Have a look... Turbo diesel Spider on Craigslist

[Fiatracertracer]

Well what you think about this:

http://lakeland.craigslist.org/cto/4679798264.html

1978 Fiat Spider 124 w/ Turbo Diesel - $3000 (Mulberry)
condition: good

1977 Fiat Spider paint color : red size : compact type : convertible drive : rwd fuel : diesel transmission : manual title status : clean cylinders : 4 cylinders
Fiat Spider 124 (1978) convertible with 1.8L Isuzu 4FB1 turbo diesel engine (4 cylinder) and 5 speed manual transmission. The motor/transmission are not original to the car. Fun to drive and gets excellent fuel mileage (40 plus mpg). Overall in good condition considering the age, and has been very dependable.

[SoFlaFiat]

WOW!!!
Now that's an interesting transplant!!

[AriK]

From sport-car to go-cart. What a great way to halve the horsepower on such a beautiful car. I give him credit to figure the logistics for fit and finish, but why?

[Fiatracertracer]

From what i was reading, the new Common Rail Diesels are pretty quick, really fast. Audi is racing them and beating any other racer on the track.

But I don't know about this one.

[AriK]

From what i was reading, the new Common Rail Diesels are pretty quick, really fast. Audi is racing them and beating any other racer on the track.

But I don't know about this one.

This one is some 50 odd horsepower and it was even used in the Chevette back in the day when GM was experimenting with equipping diesel engines in cars. We all remember what a success that was.

[DieselSpider]

I own the car now and the Diesel is an enigma of sorts. It has an Isuzu 4FB1 SOHC that was buttressed quite well and intended for turbo charging from the get go so it works well enough with the turbo in it. It is a high rpm Diesel with a 5,400 rpm redline and was used in a number of cars and trucks globally including some Caterpillar equipment that had it branded with a Catipillar valve cover in that usage. GM dropped the ball with the Chevette however the Diesel engine itself with the Isuzu MSG-5 transmission were not the reason.

The car needed and still needs some work much of it caused by Tire Kingdoms failed attempts at a front end alignment and some brake work which they did for the previous owner.

They radically cambered it out and did not torque the front end leaving much of it only finger tight so that the 4 new tires they put on it are a lost cause which they take no responsibility for. They put synthetic fluid in it with the pre-synthetic rubber lines still in it so that those on the right hand side had collapsed internally and were plugged up. The new master cylinder was also not compliant with synthetic and the seals had failed also. They did not align the pin on the rear caliper but somehow forced the calipers on and scored the rear rotors when the cockeyed pads wore unevenly. Broke off the pins on the right rear wheel hub, ground them flat and warped the hub on one of the rims.

I have already replaced all the rubber lines and master cylinder with Beck/Arnley procured from a local Advance Auto Parts, took the good front rotors and moved them to the back with new wheel locating pins replacing the front with new rotors sourced locally, put in new pads all around, replaced the parking brake cable, new 1,010 CCA battery (Diesels like amperage), cleaned up the grounds and got the tail lights working, tightened up the front end to spec using Eli's 124 Suspension Primer as a reference (http://www.mirafiori.com/124susp/) and cleaned/repacked the front wheel bearings (new seals of course).


To do:

Address creak in idler arm.
Double check torque on front suspension.
Get alignment, 4 new tires and a replacement for the damaged rim.
Replace radiator fan switch with adjustable one to accommodate Diesel operating temps (have a manual toggle switch in place for now).
Replace failed brake bleeder repair insert in right rear caliper (they used some oddball 7/16-24 reversed flair insert instead of the 1/8 npt such as the Doorman 13960 I had to put a solid plug in for now and there is not enough room between the brake hose and the bleeder hole to go up to the 1/4" npt repair kit).
Go through drive shaft and replace Guibo if its still being used.
Get 12.8 volts to rear lights and throughout the vehicle (have it to the starter but not to the entire system)
Track down wires for heater/defroster fan (they left the switch unplugged potentially when the carpets were done) and connect up the heater core after verifying the valve and core don't leak.
Hook up speedometer, add oil pressure gauge, calibrate tach.
Fix door panels, replace top, paint.
Possibly change rear axle ratio to 3.90 or 3.10 since with the 4.30 you could skip 1st gear and start in 2nd instead making it almost feel like the engine and transmission came out of a pickup truck.
Replace front seats with a pair closer to the original as right now there is a pair of oversized red cloth racing seats that are bit too much for the car and make it feel really tight inside.





See http://www.jcwhitney.com/p2009764/sku-3 ... =c3267u0j1.

[Fiatracertracer]

What is your 0 to 60 mph.

How about posting a soundbyte, photos of engine compartment, etc.?

[ga.spyder]

I race against a Fiat Spider with a VW turbo diesel motor.It is fast and runs forever on a tank of fuel.The owners have done a ton of development work on the car.Well engineered and sorted.

[DieselSpider]

What is your 0 to 60 mph.

How about posting a soundbyte, photos of engine compartment, etc.?

Not pushing it until I get the panrod and rear track bar bushings updated and go through the drive shaft replacing the Guibo, u-joints and carriers along with verifying the accuracy of the Fiat gas tach running on the pickup on the Bosch mechanical injector pump. Potentially 10 seconds by the feel of things.

Engine compartment has not changed since what was posted in the CraigsList Ad. I'll see about getting some fresh pics on line but nothing really dramatic there.

Here is all I have for now:

[v6spider]

This is a swap of reliability not power..

Cheers!
Rob

[DieselSpider]

At around 50 mpg in the city its also about economy with a bit over 500 mile range per tank of fuel. With the turbo its also pretty spirited once it warms up but does not like temps below 55 degrees. Good thing I live in Florida!

[v6spider]

At around 50 mpg in the city its also about economy with a bit over 500 mile range per tank of fuel. With the turbo its also pretty spirited once it warms up but does not like temps below 55 degrees. Good thing I live in Florida!

Well it does have little more torque. But the rear end in the spider is really low geared.. Did they swap the rear end out for a higher ratio or is it still stock? Your diesel makes its best power below 3000 rpms. Torque peaks at 1800rpms roughly..

Rob