It's a dated design, but has a great racing history. I have a few questions for the Fiatistas out there:
-What's a good source for getting information, hunting down parts, et cetera?
-Were they ever used in any domestically sold FWD vehicles?
-What's the best version to look for if one was looking for a donor motor?
Thanks!
the fiat 124/132 series engine was also used in the Lancia Beta.. so yes, it did come in a FWD car. There are several sources for parts and go-fast stuff.
My Favourite is the 1800 version of the engine. The 2000 has a longer stroke and does not like to rev as much as the 1800.. the smaller 1400 and 1600 was a different block and were both very good.
Interesting tidbit. the Rod size on the 1800/2000 is the same as the Chevy Small Block... this helps explain this engine's unique sound. It is a cross between a screaming Ferrari-esque and domestic V8 rumble depending on RPM
The Lampredi 4 cylinder had a life span well over 30 years. After Fiat departed in the 1980s, the engine received further development. It eventually got turbocharged, 4 valves per cylinder, and other enhancements. These were nearly all transverse, but not sold in the US.
The Beta came in 1.8 and 2.0 liter formats. The 2.0 was available both carbureted and injected (Bosch L-Jetronic). The Beta transaxle is pretty stout.
What would you like to put one of these engines into?
I'm probably going to take a more easily trod path (American or Japanese), but part of me would like to pair an Italian driveline with the Italian body:
I may be able to source you a transaxle from Hungary and could probably get it as far as Mississippi without much shipping cost. The catch is the available shipping times are limited to the winter months and we'd have to have GRM boots on the ground in Jackson, MS for a "hand-off" as it wouldn't be crated or anything.
Junk-yard parts off of newer cars is also an option, and we probably wouldn't need "boots on the ground" but the shipping months would still be limited to winter.
What about an Alfa 164 with a transversely mounted 3-liter V6?
Thanks, Bill. At this point, overseas sourcing is more trouble than I'm interested in. The Buso v6 is a very tasty possibility, and may go into a future build, but the current one is based on lighter weight components shooting for around 1300 lbs overall with 175 - 200 HP.
I have far more contacts in the Alfa world than the Fiat one, so within the italian theme, that would probably be an easier route. However, if someone would produce an easily accomplished hack on the modern Abarth turbo motor, that would also be hard to pass up. But the only one that I know who's pulled it off..... well pulling his own teeth may have been less hassle.
BAMF wrote: The Beta transaxle is pretty stout.
But the car was not.. the good news is, you can probably use your bare hands by this point to remove one.. a most certainly there is nothing left of the body it was mounted to
That would be a pretty sweet engine to have a model of on a desk.
what is nice about them.. as the basic 132 block was also used under numerous 16v heads in basic cars such as the Fiat Tipo up through the fire breathing Integrales, the 16v head -will- bolt right to the basic US spec block.
you only run into trouble with that in mounting one into a spider or a 131 as the head is longer at the back and will require clearancing the firewall to fit.
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