PART 2
Last issue we left the Fiat 500 project with something of a mystery – why the number on the engine in the car did not match the engine number on the V5C document, and why that document listed it as 479cc when it was clearly a 499cc unit. We can only assume that the second of those was a typo on somebody's part, as the 479cc engines were superseded in 1960. As for the different engine number, engine swaps are pretty common on old cars, and owners often fail to update the DVLA.
I do plan to correct the paperwork, but it made sense to hold off on that for now because I'd never heard the engine in the car running, and it could quite feasibly turn out to be beyond repair and need replacing again. After all, I bought the Fiat as an unfinished restoration project that appeared to have been off the road for 24 years. The body restoration was largely complete and the paint was good, but much of the car needed fitting back up and there were quite a few components missing, plus all the major components were an unknown quantity.
Fortunately, cars of this vintage, (especially economy models such as a Fiat 500,) are simplicity itself in the engine department. With no ECUs, sensors, complicated electronics or anything trickier than a few wires and a low-pressure fuel feed, I figured it had to be worth spending a little time to see ifanything as in-depth and expensive as an engine stripdown.
