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Dec 13, 2020 14:39:55 GMT
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Originally put this in general by accident so moving here!
Bought a new project as the Herald is up and running, plan was to find something more modern with a turbo, or buy something and turbo it. Spent ages looking at newer civics but couldn't get excited. Then found the coupe on Ebay and that was it.
A silver one came up and I bid but it didn't hit the reserve and wasn't sold, the owner (nice chap) contacted me with an offer, we went back and forth a bit and did a deal.
Bought it unseen and got it trucked down to me.
Was a bargain considering it has an mot, no such thing as a cheap Italian turbo car tho...
It's a s**tbox, but will be a fun car to work on and learn how this turbo stuff all works.
Spec/mods/issues:
- 150k miles, hard track-day miles (there is some exhaust damage from when he came off the track) - Uprated turbo apparently. Except it isn't uprated, looks like its running the original still - Whatever the turbo is, it's blown. Blue smoke puffing away (I knew that when I got it) - ABS light on - Door card falling off - No stereo - Passenger door central locking does whatever it wants (except lock) - Rusty arches - Lacquer peel on roof and bonnet - Nightmarish tinted rear lights - Lots of spares and a spare set of original wheels refurbed in gun metal grey and good tyres - Pretty much no history apart from the last owner - No idea when cam belt was done - Dump valve (basically why I bought it) - Floor had welding for mot in Feb. Lots of welding. Good news (cos it's done already) - Engine sits at perfect oil pressure despite the miles - Questionable rocker cover paint in red (to make it look like the later limited models) - Other bits of cosmetic crust underneath but basically solid - Door paint on one side doesn't quite match. Also covered in drinks, and a weird ripple in the roof - Stainless Steel exhaust system and new cat. Dented due to track day (with exhaust leak) - Actually a decent interior
Only driven it once, got scared the turbo would blow and trash the engine.
But wow its fast, like modern fast. Nothing happens till 3k rpm then off you go all the way to 7k, its as fast as I'd ever need where I live (lots of traffic). The 5 cylinder sounds meaty and rally car, already I love it so much.
Bought a turbo off a coupe breaking on ebay for not much.
Then drive it straight to a specialist to get the cam belt and water pump done (not as expensive as the internet tells me, it can actually be done without removing the engine).
Then boost gauge (got a nice looking Stack jobbie), GTEC chip (coupe forum rates them, super cheap and bumps up boost to 1.2 bar and more fuel. Simple to install I think).
A deep clean (the gear knob was the most disgusting I ever saw) and new knob, new bonnet struts, stereo.
Will get arches done, then decide if I sort dinks and wrap it (the original silver), or get it painted, or just leave the rest as it is.
It'll never be a mint car, it's had to hard a life, but I'll make it look a bit cleaner and drive it hard without worrying about value etc and fix as I go.               |
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Dec 13, 2020 14:44:17 GMT
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Finally got the coupe back home from my mate's driveway. Awesome drive back (first proper run I've done), blue smoke isn't ideal but pulls really hard. Doesn't feel standard, I was told it had some goodies but it has almost no history. Had a bit more of a look around, not got under it yet so I'm sure it'll reveal plenty of horrors. Issues found so far (there will be more)... Turbo on the way out Blowing exhaust, not bad tho (previous owner banged it going off on a track day) 2 mismatching front tyres No evidence of cam belt being done recently (or ever) Passenger door central locking doesn't work Interior blower/aircon doesn't do anything, no air even coming in Damaged interior to the painted section on dash (covered by a badge glued on. Wtf!) Sticky centre console Gearknob is rank Passenger front seat doesn't lock in place, slides around Set of dash buttons pushed in, broken off the console Driver door card hanging off, possibly due to door not hanging right No stereo Alarm seems to have been removed, no immobiliser issues yet Broken bonnet latch handle (my fault, yanked it like an idiot) Bonnet struts are busted Rust on rear arches One door looks a different colour to the rest of the body Lacquer peel on roof and a bit on the bonnet Awful aftermarket spoiler stuck on with nightmarish glue, partially broken off Rear lights and indicators painted with nasty dark tint Indicator doesn't self cancel when turning right It has moss growing on it Headline just starting to sag in a few places Petrol cap has a different key, that I've not got. Doesn't lock anyway so all good Boot lock doesn't work with my key, have to open from interior Clutch is pretty high Good things tho! Makes choo choo noises Nice looking aftermarket exhaust manifold Exhaust sounds great Leather seats are excellent Just feels solid, engine is so cool Gonna just do it bit by bit, keep it on the road. Next jobs are turbo (got a replacement from a breaking car), bonnet struts, interior blower, cam belt, boost gauge, bin the airbox for an indication kit, stereo.                     |
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Dec 13, 2020 14:52:37 GMT
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Finally made some good progress on the coupe, now that the weather is closing in I want the Triumph off the road, not because I'm worried about rust but more because it's old and dangerous, the heater sucks and generally it won't be a great place to be in the winter.
