[CrackedHead]

Thanks Adheesh, its definitely not the release bearing - I know what that sounds like and this sound does not change if the clutch is pressed while the car is in motion. My longtime mechanic suspects that its a loose nut at the end of the gear shaft.

OT: I'm getting a custom front grill made from aluminium tomorrow (the oreginaal aluminium one is long gone and I'm tired of replacing new plastic ones every now and then). The search for the oreginaal one is still on.

[john a milne]

In searching for information on the Fiat 1100 Deluxe Models, I had a reply from an American Nick Hansen who has a couple of Fiats and needing a crank for his 1200 TV roadster is considering taking it from his very nice 1962 Fiat 1100D wagon as parts there are unavailable.

I would think that a crank could be found here and shipped to him.

Any suggestions that I can pass on to Nick?

[funkykar]

I have been running on Swift Radial tires (Tubeless), 165/80/R14, since a couple of months now. Its run close to 2000 kilometers. Performance has been excellent. As per Behram sir's recommendation, I put the tubes on all the tires. This was more to do with the safety aspect at high speeds since our rims are not designed for running tubeless. I also had the balancing done for all the 5 wheels. Costed me a whopping 500 bucks including the weights. Is it really necessary to do the balancing on Padmini's? How often does it need to be done?

[samsag12]

Can anybody suggest any method by which one can prevent the theft of car battery in PP. 2 years back my car battery was stolen in night. The bonnet was opened from beside the grill. (still have the markings of screwdriver). They literally cut the wires and took it away. It was a brand new 11 plate battery.
So i need some suggestions and possibly some great ideas in order to prevent this type of theft in future as i cannot bear the loss of 5000 Rs every time.

[adheesh]

Originally Posted by samsag12

Can anybody suggest any method by which one can prevent the theft of car battery in PP. 2 years back my car battery was stolen in night. The bonnet was opened from beside the grill. (still have the markings of screwdriver). They literally cut the wires and took it away. It was a brand new 11 plate battery.
So i need some suggestions and possibly some great ideas in order to prevent this type of theft in future as i cannot bear the loss of 5000 Rs every time.

Heard of such just the battery being stolen for the first time ! I think only funkycar (Karthik Makam) can help you in this case since he has expertise in security systems What say Karthik ?

[CrackedHead]

Originally Posted by samsag12

Can anybody suggest any method by which one can prevent the theft of car battery in PP. 2 years back my car battery was stolen in night. The bonnet was opened from beside the grill. (still have the markings of screwdriver). They literally cut the wires and took it away. It was a brand new 11 plate battery.
So i need some suggestions and possibly some great ideas in order to prevent this type of theft in future as i cannot bear the loss of 5000 Rs every time.

One option would get a security system with a sensor for the bonnet and boot (something like a basic autocop system).

[funkykar]

Originally Posted by adheesh

Heard of such just the battery being stolen for the first time ! I think only funkycar (Karthik Makam) can help you in this case since he has expertise in security systems What say Karthik ?

I am not the security guy. It is Karthik1100. By the way, he deals with security gadgets for homes and offices. At best, remove the battery during night and keep at home and install the security solution provided by Karthik1100 to your home.



I think Autocop is a good option. Just for the bonnet might prove to be an expensive deal. Just curious here - Is it possible to fit an Autocop system to for the doors like any other car. As far as I know, Fiat locking system is different than the other cars. So is it possible to tweak something inside the doors and fit an autocop?

[ilangop]

Originally Posted by funkykar

I think Autocop is a good option. Just for the bonnet might prove to be an expensive deal. Just curious here - Is it possible to fit an Autocop system to for the doors like any other car. As far as I know, Fiat locking system is different than the other cars. So is it possible to tweak something inside the doors and fit an autocop?

Sorry to hear that the battery was stolen. Yet you can discuss what the Jeep owners do to secure the battery. BTW the older Fiats come with a switch that gets grounded on opening the doors. What I have seen in Indica is that the switch sends +12V on opening the doors. In the prespctive of using the Autocop on old Fiats, probably changing the switch with one like in Indica (The swicth has 2 terminals, 1 for 12V in and other to the roof lamp / Door Ajar or which ever needs to be actuated) would help. And the old Fiat type swicthes are notorious for catching up rust pretty often and become non-functional.
I wonder if Autocop units have an option to get triggered with a ground signal, security experts please throw some light.

[CrackedHead]

Forget what I said about an autocop. Would be relatively simpler to rig up a simple switch to the bonnet that would cause the horn to go off if the bonnet is opened without disarming (via a switch hidden somewhere inside the passenger compartment).

The honking horn (when someone tries to lift the bonnet without disarming from inside) should be enough of a deterrent against theft. The regular autocop's electromagnets aren't powerful enough to lock/unlock a typical fiat's doors (I've tried that as a DIY)

[samsag12]

Glad to hear so many suggestions and ideas. I think the most preferred parts of fiat inside the hood are the battery, carburetor and radiator as these can be opened within minutes. Mine (battery) got stolen just a month after my 5 month old Maruti 800 was lifted in front of our eyes. So guess somebody was keeping a watch on us. It was sometime around 2005.
BTW my mech suggested that i can get a battery box/housing fabricated with a provision for lock. Will it work or not ?

[Lucas_2007]

Dear Samsag12 I got my battery stolen twice before. Then i found a solution. I have applied it in my padmini. Just install a door switch under the bonnet such that it remains inaccessible from outside and connect it to the horn. fit a toggle switch for activation/deactivation. Try it! This is the Cheapest way. cheers!

[Lucas_2007]

On opening the bonnet the horn will act like an alarm.....simple..:-)

[funkykar]

Originally Posted by Lucas_2007

On opening the bonnet the horn will act like an alarm.....simple..:-)

Sounds like a very simple solution. Does this happen frequently in Bangalore too? If yes, may be we too may need to this.

[samsag12]

I think that the horn siren is a good idea. Although it was stated previously by crackedhead i was wondering if anyone had done this in their car.
BTW Lucas_2007 can you post some pics of this install in your car. You can either Email me if you don't want to display publicly or post here. I just want to get an idea

[funkykar]

Please post info and pics here for everyone's reference