Hi, my dear old uno 45 is pretty neglected but going fairly well considering.
Something discussed on another thread got me thinking.
She had a sudden, one-off loss of maybe 1/3rd of a cup of water from the rad cap which made me panic about the head gasket. I topped it up but prepared for the funeral but it hasn't happened again since -about 80 miles ago. I have never found that replacing the head gasket works all that well on other makes but we've never had to do it on our fiats. How successful have people been on the forum with replaced head gaskets and does anyone think that the head gasket has gone?
I sometimes wonder if I've got a wiff of antifreeze and I suppose it could explain the slight underperformance.
Any thoughts please?

Check your oil cap and see if the water is mixing with it, should be a milky gunge deposit.
Is it overheating?

Changed my head gasket 3 yrs ago and the engine has run sweet ever since.

Pete

If you can smell antifreeze INSIDE the car, it sounds more like your heater matrix is leaking. If it's in the engine compartment, then look for signs of limescale deposits around the hose connections and any joints regarding the cooling system.

If your headgasket has gone, one of the most obvious signs will be fluctuating temperature and overheating. Uno's shouldn't go much above half way on the gauge, which is about 90 degrees.

Keep an eye on the coolant level and don't worry about the headgasket for now if no other symptoms are apparent.

Chas

Thanks Chas and Pete,
Even in the hottest weather she appeared to run really cool (need to check the temp sensor ) I'll have a good nose around and see what I can find and no she doesn't have any milky gunk in the engine.
I love this car, I think she's cool. I went and bought a Tipo on Sunday but don't think I can bear to let uno go, in fact she deserves an oil change and new cam belt.

Good stuff, yes the Uno has a certain nippiness that the larger Tipo lacks.

Incidentally, a head gasket replacement will be more successful if you have the cylinder head skimmed/resurfaced by a reputable engine shop. Our FIAT specialist also uses a copper-based aerosol spray, made by Wurth Company,
on the gasket.

If running cool all the time, suspect the thermostat rather than the temp sensor. Thermostats usually fail in the open position. It would be worth fitting a new thermostat for the winter months, as the heater needs all the heat it can get!

Otherwise I think it's quite normal to have to top up the coolant every couple of months on an older car, there can be various small leaks that go unnoticed from the radiator etc. and I like to use a coolant additive such as 'Wynns Stop-leak' (green liquid) but NOT Bars-leaks (sludgy black pellets). Also make sure you're adding some antifreeze from time to time, as it prevents corrosion (and thus more expensive problems...)

-Alex

Alex, you star. Great advice, I'll get the additive and check the thermostat and hug her... oops, carried away.
Or I should be.