New Coupe owner

Hello all, I have just got my self a 1998 20V and am completely chuffed to bits.

I posted on Master mariners' thread (Good price for 16VT ?)

So after a few emails back and forth I travelled to the midlands to look at a Rosso metallic 20v.
Did my best to remember the buyers do's and dont's and the sound advice from the posters on the other thread.
How much of the checklist I got through im not sure but I defo checked off the basics.
It was up for £2295 and after loads of emails, a plea of poverty and the cash in hand we agreed on £ 1875.
I drove it 120 miles home without any issues at all.

Before I bought it I had never even sat in a coupe, just admired them.

Yep the classic " bought the first one he looked at "


Plus points so far then:


I absolutely fxxxxxxg love driving this car !

The last Italian car I drove was a 1978 Alfasud 1.5 ti ( my second ever car ) when I was 18 yrs old I loved it so much but it broke my heart and my wallet

The sound of that engine is something else, I have put 340 miles on the clock since Sat afternoon.( thurs today)

Oil pressure is 2.5 on idle and max at 2000rpm

Its pretty quick ( don't laugh turbo owners ) quicker than I expected and so smooth i'm in 3rd gear heaven.

Everything electrical works perfectly( did I just say that about a 23 year old Italian car? )

The leather seats are in great nick and the rear seat is like brand new, what a comfortable place to be, I was not expecting it to be rattle free but it is. build quality seems good


The bad things:

There is no history with the vehicle and no evidence of cambelt change its got 95 k on the clock

Body work is so so, but rust wise I have only found two very small bubbles on both rear sides where doors close.
Its had a bit of spraying done to drivers door and front arch all in all at first glance looks great until you inspect closely
A good polish would probably help

It has been running warmish in traffic at speed 70 degrees when round town its 90. this will come down with heater fan on hot inside. I have not heard the fan come on so maybe its not working ? I also think the seal has gone on the expansion tank filler cap seems to hiss from the side.

The is no under engine protection the tray is missing just a lonely tie wrap hanging there

The centre console is like liquorice wtf is going on there ?! keep wanting to pull off a chunk and eat it .






I am , undecided at what to do about investing in cambelt etc yet, shall I just enjoy it ?

My mech is going to put it on a ramp tomorrow and we will take a closer look.

it runs so well I trust it already and would like to give it a bit of tlc but we will see

I have taken a couple of photos and will log back on from my phone to see if I can post them.


I am 50 years old and I have been smiling non stop like that 18 year old boy since I got this thing .

If it blows up tomorrow it was worth the money just for the buzz Ive had this week !


Any help re the above issues or advice would be much appreciated


Nipper




Edit: won’t let me attach an image from my phone file too big ,
Do I need to do this from a photo bucket type app ( I don’t have one )

Welcome to Coupe ownership, they're a great car

Welcome aboard Nipper.

History - how long did the previous owner have it? Might need some effort to find any history, but you don't want the aux belt to fail and wrap itself around the cam belt. Specialists will do this job expertly and generally cheaper than standard garages who will insist on removing the engine.

Fans - have you checked the spade connections at the rad? Having said that IIRC there is a thread knocking around here about someone's temp gauge reading inaccurately...

Expansion tank caps can "go"..

Undertray - your engine is meant to be protected: try F.C.S.S. (Countrycruising on here) as he might have one

Sticky centre console - yeah, a common complaint I'm afraid. Try the how-to section for a fix clicky

Welcome to coupe fan-dom

Great News!

Welcome to Coupe Ownership! There really is nothing quite like a coupe. Alfa's have a different feel to them.

Without history - I would make sure you find the extra cash to at least change all the belts and a full service- then you at least KNOW that's done. If you shop around on the forum, you will get some specialist who can do this as a "bundle" package for you if your not an expert with the spanners.

The forum's "how to" section is your survivors guide- and worth its weight in gold:

https://www.fiatcoupeclub.org/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1249622/how-to-faq-index#Post1249622

And we all LOVE to see a picture of a new coupe!

Welcome on board!

MM

Ok, the car was up on a ramp Friday. It’s been under sealed and is in Good nick. Suspension parts looked good . Brakes have been redone at some point.

So because it was good news underneath and it’s been driving sweet( apart from running warm ) I have decided to invest more dosh into my new obsession.

A week today it is booked in for : Cam belt / water pump /tensioners etc .
New clutch (seems fine but a little spongy)
New radiator .

My thinking is once All this work is completed it should be a pretty sorted example.


My mechanic is very good

He has changed the belt on a 20v before ( a while ago)


He wants to drop the engine And do this on a table, I know the specialists only move the engine over. I had a price from All Italia in Wrexham for cambelt etc £700 but could be 5/6 weeks before they can do it.

