Daves Panda. minor fettling

[oldcars]

Could it have mounted somewhere under the car as a place to set the jack?

[Timewaster]

I like the Jack extention theory.

[spartacus]

You can judge the success of a major undertaking such as yours by the amount of parts left over, if that's all you've got, don't worry about it.

 

I reckon it's to add height.

[oldcars]

Or is it a mounting for the spare wheel in the engine bay?

[castros_bro]

Aaaaaand this turns up for sale not too far away for 500 europennies.

 

 

Apparently a runner.

 

Should I? Who needs two of the damn things? 

 

500 euro pennies that's less than 376  Stirlng cents and I have these bits (to make RHD legal in the UK)  left  over from my last Panda 4x4 project. If you don't want it could I sponsor you have a look at it and maybe buy it then store it till the warmer weather when I can collect it?

 

 

[Vin]

Am I being dim? whats this thing and where does it go? it was in the bottom of the bucket of bolts n stuff.

 

The pointy circle corresponds with the foot of the standard jack, but I dont see the purpose of it?

 

IMG_20160221_1719441.jpg

 

I can confirm it is a jack extension. Being an inch or so higher off the ground than a a 4x2 the jack extension is provided...

[andrew e]

I think it's an ice grip for the jack.

[tooSavvy]

Am I being dim? whats this thing and where does it go? it was in the bottom of the bucket of bolts n stuff.

 

The pointy circle corresponds with the foot of the standard jack, but I dont see the purpose of it?

 

IMG_20160221_1719441.jpg

 

Ah Haaaaaa..... Ebay thread...

 

 

..... on N/S strut tower... ??

 

TS

[oldcars]

Cool, i thought it might be but could not for the life of me find any photos.

[dave21478]

I have been pouring yet more money into this again. New plugs, leads, cap, rotor, points and condensor has made it easier to start and it seems to run a hell of a lot better, but its ticking over at about 2000 rpm.

 

How the hell do you adjust the idle speed?

 

Note - I hate carbs. I dont know much about carbs and have no interest in carbs, so exceedingly simple instructions are required.

 

I have had a twiddle at various screws and nuts to no effect.

 

I assume this lump on the left of it with the hoses going into it is an auto-choke? Doesnt work. Regardless of temerature or anything else I have never seen it in any other position than as this pic. If I open the throttle I can close the top flap by hand and it will pop open again after a while.

The very obvious throttle adjustment screw there appears to only be for the "on choke" idle speed and doesnt affect normal running speed.

4 brass nuts in the middle.....jets?

 

 

 

Side view of the linkage under the autochoke. You can see the loving care and attention I lavished on its cleaning. Cant see any obvious adjustment.

 

 

 

Down the back between carb and rocker cover. To the right of the pic there is a screw with a spring around the threads. Twiddling this does nothing. (i counted turns so its back where it was in case it does something else)

 

Please help.

[Asimo]

It does say Weber on the carb., so there will be some hope. If it said Zenith however...

 

Start with a complete dismantle and very thorough clean, blow out all the tubes and jets and passages with compressed air.

Probably be ok then. 

[mouseflakes]

I assume this lump on the left of it with the hoses going into it is an auto-choke? Doesnt work. Regardless of temerature or anything else I have never seen it in any other position than as this pic. If I open the throttle I can close the top flap by hand and it will pop open again after a while.

 

Dunno about the Panda, but many auto-chokes need to be 'set' before starting the engine - by opening the throttle as you say here. On a cold engine the choke should spring closed at this point, only opening as things warm up. So, before turning it over, steadily push the accelerator pedal to the floor and let it back up again, to see if this sets the choke.

[dave21478]

That seems to be the case with this - its not possible for the choke to close until the throttle is opened first, but it still wont close by itself even if I do that.

 

 

Take the carb apart? Id rather not, tbh. There is a real danger of me getting seriously menstrual with this car (cars in general, not just this one) in the very near future and inevitably having to spunk out even fucking more money on a carb rebuild kit is quite possibly going to be the tipping point.

Besides, it ran ok before, so stripping and rebuilding will no doubt require a proper tune-up to set emissions levels which I am not capable of and I am unable to find a garage that is not run by sour faced pricks who are happy to charge plenty, take three weeks and half-ass the job.

