, parcel shelf and gearknob today as well as popping in a set of Dunlop sp sports. I had these on my uno turbo and they performed great. Ill also do the alignment so I can drive where I look not loom where I drive hahahha

 

[ChrisPRSA]

Also just to add another note and perhaps Dave, you could assist me here. After having driven both 100hp for some time now, there is definitely a difference in how the throttle responds when you change gears. On the one the rpm drop immediately as the clutch goes in, on my scrappy 100hp the rpm hovers for a smidge and then only drops. Any idea whT could be cause and where I should start looking. I really like the instant drop

 

[A3jeroen]

Clean the throttlevalve.

gr J

 

[DaveMcT]

You should have an instant throttle drop. Other than replacing parts on a hope and a prayer, the only way to diagnose it is with www.Multiecuscan.net Get a decent set of OBD cables and you will need a windows computer, but with a laptop you can datalog the car's ECU while you drive.

 

[ChrisPRSA]

Clean the throttlevalve.

gr J

I cleaned out the throttle body until it was crisp white. Is there another valve I should be looking for

 

[ChrisPRSA]

You should have an instant throttle drop. Other than replacing parts on a hope and a prayer, the only way to diagnose it is with www.Multiecuscan.net Get a decent set of OBD cables and you will need a windows computer, but with a laptop you can datalog the car's ECU while you drive.

hi Dave

I have a launch viii that we use for diagnostics in the workshop, what should I monitor? Throttle position and voltage?

 

[DaveMcT]

hi Dave

I have a launch viii that we use for diagnostics in the workshop, what should I monitor? Throttle position and voltage?

Impossible to say. Run some tests and see what you find. Error codes might help but it could be within normal range resulting in no errors.