What's made you smile today?

[PuntoHowTo]

Touche'.
What is really embarrassing about that is so many of those people are proud of their lack of world knowledge. My next door neighbor, my youngest kids' FIL, my cousin, and my nephew fit in that category. We're working on my cousin and had some success. His lovely London born wife and a couple of their friends, shamed him into getting a passport, then they took him to Jamaica for 3 days. When they got back home, he asked when they could go again.

My neighbor and my kids' FIL admit that they are afraid to travel outside of the US. I tell them that Miami scares me. There's no hope for my nephew as he subscribes to Faux News.

On a different note. Take a gander at my first ever high end Italian bicycle frame.

I scored it at a bicycle swap meet yesterday for twenty bucks.

I see a campagnolo group set in your near future.

 

[Cheest]

I see a campagnolo group set in your near future.

I'm torn there. It's a beautiful frame and deserves a Record group set. On the other hand, it's a work of art and should be displayed on a wall in my Man Cave.

 

[PuntoHowTo]

I'm torn there. It's a beautiful frame and deserves a Record group set. On the other hand, it's a work of art and should be displayed on a wall in my Man Cave.

Would be an injustice to put it on a wall, deserves to be rebuilt and ridden

 

[The Panda Nut]

Touche'.
What is really embarrassing about that is so many of those people are proud of their lack of world knowledge. My next door neighbor, my youngest kids' FIL, my cousin, and my nephew fit in that category. We're working on my cousin and had some success. His lovely London born wife and a couple of their friends, shamed him into getting a passport, then they took him to Jamaica for 3 days. When they got back home, he asked when they could go again.

My neighbor and my kids' FIL admit that they are afraid to travel outside of the US. I tell them that Miami scares me. There's no hope for my nephew as he subscribes to Faux News.

On a different note. Take a gander at my first ever high end Italian bicycle frame.

I scored it at a bicycle swap meet yesterday for twenty bucks.

Ha! It must be a Fiat. The engines gone and you need to fix it tomorrow

 

[The Panda Nut]

Worked till Icouldnt stand today. I was putting the planks back on the top of the pit. First two went ok. Shame it took 30 minutes to remember plank 3was put round the side of my garage to soak up some rays and dry out. Still I remembered after trying 5 others first. Age is getting me.

 

[Cheest]

Worked till Icouldnt stand today. Age is getting me.

That was me yesterday after getting back home from the bike swap. I installed the mudguards on the 'Old Farts Lefsa Special' yesterday and now can call that finished.

At least, that is, until I try to ride it. Something is bound to be out of whack. Or loose.

However, I ended the day in an enjoyable way with some Central American Rum.

 

[varesecrazy]

500L then ?

199 platform..
But Milano not Torino

 

[PuntoHowTo]

199 platform..
But Milano not Torino

Well now you’ve confused me?

 

[varesecrazy]

Well now you’ve confused me?

Alfa Mito Twinair same base vehicle as my punto,
but low miles (38k), so hoping it's been well cared for and serves me as well

Only driven it 3 days,

 

[The Panda Nut]

Alfa Mito Twinair same base vehicle as my punto,
but low miles (38k), so hoping it's been well cared for and serves me as well

Only driven it 3 days,

Great idea. Its no Panda though! I hope you enjoy it.

 

[PuntoHowTo]

Alfa Mito Twinair same base vehicle as my punto,
but low miles (38k), so hoping it's been well cared for and serves me as well

Only driven it 3 days,

I was thinking Alfa but then was second guessing myself.

What year is it? I know they were still making the mito in 2019. In any case it’s still pretty good milage, though I found when I had my sporting that there is little in common in terms of parts between the Punto and the mito, when I was struggling to find a brake calliper, the Mito has different brakes and suspension parts, though I’m sure it all bolts on the same.

 

[varesecrazy]

63 plate / late 2013, covered 4k a year with 1st owner,

Same engine and gearbox as my punto, that's now on 73k

2nd owner seems to have done 10k a year and spent some money on parts..
So we will see

Thought battery was struggling..
But use has Brought back S/S function.. So probably ok

Time will tell

 

[varesecrazy]

Great idea. Its no Panda though! I hope you enjoy it.

Panda has yet to have factory Cruise

The 500 with Cruise still isn't a Panda..

Amazing how all the similar stuff still feels different.

