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Fiat X19 - V6 Project Car  
V6 - Fiat XI9 - 1.9 litre 
"The Ferrari Contender" 
What Fiat made Ferrari raced. 


 
 
 
 

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Designer/Engineer:   
Stephen Burrows,  
Victoria, Australia.  

Engine:   
1900cc - V6 - aspirated  
Bore - Stroke  
Comp Ratio - 9.75:1  
Wet Sump with high capacity oil pump.  
HP - 150 @ 7500 rpm  

Aluminum Flywheel.  
3 weber downdrafts.  
Oil cooler, standard clutch, special alloy adapter plate to mate gearbox.  

Transmission:   
4 speed with overdrive  
close ratio between 2-3-4  

Suspension:   
Lowered 50mm with rear anti roll bar.  

Brakes:   
Standard Rear.  
Ventilated Front unboosted.  

Tires/Wheels:   
Momo 6x13 mags  
Front-215x50  
Rear-235x50  
Bridgestone 340 Eagers  

Body:   
1978 Fiat X19 standard, painted Radiant Red, with Ferrari badges on Grill, Nose, Front Guards, rear Boot.  
Round rear lights  

Interior:   
Dash remodeled red/black with Veglia  instrumentation with Ferrari steering wheel.  
Re upholstered seats in red/black.  
  
Lighting: 
Full, with rear round Stop and Flasher same as 308, 
driving lights, and new center number plate light. 

Grill/Bumpers: 
New alloy grill in egg crate style similar to the 250 GT. 
Full length bumpers with centerpiece added 

Est. Cost:   
AUD$10,000 (1998)  
  
Time: 
5 years 
  

FOOTNOTE 

This project requires serious skills and equipment to be carried out by the builder, its not advisable to start as most "bolt on blokes" do car modifications, since there is a significant amount of tral and testing required to ensure suitability and fitting in the workshop stage. 

Its not advisable to alter to any major degree body configuration, engine mounting points, or over size engine transplants.  

This project reatains all Manufactures monoque specifications, alignements, mounting points, general hardware, harnesses, instruments and engine size is only an 400cc upgrade over the  Fiat 1500cc model, wight is simmilar ar less with out spare and some discarded items. 

Certain countries prior to 1980 have favorable polution control laws which allow for early model builds 

UNDER no circumstance should a modification be carried out unless well designed and supervised by an experienced engineer.

see these articles
X19 1300 that runs like a 2000cc

Supercharging

 
The only genuine Fiat/Ferrari V6, 1900cc, 5 speed roadster
project, see also X19 Web Workshop.

This is the Ferrari that Fiat never finished. 
Every X19 Owner knows they have been robbed of the stable name "Ferrari" race proven and recognition from the manufacturing know-how of Fiat products, namely the light weight sports roadster of the X19 with the famous Fiat V6 motor that Ferrari used in the 206 & 246 Dino but never went into production for the X19.  
The excellent styling and handling of the X19 by the famous Italian design house of Bertone should have been accepted fully into the Ferrari stable, ultimately it will judging by the way retro car production is heading. 
This project will prove the  X19 is Ferrari's step brother. 
This car looks, feels, drives like a thourobred with all the temperment of a prancing horse straight out of the Fiat/Ferrari stables. 
Its period styling with no nonsense gimmicks of turbos and over worked engines of the Lancia/HotRod styles ensures this car has the genuine attraction as a serious contender to mix at any Ferrari Concourse event as "Dino's Cousin". 

Here are some specs. 

INTERIOR & TRIM 
The base body for the project is a stock standard 1978 Fiat X19 - 1300cc which part of the transformation was done on a rolling basis starting with the interior and rebadging with Ferrari emblems. 

The center console housing the ash tray and vent controls was discarded and the console uprights cut of level with the central tunnel. A new tunnel console was fabricated and finished in red vinyl deck and black carpet side with polished aluminium bullnose beading around the edges. 

This matches the door trim of upper red and lower black carpet with a polished alloy trim separating on the line of the armrest at that angle. Door internal lock buttons deleted. 
The treatment continues to the new customised dash which is fabricated from timber, ply wood and alloy. Starting on the facia a strip of 1/2" ply was used with cut outs for the 2 side vents, glovebox, central radio, instrument unit; next another  smaller strip of ply was used to house the switches centrally by fabricating a 3mm alloy panel with squared jigsaw holes for the switches to fit. 
The instrument cluster is standard X19 screwed in from behind with a semi circular cover for the showing of the gauges and warning lights. 
The whole pannel is upholstered in red/black vinyl with the continuation of the polished alloy running across the waist line of the dash, the unit then can be fitted in place after dropping the steering column and snap fitting the existing electrical couplings. The top dash deck is timber bullnose 50mm wide protrudes over the facia and is covered in wadding and blck vinyl,  fitting with 2 screws to the facia. 

Seats to be done in red/black vinyl, carpet is black wall to wall. 

Hood lining is ply and covered with red velveteen. 

Front boot interior is sprayed black acrylic and fitted with black floor mats extending to the top of the sealing rubber, Rear boot is painted black acrylic with black floor mats running up to the hinges and sealing rubber. 
The carburetor fan is installed under the passenger dash and connected to the windscreen demister vent blowing through a mini radiator with a flip/flop flap for fresh air. 

COOLING 
Recored 5 tube radiator was fitted since the old one was at its life limits, full 35mm copper water tubes run to the rear in the standard position except at the engine bay  run together to the gearbox side to the position of the inlet/outlet on the motor. 
A manual overider fan switch is installed since the motor usually runs at 80 deg. instead of the 90/95 cut in/out which was thought to high. 
Oil cooler is fitted after the filiter. 

