Fiat 128 vs Datsun 510 vs Miata

Red128

Red128

Daily Driver
hey everyone
im curious. Has anyone seen a 70’s Datsun 510 engine & Trane setup or 90’s Miata setup in a 70’s Fiat 128? I’m really hung up on making my Fiat rwd. I know the driveshaft issue with center of the chassis will be an issue. Some cutting and welding but other than that? What do you guys think?
 
1: A lot of work, and what is the possible benefit?
2: There's not a lot of front to back space in the 128 engine bay since it was designed for transverse mounting.... Maybe a rotary might fit, they're pretty small... Still wondering why though.. Could probably just get a 131 instead... Boxy Fiat, twin cam, rear wheel drive ✅
 
Well, since we are through the looking glass.... Pick one of the many four wheel drive transmissions that are used in cars that are transverse engine front wheel drive in their base models and then don't connect the driveshafts to the front hubs. This way the engine will fit in the bay and the gearbox won't be in the passenger compartment with you. And now you need to rework the rear suspension since the existing 128 stuff has no capacity to deliver torque. The madness goes on.

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or use Subaru. Flat four and transmission is mechanical full time FWD so easy to use as just RWD. But it is behind the engine so will need a fair sized floor cutout. And any gearbox that is behind the engine will end up with the gear stick way too far back in the car cos of the short engine bay. Any straight four will have a couple of cylinders in the dash too.
 
I have seriously thought about this more than once. However, I am looking at the idea of awd, vs just rwd. There are a couple of drivetrains out there of interest. Most notable, the new Corolla with the 3 cylinder turbo making monster hp and all wheel drive. I went down this path with drivelines out of the turbo awd talons and the Mitsubishi counterparts. Honda has some AWD minivans which also might provide some good fun.

However, I would not put a 510 driveline in it. Even in the 510 it was not very fast. The only 510 that ever came close to me in a race was a guy who transplanted a V6 into his.

Now, the Miata idea is interesting if we are sticking to just RWD. Putting the two together would present challenges. Suspension mount points and what makes best sense. Honestly, the easiest would probably be to use the 128 as a "shell" and put it on a modified Miata frame. Otherwise, almost all suspension is going to be custom just due to size and spacing. Interior space in the footwell is going to be very compromised due to the new firewall and room for engine/transmission, not to mention the new hump in the floor for the driveline.

Anything is doable, and we will support you, but it's going to be some work.
 
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Fiat 128 does not have the structural/chassis/suspension goodness of the exxe (several hundred pounds less weight than the exxe), this will be a problem, very significant problem.

Keep in mind the Fiat 128 was designed/intended to be a mass produced low cost transportation passenger car.. not a performance car..


Bernice
 
Many successful FWD to RWD conversions have been done on all sorts of vehicles. There's several approaches to it possible, some more involved than others.

I've also had very similar interests for another FWD vehicle (not a 128 but the same idea). I discussed it here a long time ago. For it I considered a lot of front engine/rear-drive drivetrain options; everything from American V8 to Miata. For a lot of them the firewall would need to be moved back and the occupant seating also moved rearward. Plus a lot of floor mods and new mounting points for everything. One possibility is to make a new "frame" from box tubing to mount the drivetrain onto, then set the unibody structure on top of it. That can allow the body to be dropped down over the new frame, making it possible to lay the car on the ground with a airbag suspension. :D

One of the most cost effective choices is buying a complete Ford Fox body Mustang to harvest all of the drivetrain from. But personally I'd look for a all aluminum engine/trans combo for weight savings. And I think a 4-cylinder with a turbo might be a much better package to fit into a small car than a 6 or 8 cylinder. At one time you could get a couple of excellent JDM engines and trans from RWD models we never got very affordably from any of the parts importers. But as the JDM market has grown significantly the availability and prices for those drivetrain components have skyrocketed. I also considered the all-wheel drive trans with the front axles removed but discarded that idea for several reasons. Also a true all-wheel drive as has been mentioned is a possibility - VW has a few nice ones. But for my goals a RWD only arrangement is the best choice, due to my intended use of the vehicle. I even thought about using a adapter plate to mount any engine (including your rebuilt Fiat 1500) onto a rear drive trans...either manual or built automatic. But honestly the cost of the adapter was more than getting a matching engine/trans from another vehicle.

For those of us in the US it is much more affordable to select a donor vehicle that was commonly available and readily accessible here. That severely limits the choices as there aren't a lot of front engine / rear drive choices that meet the basic requirements. Perhaps the Miata may be one of the better choices?

Sure, it's a big project but all of the good ones are. :) The results would be a ton of fun!
 
On youtube Urchfab stuck a Ford 100 E body on a Miata chassis. The results are stunning but the guy is a professional welder and fabricator.
Any engine can be put in any car if you have the right skills or pocketbook.
 
probably a good idea for all commenting to remind themselves of the fundamental dimensions of a 128. Tiny. Not much bonnet or boot to speak of. No width to speak of. No transmission tunnel. It works as it was designed as all the bits are to scale and in the right places. Yes, anything can be modified depending on pocket depth. If all you want is a RWD 128, buy a type 1 volksy, bin the body, cut the entire floorplan etc out of a 128 and viola [or some sort of musical instrument], job done. Wheelbase near enough, short overhangs and narrow width will all fit inside a 128.
 
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and monocoque cars do not have a "frame" or chassis - hence monocoque. Pretty much every panel is structural and the more modern it is, the more that is true.
 
Best real world examples of motor/power train swaps is at 24 Hours of LeMons.. Majority of these motor/power train swaps are total and utter failures once pressed into the real world rigors of endurance racing.. And why Jay Lamb & crew almost always puts a newly minted power train swapped LeMons racer in class-C...

Ponder why so many "gear heads" are obsessed with the idea of bigger motor = always better.. often ignoring all the other factors and needs to produce a proper higher performance moto...

There is a LOT more to making a proper moto than just power train.. LOTs more..
Bernice
 
I watched every episode of the project Binky built with awe. Whatever happened to that car?
 
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