1980 Fiat 124 Spider aka Mozzy - restoration part 1

[Nut124]

I would not do 0.008 on that factory cam. I would go the factory spec -0.003/+0.000. or so. The ramps in the factory cam are different from a modern cam.

[fiat124pauk]

Thanks to a helping hand from Fiatsandcounting, who came by during the weekend, I managed to secure some time away from the kid and we put the engine back in.

The actual putting of the engine back in the bay probably took 10 minutes. When we were about to put it back, Bryan noticed that my pilot bearing was cruddy, so we decided to yank it out somehow and the i would order one online and hammer it in with the engine in place. Proceed for the next 2 hours as we fruitlessly figure out how to take it out with the limited set of tools we got. Luckily, the local AutoZone had the right extractor ANNNDDDD more importantly a PILOT bearing.

Besides that, not much progress has been made. The engine is in and now there is a million little things left to do to put the car back in order. I'll get to those in the next couple of weeks.

However, I do have a question about the ignition system. The car when i acquired had the Computronix ignition system, it has spectacularly failed. So in replacement I splurged and got the 123 Bluetooth distributor (https://autoricambi.us/new-123-distribu ... bluetooth/). Now i'm sitting here scratching my head trying to figure out what else i need to get the car running?
1. I need a coil, right?
2. Do i need the little current regulator?
3. Do i need the fancy heatsink?
4. I have an oxygen sensor, but i'm not sure where to wire it to, as right now it has a connector that goes to Computronix.
5. Am I missing anything else?

Also, from what i remember when taking the engine apart, i dont remember taking off belt tensioner spring and for the life of me i can't find it. Is it possible that the engine has been running without the belt tensioner spring and running okayish?

[fiat124pauk]

Also, stupid question....if you are looking at the engine from the front, does the timing belt go around clockwise or counter clockwise?

[18Fiatsandcounting]

Thanks for the shout-out! On the timing belt, the tensioner spring is just there to provide a "calibrated" tension on the belt. I suppose if you have worked on the Fiat twin cam engines long enough to know how tight the belt should be, you could just adjust the tensioner by hand to get that tightness, rather than letting the spring do the work. So, yes, it would be possible to have the engine run fine without the tensioner spring, but I wouldn't recommend this. Very early engines (up to early 1969) did not have a tensioner spring and the belt tension was done using a "fish scale" of sorts to pull on the tensioner bracket to get the right tension, and then tightened down.

On your question about CW vs. CCW, here's how I do it:

1. Get engine at TDC and both cams lined up with their marks. Don't forget to line up the aux. shaft gear.
2. Wrap the belt around the crankshaft pulley.
3. Route the rest of the belt loosely in the route it should take, but leave the belt hanging behind the exhaust cam pulley. If you don't have lips on the edges of your cam gears, you can hang the belt on either side.
4. Route the belt around the driver's side of the aux. cam gear, and then up to the intake cam gear. At this point, the belt will be taut and *should* be lined up with the teeth in the two gears.
5. Continue routing the belt around the passenger side of the aux. shaft gear and then past the tensioner.
6. Using the palm of your left hand, push the tensioner as far against the spring as you can, and tighten it down with your right hand. This is just temporary, so don't forget the steps below.
7. Work the belt over the exhaust cam gear. It also *should* line up with the teeth.
8. Loosen the tensioner again. Make sure all the timing marks are still lined up.
9. Rotate the intake cam gear very slightly CCW, to pull the timing belt taut. Do the same on the exhaust gear. Just very slightly to "snug up the belt." Make sure you don't skip a tooth or start to rotate the crankshaft.
10. Retighten the tensioner. Put a few hours on the engine, then recheck.

-Bryan

[fiat124pauk]

Took a look at my exhaust manifold - besides 2 large cracks that go through to the interior of the pipe, one of the studs is broken. I tried to extract the broken part - no luck. Messed around with it some more, now i got a hole. Manifold all but ruined.

Does anyone have one that they are willing to sell to me?

[fiat124pauk]

My parents in law are here and i was able to put in a good weekend of dedicated time to Mozzy.

Everything is put back together, engine, coolant, transmission and differential fluids and oils are all topped up, there is gas in the tank. Here is the kicker - the engine turns over but doesnt start. There is no sound of it trying to catch, just empty cranking.

1) Im using the 123 igntion with the a new correct coil. Installed it according to the instructions. At 0 degrees TDC the rotor is point to an output pin. I first connected that to cyl 1 then correct firing order (1-3-4-2), then i tried connecting it to cyl 4 and then correct firing order. No luck.
2) I got an inline spark checker - it lights up. I took up cyl 1 spark plug and grounded it to the engine while cranking - there is spark, but nothing to write home about. It seems weak.
3) Tested the fuel pump by opening the AFM flap, it kicks on and makes a whirring sound. When cranking I can smell gas, so i'm deducing that its probably not absence of fuel. I also tried starting with a bit of starting fluid - no luck.
4) I'm going to check compression today and report back.

I have a sinking suspicion that it is the distributor and coil setup. Anything anyone can recommend? I do not have another ignition setup to diagnose this.

[18Fiatsandcounting]

Good to hear that you have everything back together. Progress!

I wish I knew more about the various aftermarket ignition systems, but I don't. Since you didn't get it to fire on starting fluid, it sounds like it's a spark issue and not a fuel issue. Assuming your compression tests OK.

When the crankshaft (well, pistons really) are at TDC on the #1 cylinder, by definition piston #4 is at TDC as well, and pistons #2 and #3 are at BDC. So, with piston #1 at TDC, it could be that one that should be firing, or it could be #4. It sounds like you tried both.

I'd put cylinder #1 at TDC. Then look at the small holes in the back of the cam pulleys. If both are lined up with the small "tabs" on the cambox housings right at the front end, then #4 is the spark plug that should be firing. If they aren't, the pulley holes should be 180 degrees around on the cam, and it should be cylinder #1 that is firing. At any rate, line up the distributor rotor to either the contacts for the #1 or #4 spark plug wires on the distributor cap depending on where the cams are.

If this doesn't work, or just doesn't make sense, get back to me and we'll go from there.

-Bryan
PS: Any chance the engine is flooded (with gas)?

[wmcc]

What headlights did you install? They look great with the integrated turn signal.