General The $120 (£47.24) Uno 45 - updated for Aug 08-Jan 09...!

[alexGS]

Re: Q

Hello!

Was it registered or are you having it re-VIN'd?
My boyfriend (slinkylinks) just brought one off trade me for about $100 (nz) but it isn't. Just curious! Hopefully we can use the parts from the one he brought on mine!

Well well... Big Matt has a girlfriend!

Hello Krissie - ours was registered (on exemption) so it didn't have to be re-VIN'd. That would make most Unos uneconomic. You could always do some sort of 're-shell' to make a registered-Uno Keep us posted - start a thread!

-Alex

 

[Adrian Bravo]

Good thread alex and fantastic work,

 

[jjhepburn]

Guess what alex..

STILL LEAKS OIL!!!! Its amazing how hard this problem is proving to fix!!!

I'm wondering if there are still problems with the oil pump. My next attempt I will remove the oil pump and put a different one on. I'll make a new gasket for the oil pump. Then when I put the sump back on I'll use extra sealant around the arches at each end...

 

[dannygp]

Mate. Been waiting for time and you've updated it The car has turned out spot on. But I'm having trouble coping with that engine bay. Completely takes my attention away from everything else you've done. I am actually gob smacked

 

[Uno driver]

I can't believe it's still leaking , I did it only once and it's not leaking at all. Did you wait some time when you put sump on and before you started tightening the bolts, so silicone gets a little thicker? I waited 40 minutes IIRC, but it was cold here. Then I waited over night to dry, before I put fresh oil in. I used this silicone: http://www.abro.com/abro_product_view.php?catalog=automotive&product=gasket&id=37&grp=1

Is it possible to take engine out, leaving gearbox in place?

 

[Chas Uno]

Guess what alex..

STILL LEAKS OIL!!!! Its amazing how hard this problem is proving to fix!!!

I'm wondering if there are still problems with the oil pump. My next attempt I will remove the oil pump and put a different one on. I'll make a new gasket for the oil pump. Then when I put the sump back on I'll use extra sealant around the arches at each end...

I wonder if you may have a pinhole in the sump somewhere? Later FIRE lumps were notorious for rusting their sumps (Mk1 Puntos onwards, though strangely mk1 Unos never seemed to suffer as bad). Perhaps that's what's causing the leak?

Is it clear where the leak is coming from? I know you've guys have put a lot of time into this engine but I see a good excuse to upgrade to a 1242 lump. That's one way of curing the leak

 

[ralphnz]

That's amazing, especially the engine bay!!!! Sooooo clean. You should get classic car to feature it.
As far as the sump goes, all I can add is have you made sure it's the sump leaking and not anything else? Using a process of elimination would work here. For example, run it without the sump and see if it still leaks. If it does then it can't be the sump.
Hope this helps.

 

[alexGS]

Thanks for the praise

As far as the sump goes, all I can add is have you made sure it's the sump leaking and not anything else? Using a process of elimination would work here. For example, run it without the sump and see if it still leaks. If it does then it can't be the sump.
Hope this helps.

It's hard to argue with that kind of faultless logic. I suspect that running without the sump will in fact solve the leaking problem - by necessitating the replacement of the engine.

The sump itself is in fine rust-free condition. As James says, we suspect the oil pump - and I also wonder about the curved surface at each end of the sump, where there seems to be excessive clearance to the aluminium housings. We'll probably try another sump. Time will tell.

~Alex

 

[Chas Uno]

It's hard to argue with that kind of faultless logic. I suspect that running without the sump will in fact solve the leaking problem - by necessitating the replacement of the engine.

Go on, stick a 1242 in there :devil:

 

[jjhepburn]

Would love to put in a 1242cc engine, but the cost of importing one will probably be a bit prohibitive. Very few cars in NZ have that engine, and those that do are still regarded as new. In NZ cars tend to be maintained as a new car for alot longer than in the UK or Europe.

I spent some of today preparing another oil pump and am planning on hunting around in the garage for a good sump. Problem is its bloody hot here at the moment (Today topped 30 degrees C with high humidity) and its even hotter in the garage (getting into the 40s). Wouldnt it be nice if we could combine the temps in the UK and NZ, might give us a nice temp

 

[Hyperspace]

This is such an old thread, I know and do appologise.
I just want to offer a solution for the sump seal leak.

Fiat replaced the square original seal with a more tapered one, the "thinner" side goes in the groove. I saw it somewhere this week, reading Uno stuff. So maybe you would never get it right with what you had.

 

[alexGS]

Fiat replaced the square original seal with a more tapered one, the "thinner" side goes in the groove. I saw it somewhere this week, reading Uno stuff. So maybe you would never get it right with what you had.

That applies only to the 903cc not-FIRE engine; the FIRE has no seal and relies on silicone sealant.

As it turns out, the oil leak diminished over time, possibly as the crankshaft oil seal settled in.

-Alex

 

[alexGS]

This car has since received most of an Uno 70 interior (black, with firmer seats) as James felt the brown and sacking-style seatcovers were a bit too awful. The core plug at the cambelt end sprung a leak and the headgasket (possibly) blew. The car has been off the road for about six months now with its cylinder head removed - James does intend to get it running again, but with two other Unos and now two children to attend to, it's a fairly low priority

-Alex

 

[Hyperspace]

Was an awesome thread

 

[madrat]

Fantastic thread, brought back memory's of my old UNO 45s (1988) I had her for 5 years sold her, bought her back 18 months later and had her for another 2 years.

Had over 120,000 miles on the clock when she finally committed suicide one night on the drive, loose battery cable shorted out and she burnt up

 

[alexGS]

Had over 120,000 miles on the clock when she finally committed suicide one night on the drive, loose battery cable shorted out and she burnt up

That's quite sad... I imagine it was a combination of several factors common on the Uno... a too-tall battery with terminals that stick out of the top, an insulation cap that never stays in place, a battery clamp that doesn't clamp unless the battery has a ridge in the right place, and a bonnet that loses its underbonnet sound-deadening...

I hope to one day update this thread with another happy report when that Uno is back on the road... we'll see. Like most flat-red colours, it did go dull without constant loving care...

-Alex

 

[jo0lz]

Like most flat-red colours, it did go dull without constant loving care...

-Alex

Ohhhhhh . . . . I LIKE FLAT colours......
I'm no polisher [as you know ALeX]
and just to prove it here is the latest cut vinyl sticker I've added to the rear hatch of the FuCT FiAT

Sarcastically done in polished chrome effect fablon.....

 

[madrat]

I have no idea what that says

 

[Ucof]

"Unloved"

 

[Chas Uno]

I have no idea what that says

:yeahthat:

"Unloved"

Ah. I thought it read something like "nnlobec"