[SuperSelect]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

If there is no leakage fromthe manifold packing, just leave it alone. First principle for Fiats - if it is working, LEAVE IT ALONE.

I fully agree with you Behram, from experience !
Congratulations on 1001 posts !

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

If there is no leakage fromthe manifold packing, just leave it alone. First principle for Fiats - if it is working, LEAVE IT ALONE.

Well Said.

Karthik and me remember this quote of yours which you told us during B'lore visit almost daily when we are handling our Fiats.

These days we restrict touching anything which is working just fine.

[josejoseph]

For all Fiat lovers. Found this article in today's The Hindu supplement.

Regards,
Jose.

[Sujith1100]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

If there is no leakage fromthe manifold packing, just leave it alone. First principle for Fiats - if it is working, LEAVE IT ALONE.

Very true sir, even my mechanic says the same for FIATS. I personally have touched things when I felt they were not in order and screwed them up more

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by josejoseph

For all Fiat lovers. Found this article in today's The Hindu supplement.

Regards,
Jose.

Thanks for the pics of article.

Here is a thread on the car..
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/post-1...ml#post1675093

[boeuff]

Originally Posted by john a milne

Good advice!

My 62 Fiat's slightly low on compression, reasonably even on all cylinders and is burning oil with the oil light flickering when the engine is hot.
Any additives that can reduce the oil loss that is available here in India? We have a number of products in N.A. that seem to work.
Would a 15-40 grade help?
Would appreciate some advise.

Shell sells a 20-50 grade which they advertise as suitable for older engines. I have used this in on some of our older cars.
http://www.shell.com/home/content/in...new/helix_hx3/

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by boeuff

Shell sells a 20-50 grade which they advertise as suitable for older engines. I have used this in on some of our older cars.
Shell Helix HX3 - INDIA

Whats the cost per liter?

[arun1100]

Shell Helix HX5 must be better for our cars. Shell says its for 13+ years old cars who do frequent stops and short trips.

Shell Helix HX5 - INDIA

[samsag12]

Originally Posted by manishalive

Yes I completly agree on that, A cousin of mine works for the oil recycling company, they put any lable you want and give. Further we too have suffered crank shaft and journal bearing failure in mid life of an engine.

And then we just fill the engine oil forget about it. We never do SOS (OIL Sampling) to determine what's going wrong in the engine. Shell would also be a better alternative??

And Sagar,

Just curious why you want to change the manifold and the air filter housing. Seldom we change them??

Originally Posted by arun1100

I think Sagar meant changing the PACKING on the manifold and not the manifold itself!

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

If there is no leakage fromthe manifold packing, just leave it alone. First principle for Fiats - if it is working, LEAVE IT ALONE.

Thanks to all who helped me clear my doubts. As i stated in my post that i am going to get some minor patching work done on the manifold, i meant getting them checked for the leakage from where the oil is dripping outside the manifold packing. Also do i get the whole muffler changed as it is torn apart from above. All the thrust is lost midway. Or i can get it fixed by a welder. Do S1 muffler design differs from padmini ones. I am getting a new one which is flat in design for Rs.600.
Manish regarding the Air filter box, as fire damaged the whole box even from inside the ceramic coating is totally gone and inside is bare rust on metal.I wonder if it can be repaired. So I got old filter box from scrapyard and thinking of replacing the present one with it along with new elofic make air filter.Actually i have one but its full of dirt. Will post the pics of old one for reference. Hope it clears everybody's doubts regarding manifold.

[arun1100]

Originally Posted by funkykar

My brains still havent understood the 'correct way(whatever is feasible in market and based on availability of parts)' of a head job. What is the correct solution for the below queries:

1) If the spark plug threading is worn out on the head (if even the adaptor is not sitting properly), whats the correct way to fix it?

2) If the triangular holes on the head where the water circulates is worn out (normal wearing out over a period of years), what is the correct way to fix it?

3) Are new heads of good quality available in market? If so, what make and what price are they.

4) Heard Senator heads are not of very good quality. Is a repaired PA head better or replacing with a new Senator better.

Replies would be highly appreciated. The answers to these queries should benefit a lot of other Fiatians also.

BEHRAM Sir,
Please answer to this doubt of us.

One shop in B'lore has Senator head. Cost Rs. 3800/-. Is it a good buy. Our driving is very limited. So is Senator good enough?

