I think the best engine swap has to be the uno turbo swap. There are three very good reasons for it. One the engine bolts straight in so it's easy to do, Two it's won't upset the handling like a larger engine will - remember the beauty of these cars is in the handing and three you can get big power out the turbo unit. Think 350hp if you are willing to spend the money.

big nutts said:

I think the best engine swap has to be the uno turbo swap. There are three very good reasons for it. One the engine bolts straight in so it's easy to do, Two it's won't upset the handling like a larger engine will - remember the beauty of these cars is in the handing and three you can get big power out the turbo unit. Think 350hp if you are willing to spend the money.

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250bhp is a more realistic figure unless you are willing to spend serious money or only expect the engine to last 10 miles at a time. 350bhp is acheivable (I should be able to prove that in the very near future) but everything needs upgrading or replacing to the point that it is barely the same engine and drivetrain.

jimbro1000 said:

250bhp is a more realistic figure unless you are willing to spend serious money or only expect the engine to last 10 miles at a time. 350bhp is acheivable (I should be able to prove that in the very near future) but everything needs upgrading or replacing to the point that it is barely the same engine and drivetrain.

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I did say if you were willing to spend the money didn't I. Would very much like to see a dyno and the details of your 350 bhp engine

I'm quite happy with 250bhp from my engine. It's enough for me.

Re: What engines fit 1998 punto s reg 60

Hello all,
are there any other engines that will fit into my punto other than these unrealiable fiat crap. My car spends more time in the drive than on the road, i need something under the hood thats gonna run, and keep running instead of breaking down all the time. There must be someone out there who is a wiz kid on this knowledge.
Wouldn't it be great if there was an engine to slot in to replace the garbbage fiat put in. just think.....imagine to be able to do more than 500 miles a time without having ya engine breakdown. One can but dream..lol

cheers guys

Re: What engines fit 1998 punto s reg 60

Panda1rimshot said:

Hello all,
are there any other engines that will fit into my punto other than these unrealiable fiat crap. My car spends more time in the drive than on the road, i need something under the hood thats gonna run, and keep running instead of breaking down all the time. There must be someone out there who is a wiz kid on this knowledge.
Wouldn't it be great if there was an engine to slot in to replace the garbbage fiat put in. just think.....imagine to be able to do more than 500 miles a time without having ya engine breakdown. One can but dream..lol

cheers guys

Click to expand...

Am I right in saying you have a problem with headgaskets failing with associated problems?

If so I suspect the problem isn't the engine itself but whoever is doing the repair. Somehow a number of very well respected technical data sources have recorded incorrect torque settings for the head bolts on the smaller FIRE engines. Only the 1242 8v mpi seems to have the right figures. The same technical data sources have also been known to state that the headbolts are reusable when they are infact stretchbolts that can only be used once.

This isn't a new problem either and similar mistakes have been made on other engines.

big nutts said:

I did say if you were willing to spend the money didn't I. Would very much like to see a dyno and the details of your 350 bhp engine

I'm quite happy with 250bhp from my engine. It's enough for me.

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I'll see what I can dig out for you - the example I am thinking of is in France at the moment and was originally specced for 250bhp but was later dyno'd at 300bhp. Last I heard it had been reconfigured for even more.

The car itself is almost undriveable but it does the job it was built for - winning quarter mile runs against much more expensive machinery.

Apparently with a bit of wishful thinking, and some help from him upstairs, you can get a 400cube V8 in the back of your x1-9. Don't believe me?

http://www.automotiveblogger.net/ebay-find-fiat-x19-hotrod/

http://www.automotiveblogger.net/ebay-fiat-x19-horrible-revisited/

blu:devil:

i was wondering if i could fit a 24v 3.0 v6 from an alfa romeo 164?

I think there is a video on youtube of one, but I'm not sure how to do it etc, I think that the people involved with that one are a bit secretive with their specs. It would be a huge job though.

ya i saw that video it was cool. i'm sure it would be realy hard to do though. maybe a senior prodject.

By 'senior project' do you mean for school? I think that the amount of work involved would make doing a conversion of this magnitude unfeasible

Come on lads...... what about a nice reliable hight torque modern t/diesel, would consider one for my 88 when I have finished the rebuild of my 89, any ideas?

Been done a few years back. One of the uk owners club members iirc. Only diesel engine to impress me though was the BMW 3 litre and I'm pretty sure that won't fit.

