Project ‘Project Salvo’ Fiat Tipo 16V

[si1881]

So after introducing myself last week I thought I should put some info up of my project ‘Salvo’. He’s a 1993 Fiat Tipo 2.0 16V Sedicivalvole with the option of ABS and Recarro seats fitted and is a late registered 5 door version

 

Having been brought up with Fiats in the family from a baby (my Dad worked for a Fiat dealer in Warwick) I always had a want for a Tipo Sedici. I remember Dad having one as a company demo when I was 12ish.

 

So after moving on an X1/9 that myself and a friend had rebuilt the gearbox amongst many other jobs I found ‘Salvo’ on the dreaded eBay.

 

He needs a lot of work, I knew this when buying him, but it proved a good idea to have him transported home as a brake pipe burst unloading it from the lorry...

 

So to the subject of ‘rust’. Yes it’s a Fiat but by the 90s I don’t think they were any worse than their equivalents from Ford or Vauxhall etc.

While the Tipo was famously galvanised from new (as the adverts made a lot of effort to tell) they seem to have forgotten the rear arches on mine (and a lot of others...).

 

I’ll hopefully do a series of posts showing what’s been done so far plus the ongoing hunt for solid metal but will start with some pictures of Salvo as he first arrived.

 

 

One of the first jobs was finding a set of correct wheels for a 5 door Sedici rather than the later 3 door style and to lose the ones it came on.

 

 

Then the investigation into the rear arch rot began... plus what the plastic side skirts were hiding. Oh and the exhaust falling off, clutch release bearing very noisy, no brakes, no idea of when the timing belt was done and a very sticky inside!

[Pillock]

Took a while to approve the post, but what a post it is! Thought I've give you a free bump back up to the top so nobody misses out on the...... rust and daylight.

[w00dy]

Awesome car! Definitely worth saving although I'm sure it won't be easy.

 

 

Keep up the good work.

[Kringle]

I doubt il Commissario Montalbano would be impressed with the state of that! Great post.

[HMC]

Bene!

[paulscavalier]

Definitely worth saving. But the rust is quite daunting

[lanciamatt]

Worth saving, it's matt here I live round corner from you with the lancias

[Supernaut]

  On 15/01/2019 at 19:33, lanciamatt said:

Worth saving, it's matt here I live round corner from you with the lancias

What, do you two have local "who has the rustiest Italian car?" competitions?

[catsinthewelder]

Thats lush, love to see a Tipo getting some love.

[Zelandeth]

Of course one very important question: does it have the digital dashboard?

[J-T]

The plate on this seems familiar, I've a feeling I went to look at this years ago

[somewhatfoolish]

Molto bene.

[si1881]

  On 15/01/2019 at 19:42, Zelandeth said:

Of course one very important question: does it have the digital dashboard?

Unfortunately not, they didn’t do the DGT with the 16V sadly. Just get analogue with extra gauges for oil temperature etc and a panel that says if the doors are open (something else that doesn’t quite work properly...)

[si1881]

  On 15/01/2019 at 19:38, Supernaut said:

What, do you two have local "who has the rustiest Italian car?" competitions?

Lol quite possibly. Though my ‘daily’ poverty spec 95 Tipo weirdly isn’t that rusty...

[RayMK]

My son bought a 1994 Tipo 1.4 ie several years ago.  He sold it to a friend last August and I bought it back last week.  Ours has had bodywork in our previous ownership, the worst areas being the front floorpan on both sides next to the sills, and the vertical panel between the spare wheel well and the rear bumper.  Galvanising does not work forever.  Fiat in their infinite wisdom did not galvanise the floorpan. Tipos resist rust much better than some other Fiats from the same period which could have daylight showing through the underbody inside five years.  I know that this won't help you as you stare through the holes in your 26 years old Tipo, but it's worth saving if you can get the bad bits repaired.  You will have the advantage of performance over ours.  They are pleasant, commodious, comfortable hatches to drive.  Visibility is superb compared with a modern bloated tank.

 

Ours is currently having its rear brake drums, brake cylinders (leaking) and shoes (wet), front discs and pads, track rod ends, front tyres and a broken front spring/corroded swivel joint replaced.  The MOT man did not fail any body bits and we decided to replace more bits than actually failed because parts are cheap and seem to be readily available - except for power steering pumps ....hens teeth etc.

 

Good luck and keep us posted.

[Sheefag]

Just answered most of my questions about galvanising, Ray.

Are there any special challenges involved in repairing / welding to galvanised steel?

[tooSavvy]

  On 16/01/2019 at 01:45, Sheefag said:

Just answered most of my questions about galvanising, Ray.

Are there any special challenges involved in repairing / welding to galvanised steel?

..... Finding some?

[si1881]

  On 15/01/2019 at 21:53, RayMK said:

My son bought a 1994 Tipo 1.4 ie several years ago.  He sold it to a friend last August and I bought it back last week.  Ours has had bodywork in our previous ownership, the worst areas being the front floorpan on both sides next to the sills, and the vertical panel between the spare wheel well and the rear bumper.  Galvanising does not work forever.  Fiat in their infinite wisdom did not galvanise the floorpan. Tipos resist rust much better than some other Fiats from the same period which could have daylight showing through the underbody inside five years.  I know that this won't help you as you stare through the holes in your 26 years old Tipo, but it's worth saving if you can get the bad bits repaired.  You will have the advantage of performance over ours.  They are pleasant, commodious, confortable hatches to drive.  Visibility is superb compared with a modern bloated tank..

