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Fiat SOHC

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Fiat SOHC



 
 
Designed by Aurelio Lampredi
Aurelio Lampredi

Aurelio Lampredi was an Italy automobile and aircraft engine designer.He began his career at Piaggio, makers of the Vespa scooter, but quickly moved up to larger engines....
 the Fiat SOHC engine first appeared in the front-wheel drive
Front-wheel drive

Front-wheel drive is a form of Internal combustion engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only....
 (FWD) Fiat 128
Fiat 128

The Fiat 128 was a small family car manufactured by the Italy manufacturer Fiat from 1969 to 1985.Although the styling was similar to the 124 and 125, the 128 was an advanced and influential design that pioneered the front-wheel-drive revolution at Fiat....
 of 1969. The inline 4-cylinder engine comprised an iron block
Cylinder block

The cylinder block or engine block is a machined casting containing cylindrically bored holes for the pistons of a multi-cylinder reciprocating internal combustion engine, or for a similarly constructed device such as a pump....
 with an aluminium
Aluminium

Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white and ductile member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al; its atomic number is 13....
 cylinder-head
Cylinder head

In an internal combustion engine, the cylinder head sits above the Cylinder and consists of a platform containing part of the combustion chamber and the location of the poppet valves and spark plugs....
 containing a single over-head camshaft operating directly on both the inlet and exhaust valves in a reverse-flow cylinder-head
Reverse-flow cylinder head

A reverse-flow or non-crossflow cylinder head is one that locates the intake and exhaust ports on the same side of the engine. The gases can be thought to enter the cylinder head and then change direction in order to exit the head....
 configuration. The camshaft
Camshaft

The camshaft is an apparatus often used in piston engines to operate poppet valves. It consists of a cylindrical rod running the length of the cylinder bank with a number of oblong lobes or cams protruding from it, one for each valve....
 being driven by a belt rather than chain. The engine remained in production until the mid 1990s and grew in capacity over the years from 1100 cc (in the Fiat 128
Fiat 128

The Fiat 128 was a small family car manufactured by the Italy manufacturer Fiat from 1969 to 1985.Although the styling was similar to the 124 and 125, the 128 was an advanced and influential design that pioneered the front-wheel-drive revolution at Fiat....
) to an eventual 1600 cc (in the Fiat Tipo
Fiat Tipo

The Fiat Tipo is a small family car designed by the I.DE.A Institute design house and produced by the Italy manufacturer Fiat between 1988 and 1995....
/Tempra
Fiat Tempra

The Fiat Tempra is a medium family car produced by Italian automaker Fiat from 1990 to 1999. The Tempra was intended as a replacement for the Fiat Regata....
).






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Designed by Aurelio Lampredi
Aurelio Lampredi

Aurelio Lampredi was an Italy automobile and aircraft engine designer.He began his career at Piaggio, makers of the Vespa scooter, but quickly moved up to larger engines....
 the Fiat SOHC engine first appeared in the front-wheel drive
Front-wheel drive

Front-wheel drive is a form of Internal combustion engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only....
 (FWD) Fiat 128
Fiat 128

The Fiat 128 was a small family car manufactured by the Italy manufacturer Fiat from 1969 to 1985.Although the styling was similar to the 124 and 125, the 128 was an advanced and influential design that pioneered the front-wheel-drive revolution at Fiat....
 of 1969. The inline 4-cylinder engine comprised an iron block
Cylinder block

The cylinder block or engine block is a machined casting containing cylindrically bored holes for the pistons of a multi-cylinder reciprocating internal combustion engine, or for a similarly constructed device such as a pump....
 with an aluminium
Aluminium

Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white and ductile member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al; its atomic number is 13....
 cylinder-head
Cylinder head

In an internal combustion engine, the cylinder head sits above the Cylinder and consists of a platform containing part of the combustion chamber and the location of the poppet valves and spark plugs....
 containing a single over-head camshaft operating directly on both the inlet and exhaust valves in a reverse-flow cylinder-head
Reverse-flow cylinder head