BRAKES 
The master cylinder push rod shaft in the pedal box was was threaded for adjustment to reduce the slack pedal feel for the clutch and brake with the result of a more positive response. 
Rear brakes are standard with super soft pads which seem to last 2-1 to the front on normal city driving, hand brake standard. 
Front brakes are due for an upgrade either with BMW 318 ventilated rotor and Alfa calipers or a set of Bremco rotors, all should basically just bolt on with a small amount of rejigging. 
Reservoir is a larger fabricated stainless steel unit in its stock position with stainless tubes running to the pedal box and flexible hose to the master cylinder. 

WHEELS & TIRES 
For 5 years now the car has been running front 215 x 50  and rear 235 x 50 tubeless Bridgestone 340 Eagers with raised lettering on Momo rims which one had to be straightened, the rubber is in line with the guard so should be 'legal' in most places. The set up is good and looks mean with just enough guard clearance, however a slight coaxing of a hand pull on the rear guard by about 5-10mm and the removal of the hub spacer is required since its not used on all cars. There was some views the rear tyres were oversize but this is not the case since some 50,000 km and 2 sets of tires later the reliablity is excellent, in fact they seem to be safer since the darn things will still run on 5-8 psi on a puncture. 
The wheels have been sand blasted, painted black centers with polised rims and chrome nuts, contoured mud flaps all round. 

SUSPENSION 
Stock except springs were reset approx 50mm lower thus retaining maximun number of coils for soft travel rate, shockers are after market standard gas refills inserted, which are adequate for 10 years life. A 18mm rear anti roll is all that will be fitted to stop the rear wheel unloading and subsequent weight transfer lurch in hard corners. Its not thougt a front stabiliser is required as on a front engine car where the weight transfer from the enginge bulk is so apparent and the loading and unloading of the front tyre needs control. Also it is deemed the body construction is inadequate for an overally stiff suspension since it would cause more chassis twisting and strain on welds particually in old cars, the only solution is for seam welding the monoque. 

TRANSMISSION 
Stock Fiat 4 or 5 speed is capable of handling 150 hp on a steady applied basis hence for day to day driving should give many years of good service, even though its not the toughest gearbox. The gearbox won't tolerate delinquent activity of burnouts and donuts with harsh clutch drops ramming 150 hp at 6000 rpm with the wheels stationary. 
Normal driving even with a lead foot will transfer approx only 50-100 hp (2000 - 4000 rpm) through the gearbox. ie Boy racer starts from 0 -30km up to 5000 rpm seem ok if power applied is after clutch take up ( we'are only talking of seconds here), 2nd-3rd-4th gear is where the speed is gained and the power application to a moving gearbox is not as critical as a stationary one thus higher rpm can be sustained without overstressing the gearbox. 

(remember the average family 3 litre car at 5000 rpm  is lucky to put down about 120-150 hp  at close to 2 tonn of dead wieght, thus a X19 at 800 kilo with 120hp mathematically is over twice as competative in the power to wieght ratio dept.

Clutch used is a rebuilt stock unit on the belief its better to burn out a clutch than a gearbox, the clutch retains all the power unloading features of torque springs and waffer centers to soften power transfer to the transmission as opossed to racing clutches, to date the clutch has done well, but needs replacing every 5 years approx. 

The clutch is bolted to a alloy fly wheel with the starter ring shrunk fitted, flywheel friction surface has a lathed down presure plate fittet with countersunk bolts, balanced and bolted to the crankshaft with a steel anti crush plate for the bolts. 
Today there seems no valid reason for running a cast iron fly wheel which only robs horse power and saps engine response. 

Oil level is maintained at a highr level with the fabrication of a extended dipstick fitted to the filler plug, level should be equal to the main input bearing with a 120 grade hypoid oil which is a little heavy resulting in slow changes until warmed up in the first few minutes. 

Gear stick has been cut down and shortened by half. (just hack saw it off and stick the knob on) 

MOTOR 
A 6 cylinder engine in V6 configeration of approx 1900cc, wet sump quad cam webber downdrafts, with custom headers joining under the sump into a stock Fiat stainless steel muffler. 
The motor has an 3/8" alloy adabtor plate to mate  the stock gearbox, with a modified center engine carrier mounting, torque top rod and exsisting side mount with adapter. 
The motor width is less in V6 configuration than the  inline 4, howvever the spare tyre well needs to be sealed behind the Driver and opened up to allow the valve gear and exhausts access ito the void of the spare tyre. Since tyres are so reliable today and there is a service station every 20 minutes in either distance of travell for most, who needs a spare, otherwise fit it into the front boot and throw your luggage on to the rear engine cover which is what I do. 

Motor fitting is a skill and an art form, the motor need to be tidied up with some very colse fitting  plumbing and snug wiring, the water bottle was fitted into the rear boot wheel arch well, the carby fan deleted and other nonsense rubbish removed, however in North America this modification will probally require some serious engineering applications and registration under a different class. 

Weight is similar due to the all alloy motor. 

PERFORMANCE 

Although the project is not completed, performance is likely to be satisfactory, more drivable on mountain highways, sound better with the V6 scream, tractible around the city but most of all when you open the engine hood there that genuine V6 with all its cloned badges that say "Ferrari made by Fiat for Ferrari" even though some of the parts are Japanese but who's to know, and I'm not telling.

 
Advanced HOT TECH-TIPS for X19 petrol heads

see these articles X19 1300 that runs like a 2000cc

 Contact: via Steve at General Credits on  Ferrari X19-V6 or generalcreditsinc@usa.net


Thanks for driving past.

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