My current daily is an M reg 1.4ie S which was bought in theory for spares for the white one but has proved to be too good so far. Apart from a knack when I first got it of boiling over at any opportunity (eventually fixedwith a new thermostat and water pump) it’s proved to be reliable in a battered kind of way - I think it was used for goal practice at some point! It even made it to the FotU this year.

[LoftyvRS]

I love these, something that was so different to the mainstream, the grown up relative of the Strada 130TC!

 

Good luck with the work, the interior looks to be tidy - how have the Recaro's held up?

[somewhatfoolish]

  On 16/01/2019 at 01:45, Sheefag said:

Just answered most of my questions about galvanising, Ray.

Are there any special challenges involved in repairing / welding to galvanised steel?

To do it proper-like you're supposed to grind the zinc back from the weld area, as it gets in the weld pool and sods up the chemistry; in practice I've found it doesn't make much odds, the only consequence being the weld is a bit more blobby, everything gets covered in white cobwebs(zinc oxide) and you need to watch the fumes as it will give you a headache/bad aids/cancer of the welding torch.

[Ghosty]

Is that blue one ex-Bramz? Seems familiar.

[theshadow]

holy moly,quite doable,not many left now,fiat puntos can be just as bad,fiestas,corsas,escorts hey it the 90s some are better than others.roll of the dice if its not fooked underneath,are well done with fibreglass... :shock:

[Uncle Jimmy]

Need cheap perspex wind deflector.

[cort1977]

  On 16/01/2019 at 10:59, somewhatfoolish said:

To do it proper-like you're supposed to grind the zinc back from the weld area, as it gets in the weld pool and sods up the chemistry; in practice I've found it doesn't make much odds, the only consequence being the weld is a bit more blobby, everything gets covered in white cobwebs(zinc oxide) and you need to watch the fumes as it will give you a headache/bad aids/cancer of the welding torch.

 

As well as the bad aids it can give you the shakes, as above keep the area well ventilated because it can be quite nasty.

 

Great car, I really like simple 90s shapes like this.

[si1881]

A few more pics of the rust and the start cutting out and making pieces to fit.

Have also bought a welder... though a friend is much better and more experienced so I may just stick to the very simple arch repairs to start with. Removing the old factory applied under seal stuff has taken many many hours but does result in some very good metal and some just with surface rust which is easily treated.

 

 

Refurbished rear callipers and new discs in place with new brake pipes all the way to the front. The old ones just sheared being touched. Had to take the fuel tank out anyway to be able to do the boot floor/inner arches without melting it or worse...

 

Some very weird shapes!

 

 

I then made the mistake of taking the plastic side skirts off... more welding needed on the near side footwell! The black is the sound deadening under the carpet... mainly stemming from what looks like someone jacking it up in the wrong place at some point.

 

[si1881]

  On 16/01/2019 at 10:13, LoftyvRS said:

Good luck with the work, the interior looks to be tidy - how have the Recaro's held up?

They’re not too bad. Don’t think the back has been used very much and drivers only has a little wear on the bolster as you get in.

 

Main issue is with the ‘soft touch’ covering on a lot of the plastics which has gone sticky and leaves black marks on anything that it touches. Think this is common though with Fiats and Alfa’s of the era. Does come off but is a real time consuming PITA.

[Burnside]

Love Tipo's ! Had a G reg Tipo 1.4 DGT years ago and have always regretted selling it. I keep saying I'll have another Tipo or Tempra one day. Compared to the Escort Mk4 1.4L I had the Tipo was light years ahead in terms of driving ability or all round fit and finish.( I still rate the Escort though!) My Brother also had a Tipo 1.4 i.e a few years ago, till some idiot in a Focus wrote it off for us. Poor Tipo hit a two posted Weight Restriction Sign head on but my brother walked away without a scratch.

 

The rust for the age isn't bad. I've had far worse repaired myself but I can't weld so had to save up and pay someone else. So fair play to you for having ago yourself.

 

I have a few used front door interior trim parts and some electric door switches spare I think as well. There in the loft so will check that out. Your welcome to have them if there of use.

 

There was also a Guy that used to advertise on Ebay over Derbyshire way that has broke a few Tipo's up for parts. If you get stuck I can try and find his details.

[si1881]

  On 16/01/2019 at 22:25, Burnside said:

I have a few used front door interior trim parts and some electric door switches spare I think as well. There in the loft so will check that out. Your welcome to have them if there of use.

There was also a Guy that used to advertise on Ebay over Derbyshire way that has broke a few Tipo's up for parts. If you get stuck I can try and find his details.

Thanks, may come in useful. Am missing grab handles and o/s/r door handle if you do find anything.

 

The White one actually came from the guy in Derby along with some other bits.

[bramz7]

  On 16/01/2019 at 13:20, Ghosty said:

Is that blue one ex-Bramz? Seems familiar.

Nah mine was a J382EOU. I kind of miss it but spending so much on storage put me off it. The digital dash was fun, but had a habit of turning off when it was super wet.

[holdyerhandout]

What a great motor!  I remember when these launched Fiat made a great play over putting all the minor controls on stalks including the heated rear window where the washer is on most cars.