A reverse-flow or non-crossflow cylinder head is one that locates the intake and exhaust ports on the same side of the engine. The gases can be thought to enter the cylinder head and then change direction in order to exit the head....
 configuration. The camshaft
Camshaft

The camshaft is an apparatus often used in piston engines to operate poppet valves. It consists of a cylindrical rod running the length of the cylinder bank with a number of oblong lobes or cams protruding from it, one for each valve....
 being driven by a belt rather than chain. The engine remained in production until the mid 1990s and grew in capacity over the years from 1100 cc (in the Fiat 128
Fiat 128

The Fiat 128 was a small family car manufactured by the Italy manufacturer Fiat from 1969 to 1985.Although the styling was similar to the 124 and 125, the 128 was an advanced and influential design that pioneered the front-wheel-drive revolution at Fiat....
) to an eventual 1600 cc (in the Fiat Tipo
Fiat Tipo

The Fiat Tipo is a small family car designed by the I.DE.A Institute design house and produced by the Italy manufacturer Fiat between 1988 and 1995....
/Tempra
Fiat Tempra

The Fiat Tempra is a medium family car produced by Italian automaker Fiat from 1990 to 1999. The Tempra was intended as a replacement for the Fiat Regata....
). Also appearing in year 1969, the Fiat V6 130 engine 2866 cc, although no reverse-flow cylinder-head, is direcly related to the 128 SOHC engine, with a 1.20 upscale in bore and stroke.

Design and production

The engine was designed as a transverse
Transverse

Transverse may refer to:*Transversality, a concept related to the intersection of manifolds in topology*Transverse City, an album by Warren Zevon...
 mounted FWD-only power-plant being the first engine/gearbox combination to exhibit the now standard transverse engine-next-to-gearbox layout with unequal length driveshaft
Driveshaft

A drive shaft, driving shaft, propeller shaft, or Universal joint#History shaft is a mechanical component for transmitting torque and rotation, usually used to connect other components of a drive train that cannot be connected directly because of distance or the need to allow for relative movement between them....
s (the Mini
Mini

The Mini is a small Automobile that was produced by the British Motor Corporation and its successors from 1959 until 2000. The original is considered an icon of the 1960s, and its space-saving front-wheel-drive layout influenced a generation of car-makers....
 had its gearbox in the sump of the engine). The one exception to the engines FWD-only design is its revolutionary use as a mid-engine drive-train in the Fiat X1/9
Fiat X1/9

The Fiat X1/9 is a two-seater mid-engined sports car designed by Bertone and built by Fiat until 1982 and Bertone between 1982 and 1989. Production lasted from 1972 to 1989 with the first official right-hand drive variant arriving in 1976....
.

A prominent feature of the Fiat SOHC engine its massively over-square proportions. This over-square design allows large (within the constrains of a reverse-flow configuration) valve sizes relative to engine capacity. A secondary benefit is the short crank throw reduces the accelerative forces on the con-rod allowing the engine to operate at significantly increased engine-speeds.

The Engine was developed for forced-induction use in the Fiat Uno
Fiat Uno

The Fiat Uno is a supermini car produced by the Italy manufacturer Fiat. The Uno was launched in 1983 and built in its homeland until 1995, with production still taking place in other countries....
 Turbo Mk I and further refined for the MK II and later the Punto GT.

As with its bigger brother the famous Fiat DOHC
Fiat Twin Cam engine

Designed by Aurelio Lampredi the Fiat Twin Cam was an advanced inline-4 automobile engine produced from 1959 through 1994 as a Fiat/Lancia engine until it was replaced by the "family B" series of engines....
 (aka
List of acronyms and initialisms: A

List of acronyms and initialisms* a - Atto* A - Ampere* A - acro ...
 Fiat/Lancia twincam) engine, the Fiat SOHC engine was shared with the Fiat subsidiary Lancia
Lancia