[Vin]

I don't know anything about adjusting this type of carb. But, I can tell you that the autochoke on these is always fucked. It's very common.

[Tickman]

Possibly of some use, might not be exactly the same but not too dissimilar

 

Weber_32_DFT-weber 32 DFT-fil_f0ogE.pdf

[alf892]

If it starts and runs without choke someone has clearly played about with any available adjustment to arrive at a combination of fucked up lucky settings that make it kind of run.

 

I imagine confirming the carb model shouldn't be too hard and then just google for a set up guide.(Autodata maybe useful)......don't fear the carb!.....very logical things.

[Burnside]

I'm no mechanic sadly but if someone on here has the Fiat Panda Porter repair manual, or you can get hold of a copy off ebay etc. Then it should cover all the various carbs fitted. I'm sure it tells you where you can find the adjustment screws for the idle speed and mixture too.

 

Good luck with it, really enjoyed reading and seeing the pictures of it's transformation so far.   

[3VOM]

Possibly of some use, might not be exactly the same but not too dissimilar

 

Weber_32_DFT-weber 32 DFT-fil_f0ogE.pdf

If it's like the above (and some other carbs) there's a blanking plug over the idle screw to stop it being messed with.

[mat_the_cat]

If there's an air leak somewhere then no amount of carb fiddling will help. Sometimes a squirt with 3-en-un everywhere downstream of the carb will temporarily seal a minor leak and bring the revs down

 

Can you manually close the throttle butterflies fully and see whether  the idle speed reduces?

[For Fiats Sake]

Vacuum advance thingy is also always knackered on these.  Do a google search and click the links for the Fiat Forum, most questions have already been asked and answered on there.  

 

Not by me though, I'm a licker not a fixer...

 

There are a couple of Panda Lurkers here who could probably answer your questions!

 

Poland is a good place for parts too often cheaper than here or Italy, don't give up on the panda, it's still worth one more try.

[Sigmund Fraud]

First take out your timing light, and make sure the ignition timing is set correctly. Then do what mat_the_cat said, to make sure there are no air leaks.

 

Only then should you start messing about with the carb itself.

 

What you have there is a twin choke downdraft Weber, probably a 32/34. If you want a simple version of how to adjust it, check this. If you want a complicated version, check this.

[Tickman]

 If you want a simple version of how to adjust it, check this. If you want a complicated version, check this.

I was hoping for an idiots guide to the dark art of tuning one of these carbs as I have one on the SS1 and it is a mystery to me!

 

I will start with the timing and vacuum leak bits first though as I know it is 'pinking' which will hardly help!

[dave21478]

Easter weekend, Friday off work.....what could be better for restoring lost mojo than a triumphant first drive of the Panda? Bouncing along the country lanes looking at lambs and bunny rabbits in the fields as I wend my merry way through...... *needle ripping off the record noise*    Fuck this piece of shit. 

 

So I finally got this added to my classic fleet policy and received the window sticker so could take it for its first proper run on the road. While I wasnt expecting miracles, I wasnt expecting such a fail either.

 

It initially went pretty well, but started misfiring within a half mile or so. It was OK at full throttle though so I pressed on, unwilling to admit defeat so soon. At the very least it could make it to the village for a fresh tank of pez, couldnt it? It crapped out as I slowed and turned into the forecourt. filled up with fresh fuel and away again, needing to keep the revs up high to prevent it spluttering.

 

Then the windscreen decided it preferred being in two pieces. No impact, no pothole or anything like that, just a single slim crack appeared at the bottom and steadily worked its way right up the full height of the screen over the next 30 seconds or so.

 

Got home and it crapped out turning into the drive and is really hard to get going again. Anything less than full throttle just causes it to stall. This made the careful maneuvre into the garage a delight*.

I got out and noticed oil all over a back wheel - seems the seal on the end of the rear axle isnt sealing very well. Its not a huge amount but centrifugal force has splattered it all over the place.

 

I dunno, man. I dont have a timing light that works, so cant check that. Going by ear its the best I can figure it to be. The carb remains a complete mystery - none of the visible screws seems to have any effect on anything whatsoever. Its all new ignition components....points, condensor, cap, rotor, leads, plugs, and not unbranded shit either so they should be ok.