I can't think of any good reason to put a diesel engine in an X1/9!
But....
The BMW 123d motor is a good diesel motor, especially in D3 Alpina spec, and also when remapped to about 240BHP. From another angle I ran a Leon 1.9 Diesel in Cupra R spec with about 210BHP and that was an excellent car.
But the X1/9 is a different animal and doesn't want the characteristics of a diesel motor. If I was going to put an engine of choice in an X1/9 then, if a Judd motor was ruled out, I would really fancy the Audi V8 in 420BHP spec, as per the RS4. This is a fantastic, characterful engine with great delivery through the range and really enjoyable to drive. It would be great to graft this drivetrain into the X.
I had an involvement with Ultima and always thought that car would be better suited to a higher reving nature engine, such as the Audi motor. Having experience in these cars with Iron block Chevy V8 and all alloy 7500rpm redline V8s I reckon the 8K2 limit of the Audi would be a real winner. And 420BHP would be enough for some fun. Though I have to say these cars with around 600BHP are quite intoxicating!
But power is not everything and I think if you pulled the motor out of my 100HP Panda that, with a better cam and flowing would be a cracker of a motor in the X1/9, if you take the weight down to about 750Kg.
MC

What about the original 1498cc with bike carbs and megajolt

There's a lot of dreaming going on here! In real terms the width of the engine bay is prohibitive of anything longer than a straight 4. You can just squeeze an Alfa V6 in but it takes a lot of surgery to do it. You would have to fit anything longer longitudinally and then the mass is going to be rearward of the axle which is generally undesirable. There are more exotic engines like the tiny macroblock v8s but the cost is phenomenal and then there are regular bike engines but you'd need one of the big ones to get the kind of torque you would need (forget peak power) and don't forget the drivetrain.

I agree, of course. But dreaming is the pastime that keeps us going in the real(!) world.
The best car (most enjoyable at the time) I ever drove was my first 1300 X1/9. It captured all the essence of driving and was way back in 1983. Armed with the faza book I tuned it up and made it rev to 8000 with enough shove to keep me ahead of the 2.8 Granadas and match an RS2000. There were 4 X1/9s owned back to back during this time!
Since then I've driven most of the exotica but nothing has quite relived the experience of the first X. It was one step up from my road rally Alfasud of the time, better turn-in and definitely not a car to drive without serious concentration. Those were the days. Great cars, great era. Now I sit in fast cars for a living, so surely I should be able to surpass the "X1/9 experience"? Last week a modernised (big money re-engineer) and pretty quick V12 E-type (5.7 litres) was the excitement, putting an R8 and AMG C63 in the same week in the shade. I'm out in an Atom on track on Sunday so perhaps that can wake me up again to real cars and driving.
What I would really like is the comfort feel of stepping back into the X1/9, the feel of a Radical and the engine note and driveability of a GT3. I know someone with a Stradale that harks back to when he owned an X1/9.
I'll go and stare at that Judd engine on an engine stand at the Autosport show in January again. Might need to do a bit with the gearbox....

also i was thinking about a vr6 volkswagen engine from a jetta or passat. since its a v6 but it takes up about the same room as a 4 cyl. so i think it would be a little easier.

big nutts said:

I think the best engine swap has to be the uno turbo swap. There are three very good reasons for it. One the engine bolts straight in so it's easy to do, Two it's won't upset the handling like a larger engine will - remember the beauty of these cars is in the handing and three you can get big power out the turbo unit. Think 350hp if you are willing to spend the money.

Click to expand...

I was wondering if anyone knows where would be a good place to find the Uno Turbo engine so I can switch out the stock motor that is in my fiat X1/9. The wrist pin for my first piston is going out, and instead of rebuilding the engine again I would like to replace it. I live in the continental U.S. and the only motor I could find was in the UK and they don't ship international. Thanks a million for any help in regards to my current problem.

Getting a complete motor into the states is not easy, apart from the cost of shipping you also have the problem of contaminant. Basically it wouldn't be allowed in without proof that the engine is completely clear of old oil and grease.

Sourcing the engine isn't easy either as there are so few left. Your safest bet is a reputable engine builder but the costs are not in your favour. You are looking at the fat end of £1000 all done plus shipping.

Not surprisingly most people opt for just shipping the turbo manifold and turbo and then convert a 1500 block. It works out much cheaper but you stil need to source the hardware.