My man says £ 1250 for the above work, I have booked it in for next Monday.

Photos :

Welcome Nipper from another 20V owner

Your point "It has been running warmish in traffic at speed 70 degrees when round town its 90. this will come down with heater fan on hot inside." - is that not about normal for the cooling water temperature? Those in the know please confirm or otherwise

Usual problem is when the guage displays low. The thermostat has failed open and the engine rarely fully warms up and can also run rich.

I'd keep an eye on that temperature, mine feels like it runs hot especially when the temperature inside is set to cold, I guess it isn't circulating the heat so readily. Last year it overheated, new engine, radiator, hoses, clutch etc and now it's overheating again despite fan coming on, suspect it's the expansion tank. Off for another check over on Thursday.

I think if your happy that your garage are skilled, and can do that work, for that price-go for it.

As long as you hold them to account for anything that goes wrong/brakes during removal/re-assembly.

But- do have a think about the whole "wyait" situation - While You Are In There - the engine out would give you a chance to assess a lot you rarely have easy access to. And even if its "just" an engine bay tidy up-you want to consider what else you might want to do whole the engine is out.

Let us know how it goes!


Regards

MM

If an engine-out job then the clutch would be sensible to do.

If your quoted price includes everything you've mentioned then it's not too bad - the days will crawl by until next week

Wise words already from those that know. Engine out there is no end what you could/should be doing, at the very least engine clean along with the engine bay. As mentioned things that show their ugly head so to speak will have to be addressed. We Coopists all know the more you dig the more you’ll find.. How deep are your pockets Nipper...

Yes that is normal temp. It should not go above 90. Fan cuts in about there (If normally reads around 73 like mine)

Thanks for the replies Gents its much appreciated.

The car goes in Monday for the above work.
New rad might help with the cooling issue (it crept above 90 last weekend )
I will try my best to do a bit of cleaning round the engine bay when its out. I will defo be turning up for a good nosy when they have it out.
Will have to see what the while your in there figure is !

Will report back when the surgery is underway in case there is any emergency advice needed from you guys

Ps My pockets are not that deep Jim so thanks for the undertray at rock bottom price you are a gent

Good opporchancity to take some pics while in the engine bay too...

If you've got the engine out, you might consider inspecting and possibly replacing the brake pipes to the front brakes. They're damn near impossible with the engine in place... I'd certainly have a good look at them.

Neil

I recommend giving the bay a clean with some of that built hammer water based degreaser if its empty. Avoiding all electrical items of course

Its really impressive to be fair compared to chemical stuff and kind on everything else. I did our sei with it and it brought things up really well.

Mick

Great to have another NA owner on the Forum and would recommend joining the club (£10and worth every penny)
Lots of good advice already given, I would suggest you check the support rail for the radiator while it’s accessible as they are prone to rust. I salvaged mine just and treated and painted with Hammerite so hopefully will last a while yet. New ones are available though if needed. Enjoy your Coupe

As Cooperman says welcome to coupe ownership. It’s NA or the highway for me too- the fact it might take me a little longer to get from A to B than turbo owners just means more time to listen to the NA engine noise

Thanks for all the replies to this thread.

Update is:
All the work stated above has been carried out.
Cam belt / water pump /tensioners etc .
New clutch
New radiator .

In addition as a "while your in there" We also changed one of the brake pipes( the other looked nearly new) so thanks Neil that would almost certainly have been missed.
All hoses were checked and new clips fitted. The hose of death was new and interestingly there was water staining on the back lower part of the engine block. So maybe it had previously gone caput.
There was no evidence of any oil leaks and apart from the water stains it was as clean as a whistle in there.
I got a good look and took photos of the car with the engine out. Alas I did not get to clean the engine bay while it was out I just didn't have the time.

I got the car back Friday and put 70 odd miles on it at the weekend. It ran sweet as a nut with the temperature 70-90 and fan now working so no cooling issue anymore. there was however a " SQUEAK" and a very annoying squeak at that.

I tried hard to find out where it was coming from always over bumps not engine, not steering but not suspension when bounced on the corners. So back it went. It turns out its the lower off side engine mount the rubber is worn. My man could not get a replacement part so I am once again appealing to my new Coupe loving friends for any info/advice on how to obtain this part. It has been " bunged" up with something for now and the squeak has gone so I know he has found the problem.
We have left the undertray off till I can find the part for him to fit.

The Fiat part number he has given me is 7744049 and he said we only need the bush not the whole thing. I also have a photo of the offending item.

Thanks all,
Nipper

Here is the photo of the part

oh well

Two options, buy a complete new mount, or install a polybush into the old steel casing, cheaper and probably quicker as a new mount will have to come up from Italy.