 

[FiatMatt94]

I decided to check the condition of my front pads & discs as they were replaced at 24k with Brembo parts & the car is now nearly approaching 43k & also as I'm going to relatives near Liverpool in just under 3 weeks, I'm happy to say the pads have hardly worn at all with plenty of meat still on them & the discs are still good, I'm going to be redoing the arches & box sections with Bilt Hamber Dynax S50 at some point now it's warming up, it's lasted though as it was about 3 - 4 years ago I did it & most of it is still holding up but it's just starting to let go in the odd bit here & there

 

[PuntoHowTo]

I decided to check the condition of my front pads & discs as they were replaced at 24k with Brembo parts & the car is now nearly approaching 43k & also as I'm going to relatives near Liverpool in just under 3 weeks, I'm happy to say the pads have hardly worn at all with plenty of meat still on them & the discs are still good, I'm going to be redoing the arches & box sections with Bilt Hamber Dynax S50 at some point now it's warming up, it's lasted though as it was about 3 - 4 years ago I did it & most of it is still holding up but it's just starting to let go in the odd bit here & there

im very light on my brakes (my wife not so much) I can easily get 50,000+ miles out of a set of pads, so even if you’re heavy on them I’d not expect them to need replacing for a long time to come given how you look after your car id suspect you’re not hard on the brakes either

 

[varesecrazy]

im very light on my brakes (my wife not so much) I can easily get 50,000+ miles out of a set of pads, so even if you’re heavy on them I’d not expect them to need replacing for a long time to come given how you look after your car id suspect you’re not hard on the brakes either

Plenty of 500 owners post on here about discs and pads at 20k.. ,
my punto is still on the 2012 factory fit, 70k on a lightweight punto

The 500 we have is making me price a new set, but it's on 65 k, and I've covered 20+ of those, it's Definitely one of those that Loudly scrubs it's faces clean on a regular basis

Far worse than the Panda and Punto

Out of interest.. @FiatMatt94
Did you go for "Coated discs"?

Should cut out all that scrubbing

 

[Steveetee55]

I been on to the lad at work about he's not the boss at home his Mrs is to which phoned her to prove me wrong and with his phone on loudspeaker he said to her who was the boss in his house and she said she was I nearly fell off my chair his face was a picture!!

 

[FiatMatt94]

im very light on my brakes (my wife not so much) I can easily get 50,000+ miles out of a set of pads, so even if you’re heavy on them I’d not expect them to need replacing for a long time to come given how you look after your car id suspect you’re not hard on the brakes either

I'm not particularly hard on brakes either, it's mainly country roads round where I live so I tend to just get to a steady plod, keep up the momentum & hardly used the brakes

 

[FiatMatt94]

Plenty of 500 owners post on here about discs and pads at 20k.. ,
my punto is still on the 2012 factory fit, 70k on a lightweight punto

The 500 we have is making me price a new set, but it's on 65 k, and I've covered 20+ of those, it's Definitely one of those that Loudly scrubs it's faces clean on a regular basis

Far worse than the Panda and Punto

Out of interest.. @FiatMatt94
Did you go for "Coated discs"?

Should cut out all that scrubbing

I just went for the normal non coated Brembo discs which I got off eBay NOS for about £15, I replaced the discs at 24k because the original Fiat discs ended up being warped about a month before the first MOT & I thought at the time if I'm changing the discs I may as well put new pads in, I get the loud scrub only if I haven't used the car for about 4-5 days but wears of by the time I'm at the end of our road which is less than 100 yards

 

[FiatMatt94]

So after checking the brakes I moved onto cleaning the sump up as it had a few flakey bits on it, I usually do this by letting the engine warm up & just go over it with a near blunt scraper to which the loose stuff just falls off then go over it with Vactan rust converter while the engine is still warm as it seems to adhere better when its hot rather than cold


& at the weekend my grille cover got repaired after the little incident in a car park when I forgot to put the handbrake on before I got out & the car rolled into a barrier, luckily there was no damage to the Panda itself, just the cover which was split in half so in my eyes it did it's job & protected the grille which aren't cheap, I'm going to wrap the cover as the crack through the middle is still visible even after being sorted out, so to just figure out now how I want it to look

& after that gave the car a quick wipe over with some detailer to get rid of the small bit of dust


& now to walk round to the local shop to claim my £5 win on a scratch card