So the fiat is going to be the winter hack! A rusty coupe as a winter car you say? Well I've bought it now so may as well give it a go... We do have a family car so it's not really a daily, but i can't not drive a fun car all winter.
With the help of a friend, we got the blown turbo out. Been spraying the bolts every few days for 2 weeks, and by some miracle no bolts snapped. The turbo came out fairly easily, took us maybe 2 hours. Followed this excellent guide which helped. tdkj.co.uk/coupe/Turbo_Replacement_20vt.htm
The good thing about an unloved modified car is that a lot of the time there are bits missing already, which speeds things up. No under tray and no turbo heat shield, excellent! Will buy a heat shield, if I can find an undertray then that'll be another thing to do (hard to find though these days).
There is oil in the intercooler piping so the turbo must really have been b*ggered. I've picked up a 2nd hand replacement off ebay for £30 which I'll clean up. Much better to start off with a clean intake I think.
Ran out of light so we gave up, next weekend the new hybrid goes in. It's a lovely looking thing, never been used and built by what I believe is an alright place (although I could be wrong!!).
Since then I've gotten under it to have a poke around with a screw driver and see whether I should put some money into it, or just keep it running enough to be in the road until it dies. The floor has had recent work and it looks decent, been painted in fresh stone chip and generally looks good. I'm pleased! Think I'll be in for the long haul.
The arches are definitely going and need attention, the back sill is getting a light crust too. Gave it an aggressive spray of rust converter for now, hopefully it'll slow until I get around to having it done. It works on the Herald (yes I know the Herald doesn't have to get an mot so anything works on it).
The exhaust is loose, just needs some tightening. It took a bash from where it went off at a track day (previous owner) but apart from a dent, it looks good.
Thought I'd give some interior bits a tidy up. First was to tackle the cr*p pininfarina badge someone stuck on the lovely coloured interior. With this nightmare epoxy, why would they do that!! Ffs. Popped it off, then went at it with a dremel. Hateful stuff, managed to get it in better shape so it doesn't offend my eyes (it's directly ahead of my eyes). I'll decide whether to remove the strip and repaint it, or maybe I'll just put the phone mount there and cover it up that way... 
The original gear knob is so crusty, the hand slime of 17 previous owners covering it. So much cheese if you ran your nail over the leather it left a white line. Put a Richbrook knob in as it came recommended by other coupe owners, went on no drama and looks nice I reckon. I do like the original design but finding a good condition undiseased one is impossible, one day maybe I'll get the original retrimmed. Low priority now though.
Another annoying 'feature' of this coupe is a totally non functioning heater/aircon fan, so you fog up the windscreen unless you drive with the windows open (not great in winter in the UK). Checked the fuse, not blown, changed it anyway.
Thought I'd take a look behind the heater controls console, luckily it's barely attached anyway. Removed it, unplugged any bits that have plugs, and had a look. What a mess...
