FIAT 126 BIS engine options

Lopéz

Lopéz

Lopéz

Man of Honour
Joined
17 Oct 2002
Posts
29,311
Location
Ottakring, Vienna.
We're in the process of buying a house and whilst it has parking and a garage I'd rather have something small to save arguments with my prospective new neighbours and our shared drive.
I'd fancied a 126 for a while now but I really don't think I could cope with the air cooled sewing machine that propels it. Now I'm told these things are popular in the FIAT tuning world so surely something a bit more potent must be a *relatively* straighforward fit? I'm not afraid of welding in mounts and plumbing in a cooling system (he says, haha!) but I'[d rather not have too much gearbox and driveshaft faffery.

Anyone know anything about this little tin sheds?
 
Lopéz said:
Anyone know anything about this little tin sheds?
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I know they fetch stupid money in good condition. I know they aren't very good for handbrake turns, though it will have people falling about with laughter as the back end hops around like a rampant bunny when you try.

Don't know if any other engine is a straightforward conversion, but it seems that it's not difficult to release a fair bit of extra poke from the standard engine due to the stupidly low compression ratio they have as standard and poor breathing:

http://pages.zoom.co.uk/blitzracing/tuning.htm

Guess you already know about http://www.fiat126.co.uk/ ?
 
Right, have a look at http://www.126fan.pl/

It's all in Polish unfortunately, but scroll down to the bottom of the Menu on the left hand side and take a look at "Swap Center".

Looks like someones managed to get a 1.8 G60 lump in there! However, the Uno/Punto engines look like a popular conversion, I guess they must mate up to the bellhousing?
 
1.9D_6.jpg


You know you want one just to do that in :D
 
Dogbreath said:
Looks like someones managed to get a 1.8 G60 lump in there! However, the Uno/Punto engines look like a popular conversion, I guess they must mate up to the bellhousing?
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G60? Christ.....

Uno sounds promising. Uno/Punto turbo perhaps?
 
[TW]Fox said:
You are a man, I'm sure you can park that Mondeo in any driveway a woman could be reasonably expected to park a 126 :p
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I can park it anywhere dude, I regularly slam it into slots by work that make Corsas tremble in fear of a cracked bumper.

But the land I'll be parking on won't be mine and I need something with a tiny footprint to put on it. Plus I'm bored of the Mondeo and fancy something quirky.
 
For an interesting slant, it comes with a parrallel twin as stock...

...So put a Triumph P-twin out of oneof their 'new classics' in it.

SCORE!

Otherwise, fit the whole rear clip off a Beetle into it - cheap, light, easy as hell to work on, a wealth of tuning bits AND the possibility of a Subaru Flat-4 swap later if you get bored.

Best of all, a dub motor would leave you eligable for the VWDRC :D

*n
 
Ooo both a good choice! You will have more space in the Hillman for an engine I would assume. Not sure what goes good in one, but they look sweet. :D

Bit hard to decide which to go for really. In the end I think the Hillman Imp just has it.

 
How high can you get a Coventry Climax to rev? 8 grand? Higher?

I know almost NOTHING about these Rootes things, I've only been in one years ago (a Sunbeam Stilleto fastback I think - same car basically?) and it was petrifying but huge fun.
 
Lopéz said:
How high can you get a Coventry Climax to rev? 8 grand? Higher?

I know almost NOTHING about these Rootes things, I've only been in one years ago (a Sunbeam Stilleto fastback I think - same car basically?) and it was petrifying but huge fun.
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Thats funny! you mean when it comes 'on cam' right? lol. Mine used to do 65mph in second with the standard transax. that was an 875 with twin stroms and a big valve head.

edit: depends what you want to do. The Imp engine is good but, costs lots to sort out properly. It's not really a cost effective engine to do. Probably be better to stuff the citroen AX motor in one like the ice racers do.
The first mod has to be getting the rad up the front, Then sorting out that awful drums all round braking system (servo's only fitted on sport and stiletto models) then choose an engine. I've seen them fitted with the following - ford v6 (too heavy), ford x-flow( probably not too bad), Mid engined renault(uber-good) and various other citroen/peugeot light alloy engines.
 
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Lopéz said:
How high can you get a Coventry Climax to rev? 8 grand? Higher?

I know almost NOTHING about these Rootes things, I've only been in one years ago (a Sunbeam Stilleto fastback I think - same car basically?) and it was petrifying but huge fun.
Click to expand...

A sorted one will rev to 10k.

http://www.theimpclub.co.uk/ is the place.

Remember that white turbocharged one I kept posting a while back?

It's owner (James, 'blownimp' on RR) is building it's replacement - a Twincharged 'Imp S4'! :D Turbocharged, supercharged, bike throttle bodies, Electronic fuel injection, Electronic distribution....

Clicky.

That guy is a legend.

Imps pwn. :)

Don't put a bloody crossflow in one! They weigh a tonne. A stupid thing to put in a lightweight, alloy-engined screamer.

Subaru-powered Imp project for sale...

Go for it, dude - Get a solid imp and feither roll with a built 1 litre Imp Lump or drop in an oilcooled GSXR-1000 engine :D

*n
 
I remember going to look at an Imp in carshalton beeches some years ago after chatting to its owner in the pub. He had grafted the engine and transmission as well as what looked like the subframe from a Fiat X19. Not sure if it had ever run though. Thing that sticks in my mind was it had the Fiat disk brakes on the back and drums on the front when I saw it.
 
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