OR Do we just forget Senator Head?

[arun1100]

BEHRAM Sir,

Also Some queries regarding rubber parts.

Suspension and coil spring bushes of "EMA" make. The set costs Rs. 275. The set does not include metal suspension bushes.

Is EMA a good make?

OR

Does VIR do the same type of bushes?

Which is good?

[adheesh]

Originally Posted by arun1100

BEHRAM Sir,

Also Some queries regarding rubber parts.

Suspension and coil spring bushes of "EMA" make. The set costs Rs. 275. The set does not include metal suspension bushes.

Is EMA a good make?

OR

Does VIR do the same type of bushes?

Which is good?

VIR manufactures very good quality suspension bushes for FIATS which most of us in Mumbai use. Ema used to supply accelerator pedals to PAL as OE (they also manufactured after-market radiator hoses but the quality was nothing phenomenal and were avoided when we had a choice) however I am not sure if it is the same company. VIR bushes for front coil springs and the rear leaf-springs together used to cost some 11or12 hundred rupees six months ago. Also please do check if tie rod ends made by Rane company are available in Banglore as their quality is second to none.

Regards,
Adheesh Parelkar

[adheesh]

Originally Posted by funkykar

My brains still havent understood the 'correct way(whatever is feasible in market and based on availability of parts)' of a head job. What is the correct solution for the below queries:

1) If the spark plug threading is worn out on the head (if even the adaptor is not sitting properly), whats the correct way to fix it?

2) If the triangular holes on the head where the water circulates is worn out (normal wearing out over a period of years), what is the correct way to fix it?

3) Are new heads of good quality available in market? If so, what make and what price are they.

4) Heard Senator heads are not of very good quality. Is a repaired PA head better or replacing with a new Senator better.

Replies would be highly appreciated. The answers to these queries should benefit a lot of other Fiatians also.

In my personal opinion, I would not do any work on the cylinder head except valve polishing and resurfacing. Sparkplug threads can re-threaded by using a M14x1.25 size tap.

Please understand that a cylinder head is an integral part of the engine. If the head which is removed from the engine shows discrepancy due to routine wear and tear, all the other parts like pistons, block, etc,etc will also be in a similar situation except in very rare cases. The same will apply to damage caused due to overheating. Attending to just one part when an engine is opened isn't the correct way to do things according to me. Opening up the engine (which included the cylinder head) is the very last option. Any jobs except those listed in the first paragraphs cannot be done to precision by local workshops.

Arun, an identical problem was faced by our friend Ravi on his SuperSelect. Due to a loose sparkplug, there was total compression loss on one cylinder. The engine used to sound like a steam engine. The whole issue was solved WITHOUT opening up the head. I am sure Ravi would explain the whole series of episodes in detail.

So what would be the solution ? Actually there would be two correct solutions. One, with a lot of patience, find a good original PAL cylinder head from the scrapyard. The valves should be tan brown in colour without any oil on them. Please do not even look at heads which are pre-cleaned. Take the cylinder head to a good turner and tell him to just resurface it (usually they shave about 0.25 to 0.5mm), check the threads on all groves including the ones for manifold stud and water-pump. Re-thread if necessary. Do not touch the valve seats in any case. Mostly nothing much happens to them. Just get the valves polished. The intake valve is 30mm diameter and the exhaust valve is 32mm diameter. The sequence is E-I-I-E-E-I-I-E. The valves are numbered by small engraved dots to the corresponding cylinder. (Valves on cylinder no 1 will have one dot and the ones on no.4 will have 4 dots). Ensure that the valves are fitted as per their corresponding cylinder only. There is also a torquing sequence of the cylinder head bolts which I will post some other time. No body follows the torquing sequence and uses a torque wrench and all but the cars of people who do (I know of only 3 people in Mumbai) run 'differently'.

The second solution would be to stock a engine from a good running car which has come for scrapping. You may even get a test ride of the car before it is scrapped. When a problem is faced, simply replace the whole thing without breaking ones head on anything. The whole job will not take more that 3 hours at a stretch. But one never knows when this 'new' engine will start giving trouble.

Personally, I would still prefer solution number one.

Waiting for your replies,

Regards,
Adheesh Parelkar

[funkykar]

Thanks a lot Adheesh for your reply. It is much appreciated

[arun1100]

We learnt something today.
Thanks buddy.