The plastic has gone brittle and the places where screws attach various bits to the console have all broken, so someone has glue gunned it all together. Which hasn't worked, because the emergency blinkers button and fog light button were totally pushed in.
Tried to bodge it myself but couldn't bring myself to do the superglue and rubber fuel hose repair I was going to do. Surely I'm better than that (I'm not). Instead I'm working on sourcing a replacement console and all the relevant bits, so I can put if back properly.
Then we'll see if it is the switch that is busted (it is in a mess so could well be). The internets also tells me that I'm being hopeful and it's probably wiring to the fuse box/ecu. I'll replace the wiring if the replacement heater switches doesn't work.
Last job was to drop the oil ready for a fresh dose with the new turbo. Alas, the plug is stuck hard, it's a hex bolt which I think is 9mm, I only had an 8mm and a 10mm and worried about rounding it. Tried heating around the bolt and using mole grips and a pipe, but no luck. Will pick up a 9mm hex and give it another go with an impact gun. Any tips on removing a sump plug greatly received!
So far I'm enjoying working on it, there isn't much space and it's all a bit modern and complicated (with the Triumph I just hit things with a hammer) but it's getting under my skin for sure. There's enough information out there to help with fixes too, essential for a bodge artist like me.
Next will be getting the turbo on, the dash/heater sorted, then start using it until I've got the cash together for a cambelt change this winter. |
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Dec 13, 2020 14:58:54 GMT
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Been busy with the coupe despite the lack of updates. The previous post I was confident the turbo would be on in a weekend. Turns out I've 1/5th of the talent of the person who wrote the guide I followed as am still in the process of getting it on . Mostly down to my own incompetence. The rebuilt turbo I bought had 2 bolts (threaded on each end) still in the existing exhaust-side of the turbo but the threads were mangled and didn't fit any bolts due to corrosion etc. They wouldn't come out of the manifold, so figured I'd just cut them and drill new holes with a million drill bits. Except I didn't get the holes correctly lined up, so now I have 2 holes that don't line up with the manifold. B@lls. I used a template i took from the exhaust but obviously didn't do it twice to be sure, and ended up getting it very wrong. Now I was trying to expand out the holes so they lined up but cast iron isn't easy to drill into without decent tools. Well done Jim. Measure twice etc. so I took the old turbo and removed the exhaust housing from it, and swapped it out for the one I butchered. All went well, never taken apart a turbo before (a log more use of a hammer than I expected) but its all back together and looking good. Note the top right hole not lining up...         Friend came over and we replaced the intercooler (old one is full of oil from the dead turbo) with one I ebayed and cleaned up. We then went about mounting the turbo which was a huge pain only really because it's cold and my fingers hurt (pathetic I know). Cleaned and painted intercooler   All went well though, except now the oil feed banjo bolt doesn't quite reach it/line up. I obviously didn't quite get the turbo back together to the millimeter. A local chap walking past suggested pulling the hot and cold side bolts and twisting it just a fraction so it lines up (we randomly met when I saw he was changing his turbo just down the road!). That'll be the next job. Banjo that caused us difficulty (oil feed line)  Got the heating working which was pleasing, was just an incorrect fuse under the bonnet (20A used instead of 30A needed). The fuse box cover doesn't fit very well so cleaned it up with contact cleaner and dried it, and woosh the heating turned on. Well, the blower turned on at least (can't start the car right now due to no turbo). At least I can have a clear windscreen.    Also bought a replacement hazard/fog light set of switches as the ones off mine are crusty and broken (outside and inside). The plastic obviously gets very brittle and snaps over time. I have been reading a very long thread here on a mk1 MR2 where the very talented chap used a plastic bottle top to repair a snapped bit of plastic. Thought I'd give it a go! Except I used a rawl plug as my source. It's turned out well, nice and solid and the new buttons look way better/less crusty.      |
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Last Edit: Dec 15, 2020 7:57:05 GMT by jiggawhat2k: Missed out sorting turbo
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Dec 13, 2020 15:07:52 GMT
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Originally I was going to mount a boost gauge (a lovely looking Stack one) in a mount above the dash, but I've gone off the idea of drilling holes in things. So while the dash centre console is off, I tried replacing the nice clock with the dash. It looks great and was a straight replacement, so I'll keep it there instead.  |
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Dec 13, 2020 15:10:13 GMT
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Dec 13, 2020 16:36:09 GMT
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Nice to see a Fiat Coupe on here 👍 it is a shape that has aged really well.
