Poorly GTi…what’s the diagnosis, Doc?

[Matty]

It's a Fiat!!!! (Or Alfa)

[NorthernMonkey]

It certainly looks sorry for itself!

It looked like it was going to be a nightmare to load with a handbrake on tight and wedged in a bush but it was actually remarkably easy…it’s like holding a cage door open for a stray and seeing it climb in happily!

 

Managed to fix the dodgy boot lid catch so we’re good to go.

I’ve never really given these a second glance but they really are a beautiful design…almost like a mini Ferrari!

Nice and clean inside too 👍

Thanks, Mark…I’ll do my best to give it a new lease of life 👍

[dome]

Ooh a turbo in a great colour. Winning!

Don't show your better half, she might want this instead!

[Matty]

Had a yellow one 20 years ago. Happily still on the road N601DTR. Loved it.

[NorthernMonkey]

1 hour ago, dome said:

Ooh a turbo in a great colour. Winning!

Don't show your better half, she might want this instead!

This one has the limited edition extra ventilation in the front on the crankcase apparently…I haven’t actually had the bonnet up yet to investigate but I’m confident it’s going to need a new engine at the very least 😳

[Zelandeth]

1 hour ago, NorthernMonkey said:

It certainly looks sorry for itself!

It looked like it was going to be a nightmare to load with a handbrake on tight and wedged in a bush but it was actually remarkably easy…it’s like holding a cage door open for a stray and seeing it climb in happily!

 

Managed to fix the dodgy boot lid catch so we’re good to go.

I’ve never really given these a second glance but they really are a beautiful design…almost like a mini Ferrari!

Nice and clean inside too 👍

Thanks, Mark…I’ll do my best to give it a new lease of life 👍

Good luck with it.  One of those is on my bucket list still.

[NorthernMonkey]

It’s tucked up in the workshop for tonight on the back of the truck as I needed to get home and open a bottle of red considering I’ve been out on the road since 06.00 this morning.

I may have found a reasonably priced albeit slightly suspect looking engine which, if the block is ok, could be the car’s saviour.

Only problem is it’s literally at the other end of the country but whilst I’ve been out rescuing dead cars all afternoon, my work inbox has gone into meltdown and it looks like I’m going to be visiting most of the uk next week so there’s every chance I’ll be somewhere nearer to it at some point!

[Cluffy]

On 23/03/2025 at 16:42, NorthernMonkey said:

The bit you’ve all been waiting for, folks…what’s actually wrong with the thing?

@Dave_Q has just been over and dropped a HPFP off for me to try as my instincts were a fuel pressure issue.

Whilst he was here, we whipped off the old pump to see if anything was obvious.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with this design of engine, the pump is operated from an hydraulic ‘bucket’ lifter which in turn runs off an extra cam lobe at the end of the inlet cam…

 

That’s the bucket and the black surface is treated to run off the cam lobe

Here it is pictured next to the fuel pump plunger. Note the design of the push rod which is spring loaded and has a collet on the top which sits inside the bucket of the lifter.

The above photos are of the new pump and lifter that Dave brought with him.

Spot the difference between that and the ones that came off the car, below…

Yep. The bucket has worn completely through and has not only worn away on the cam lobe but then, the fuel pump plunger has also worn away on the lobe too, to the extent that the large spring retaining washer has disappeared into the depths of the engine!

You can just make out the remains of the cam lobe with a lovely groove in it made by the pump push rod.

 

Just seen this thread - this is my old car only sold back in October. This is really disappointing to see as I only had the cam follower fitted within the last couple of years - precisely to avoid this problem...! 🤬Maybe it was part of a bad batch. I didn't tend to buy super cheapo parts for this as it was my family's main wheels for a number of years. 

Looking forward to reading the rest. Hope it gets sorted!

[jonathan_dyane]

11 minutes ago, Cluffy said:

Just seen this thread - this is my old car only sold back in October. This is really disappointing to see as I only had the cam follower fitted within the last couple of years - precisely to avoid this problem...! 🤬Maybe it was part of a bad batch. I didn't tend to buy super cheapo parts for this as it was my family's main wheels for a number of years. 

Looking forward to reading the rest. Hope it gets sorted!

Probably more likely the garage didn't bother fit it than it being from a bad batch ..

[Cluffy]

On 25/03/2025 at 16:42, NorthernMonkey said:

Finally got it up on the ramp…it’s a heavy little bastard…and it’s clean, in fact very clean underneath except for a oil leak under the bell housing area that is definitely engine oil and not gearbox fluid…

I’m now starting to wonder if the lump of metal that was found on the top of the gearbox did in fact used to keep oil in the engine before being removed by bits of fuel pump making a bid for freedom.

I really need to pull off the timing chain cover and see what’s going on. I just hope there isn’t a big hole in the block somewhere otherwise it’s new engine time.

By the way, it’s got the cleanest alloys of any car I’ve ever owned!

I had them refurbished in 2023!

[dave j]

Great to see the Fiat get saved, always liked the look of these

[NorthernMonkey]

49 minutes ago, Cluffy said:

Just seen this thread - this is my old car only sold back in October. This is really disappointing to see as I only had the cam follower fitted within the last couple of years - precisely to avoid this problem...! 🤬Maybe it was part of a bad batch. I didn't tend to buy super cheapo parts for this as it was my family's main wheels for a number of years. 

Looking forward to reading the rest. Hope it gets sorted!

It’s plain to see from the overall condition of the car that it’s been very well maintained over the years…indeed, that’s the primary reason for my saving it in the first place!

The follower is indeed a strange one, although the initial issues that were evident in the run up to the main FTP were related to a gradual failure of the low pressure in tank pump so, although I’m not 100% how or why, I wonder if the intermittent low fuel pressure somehow exacerbated the failure of the high pressure pump? I suppose if the follower was ‘bouncing’ on the cam lobe due to lower resistance of the plunger, it could have caused issues?

Either way, it’s now running sweetly again and is in the process of getting a stereo upgrade and an alcantara headlining now its future on the fleet is cemented. It really is a nice thing to drive…it’s going to get its first proper workout with a trip up to Ayr and Edinburgh this weekend.

[sporty-shite]

That Fiat is gorgeous. Absolutely would. 

[Dave_Q]

@Cluffy it could be that the cam had already been damaged before you owned it by someone not replacing the follower in time, once the cam is damaged it will chew through followers much quicker.

I think 15-20k miles from a follower is about right so if it's done less than this since you replaced it that's probably what happened. If the cam still more or less has its original profile it will still run OK with a new follower in, it will just wear the follower quicker.

[comfortablynumb]

15 hours ago, NorthernMonkey said:

This one has the limited edition extra ventilation in the front on the crankcase apparently

There's a pattern emerging here....🤣

Good luck with it