 

So thats that. My enthusiasm for spending this weekend fiddling with it or stripping the carb is absolute zero.....but I have to. Why? well now that its insured, the insurers need a copy of the registration papers in my name. To register it I need to take it for Control Technique first. Its obviously not going to make the 40 minute drive to the nearest test centre under its own power as it is, oh and it will definately fail for the split windscreen.  If I remember rightly this was the last decent screen in the local scrappers. Brilliant.

Fettling old cars is supposed to be a hobby I do when I want to do it, its not about being under pressure because I absolutely must get something done. Forcing me to do something when I am not in the mood is a good way to make me hate that thing.

 

 

 

[mouseflakes]

Gah! Gutted for you Mr Numbers.

 

Windscreen sounds the worst of it.

 

The poor running must be fixable? Is the auto-choke sticking closed or partly closed, since it sounds like it only went bad once warmed up and needed the throttle open to keep running at all.

 

You probably don't want to think about it just now though. Hope mojo is soon restored - you've done all the hardest work already.

[Tickman]

That is a supreme ball ache.

[Sigmund Fraud]

It's still approximately a million times better than when you started with it ! Surely, you're not going to give up on it because of a few niggles ?

[hauserplenty]

I'd like to suggest you do the following:

Buy two cans of carburetor cleaner.

Empty one of the cans all over the outside of the carb. All that dirt is gumming things up.

Beg, borrow, or steal a timing light, and a golf tee or two.

Find the distributor hold-down bolt, and make sure you can get a wrench on it. Then remove the vacuum line(s) from the distributor and plug it/them with the golf tee(s).

Make sure those lines are in good condition--there's likely to be only one, in which case it should be connected to a vacuum port on the intake manifold.

Tighten up the four bolts holding the carb until they break*, and back 'em off a half turn.

You are now almost ready to adjust the basic timing. Look at the crankshaft pulley/harmonic balancer for a timing mark. You may need to blip the starter, or turn the engine by hand to do so. If you need to, spray some carb cleaner on it to remove any dirt. Then make a chalk, white-out or white nail polish mark over the line once you locate it.

Break the distributor hold-down bolt loose, then tighten it snug.

If it is cold, set the choke by pressing the accelerator to the floor once. Start the engine.

Aim the timing light in the general direction of the mark and the timing scale. Set to 10 degrees advance, or whatever the underhood label calls for. By loosening the distributor bolt slightly, you can turn the cap (with your right hand only, keeping your left hand behind your back) until you see the mark moving toward the 0 on the scale. Do this until the engine reaches normal operating temperature. Note any differences; I'm guessing they will be slight.

 

Ideally you should have a tachometer attached to the coil, so you can see the RPM change as you make this adjustment. A vacuum gauge is also quite handy--if you have one, substitute it for the golf tee.

 

Timing should always be adjusted first, before idle speed can even be attempted. It sounds to me as if you have a vacuum leak, and maladjusted timing. The stalling when hot points to a vacuum leak, the poor running to a timing adjustment.

 

Never randomly turn carburetor screws; in this case it sounds like you got away with it but these steps should get you back on the road.

 

*not really. Just get them snug, then tighten each one a quarter turn at a time in a criss-cross pattern until you know they are all tight. If the carbueretor gasket proves defective, I can provide instructions to make your own out of $2.00 worth of gasket paper. Providing they are too expensive/No Longer Available of course...

 

The results you get will determine what you should do next.

[billyboy406v6]

Carb overhaul is defo needed and not really complicated with a bit of research, Hauserplenty post above is good advice. Why screen cracked so suddenly is a worry as the next one may go the same way ? Good luck and keep the faith !!

[michael1703]

Is the tail pipe sooty?

 

Is the carb float height too high?

 

Can you bribe someone to ignore cracked windscreen?

 

Can you take it without a windscreen?

[michael1703]

Another thing.... If you can write down your settings by screwing the mixture screw in and counting the turns in to fully seated and write them down

 

You could take the screw out and check the 'o' ring on the mixture screw hasn't cracked up

 

I give mixture screw 'o' rings a dab of red rubber grease