Looks like there are a nice range of jobs to get stuck into. I would be tempted to take the seats and carpet out and attack with a wet vac given the gear knob crustiness 🤔
Will bookmark and watch how this all develops 😎
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Dec 13, 2020 19:45:47 GMT
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Following this with interest as I remember these when they were launched, and while it took a while for me to appreciate the somewhat challenging styling, soon those looks were all part of the appeal! However, I always liked the body colour sections to the interior & numerous of the exterior details, e.g. the frenched in tail lights and the classic style filler cap on what was otherwise a rather brutal and modernist design. Given the similarities in proportions and the clamshell front ends, I've also often wondered how much these shared under the skin with the contempory Alfa GTV & Spyder.
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Dec 13, 2020 20:13:44 GMT
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Good to see a car that isn't often seen on the roads much. Taking each job on at a time and how you solve the bodges and grubinness from previous owner's is good reading.
Bookmarked!
Cheers
Col
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Dec 16, 2020 14:09:11 GMT
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Keep at it & good luck.
I always loved the look of these; it's nice to see one getting some love.
17 owners?! That's a fair number of hands to pass through - obviously not all of them caring!
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Dec 21, 2020 19:25:49 GMT
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Nice to see a Fiat Coupe on here 👍 it is a shape that has aged really well. Looks like there are a nice range of jobs to get stuck into. I would be tempted to take the seats and carpet out and attack with a wet vac given the gear knob crustiness 🤔 Will bookmark and watch how this all develops 😎 O god I hadn't even thought about the carpets, imagine the filth. Good idea, they need a deep clean |
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Dec 23, 2020 10:33:59 GMT
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Dec 23, 2020 17:21:37 GMT
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You absolute legend, the only supplier I found was in Malaysia. Will get one ordered cheers again! |
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Dec 23, 2020 18:11:07 GMT
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Love these, they've aged so well. The only thing I dislike is the tailpipe sticking out at an angle.
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Minor update, turbo feed banjo is finally in after lots of lying on my back in the rain shouting at the turbo.  Getting the turbo bolted back together with the limited space is proving tough for one final bolt so ordered a stubby spanner that I hope will do the job. At this rate my winter ride will be ready by the summer... |
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Love these, they've aged so well. The only thing I dislike is the tailpipe sticking out at an angle. Yeah agree, takes some getting used to. It was of a time I guess! |
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Dec 29, 2020 10:09:08 GMT
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Love these, been tempted many times, a mate has an Alfa 145 with the 2.0 20v turbo engine in, might make him an offer he can’t refuse
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Bicycle x1
Alfa Giulietta (now wife's)
Alfa 156
BMW 630i
Honda rc36
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Dec 29, 2020 12:50:54 GMT
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Great to see a Fiat Coupe on here, nearly had a new one in '99, but went for an Alfa 156 instead.
Both still look great in my eyes 😎.
Can't be many left, well worth all your efforts 👍.
Cheers,
Andy
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Jan 10, 2021 19:35:23 GMT
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The wife was a legend and took the kids out walking for the day so I could work on the Coupe. First job was the bonnet struts, both were broken and replaced with the classic wood plank. Got 1 new replacement with a fancy locking system that I don't think was standard, and one good 2nd hand one. Also popped in the pod filter to replace the airbox.      Also got all the various piping reattached for the turbo finally. Put the fans back on the radiator too, but dropped the last screw into the coupe netherworld and can't find it.  Patched up some worn wiring for the fan with insulation tape for now, will repair properly later. So only the lamdba sensor to go back in, put in coolant and bleed it (a seemingly complex process involving 3 bleed valves in various places). Then it's start up time! |
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Last Edit: Jan 10, 2021 20:22:49 GMT by jiggawhat2k: Spelling
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Jan 17, 2021 21:18:47 GMT
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It lives! And it's terrifying. First job was to tighten the final bolt on the turbo with the short spanner I bought. Got it done no drama. Next was the final bolt for the radiator fans, it's in a horrible position and I need to take off a few hoses to get proper purchase. I went into dirt bag mode and just cable tied it so I can take it for a run, I'll leave as a project for another day. Also bought some chopped bits off another coupe just so I could get the fuse covers for under the bonnet. Looks like they're not quite the same fitting for my 20v but I cable tied them in and they provide protection so all good.    Found the lambda sensor and popped it back in.  Bought a new replacement battery, the previous one was on its last legs when I got it and despite reconditioning. Got a Bosch one, was a sale on and it seems like a decent battery (am aware they don't make their own batteries anymore but hey).    Filled her up with coolant, remembering to undo the 2x bleed valves (only 2 on late coupes). All went in, bleeding was no drama. One is hidden next to end of block/throttle body, undoes with just fingers. 2nd is on the rad at the top, a plastic wing nut that has miraculously not gone brittle.  Next job was to crank it with the injector plugs pulled off (smirk), gave it a cranking for a while before oil pressure came which got me a bit twitchy. All good though, after about a minute it had full pressure. Having oil pressure in the cabin is helpful when working on a car (and stressful when driving it!).  Went for the first drive, a little smoke from the exhaust but the intake was previously coated in oil from the leaky old turbo so I expect a little smoking till it clear out. Looking good though, no oil burning smell. Went for a drive and wow. As standard, 1st and 2nd gear have boost limited. Defo this doesn't, indicating it already has a chip of some sort. I've got one to add (gtec, made by a guy on the Fiat forums, generally considered safe) but it might be the same thing as already installed. It just explodes, boost now starts from about 2.5k revs (vs over 3k on on the standard turbo) so I can see the benefit of the uprated turbo even though it's the same size as before. Torque steer is terrifying, to be expected to some extent when driving in 2nd gear and flooring it on dud tyres and a greasy road. It immediately tried to kill me and throw me in a hedge. Drove down to a short big of dual carriage way and as I floor it I hear a pop sound, like a curse word balloon being burst. Then no power on throttle. I've heard this on a video online, I've popped an intake pipe off.  Pull up (well, block the road) in what I suspect will be the first of many stops on the side of the road broken. Luckily it's the intercooler pipe and I'd not put the jubilee back on. O dear. Wrestled it back on then gingerly drove home to put the jubilee on. Followed by the police most of the way home but they left me be after a while. Once home I got the jubilee back on and went back to the dual carriage way. The car is a nutter, the intake noise from the cone filter is amazing, a hard sticking noise. Then the 5 cylinder warblers like a rally car before I let off throttle and the comically loud dump valve drops its air. So addictive. It did keep trying to throw me into either side of the road barrier even in 3rd. It feels very very fast, spec is 360 bearing stage 1 turbo (in original housing), aftermarket exhaust manifold and full stainless exhaust with cat. Some sort of chip, a cone filter and newish replacement intercooler. It's basic stuff but feels ballistic. Nice cold day probably helps. I think no need for any other mods until I've got used to this. The drive highlighted a few issues that need addressing... - Wipers not working. Fingers crossed just a fuse. - Temp gauge doesn't work, which is essential on one of these. The needle does move so hoping it is a gunked up sensor or broken wire. Just need to find the sensor... - Tyres are rock hard, and awful. Especially in this weather, I need better tyres all round. They're all different Chinese tyre variations. - Airbag light is on. - Condensation in the dash gauges, probably just cos it has been standing for a while. Just needs some heat in the cabin for a while. I hope.  But it is basically driveable now, the winter hack finally delivers! And it's definitely not boring. |
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