Lancia Automobiles S.p.A. is an Italy automobile manufacturer founded in 1906 by Vincenzo Lancia and which became part of the Fiat in 1969. The company has a long history of producing distinctive cars and also has a strong rally heritage....
 (appearing in 1500 cc guise in the Lancia Delta
Lancia Delta

The Lancia Delta is a small family car produced by Italian automaker Lancia with the first generation being produced between 1979 and 1994, the second generation running from 1993 until 1999, and the third generation Delta entering production in 2008....
/Prisma
Lancia Prisma

The Lancia Prisma. was a midsize car built by Lancia in the 1980s. It was basically a sedan version of the Lancia Delta, and like its smaller hatchback "brother", shared its chassis and engines with the Fiat Ritmo and Fiat Regata....
 of the 1980s) as well as being used in the Fiat 128 derived Yugo.

The final incarnation of the 128 SOHC engine was modified to utilise a new 16v DOHC engine. The engine (using the designation "Torque") featured the bore-spacing, bore and stroke of the 1580 cc 159/160 series engine with a new 16v DOHC cylinder-head. To incorporate the extra oil-return-paths and symmetrical head (as opposed to the asymmetric SOHC head) the cylinder-block was slightly revised making the DOHC head non-interchangeable with the previous incarnations of the 128 engine. Development of the Torque engine took place in the US rather than Italy whilst Fiat was in partnership with GM. The Torque engine (178.B3 - 182.A4) powered the Brava/Bravo, Marea and Multipla Fiat automobiles as well as the second-generation Lancia Delta (never sold in the UK) finally ending production in 1999.

Engine specification

The Fiat SOHC engine was produced in a number of configurations differing in stroke and bore but maintaining a standard bore-spacing. The first generation of 128 derived engines used a stroke of 55.5 mm and a bore of 80 mm to produce a displacement of 1116 cc. The bore was increased to 86 mm (maintaining the 55.5 mm stroke) to give a displacement of 1290 cc for the X1/9. The original 1290 cc 128/X1/9 engine is the only one of the family to have used the 86 mm bore. The second generation used bores of either 80 mm or 86.4 mm with strokes of 55.5 mm or 63.9 mm giving four possible engine capacities. The final generation of SOHC engines standardised on a longer 67.4 mm stroke with either an 80.5 mm or 86.4 mm bore (giving 1372 cc and 1581 cc respectively).

Valid engine bore/stroke combinations
Stroke
(mm)
Bore (mm)  
80 80.5 86 86.4
55.5 1116 1130 1290 1302 Capacity
(cc)
63.9 1285 1301 1485 1499
67.4 1355 1372 1566 1581
Key
1st Generation  
1st & 2nd Generation  
2nd Generation  
3rd Generation  


Engine specification (by engine-number)
Engine Code Bore (mm) Stroke (mm) Capacity (cc)
stated
Capacity (cc)
calculated
Production
(from - to)
BHP Notes
128.A.000 80 55.5 1116 1116 1969 - 1982 55-65 128
128.A1.000 86 55.5 1290 1290 ? - ? 65-75 128
128.AS.000 86 55.5 1290 1290 1972 - 1978 75 X1/9 1300
138.A.000 80 55.5 1116 1116 1978 - 1985 60 -
138.A1.000 86.4 55.5 1301 1302 1978 - 1982 75-65 -
138.A2.000 86.4 63.9 1498 1499 1978 - 1982 75-85 X1/9 1500
138.A3.000 86.4 55.5 1301 1302 1982 75 -
138.A4.000 86.4 63.9 1498 1499 1980 - 1982 75-85 X1/9 1500
138.A5.000 86.4 55.5 1301 1302 1982 - 1985 70 Also 138.AS.000
138.B.000 80 55.5 1116 1116 1983 - 1985 55 Uno 55
138.B1.000 80 55.5 1116 1116 1982 - 1985 55-58 Ritmo Mk II
138.B2.000 86.4 55.5 1301 1302 1983 - 1986 68-70 Uno 70
138.B3.000 86.4 63.9 1498 1499 1982 - 1985 70-85 -
146.A4.048 80 55.5 1116 1116 1985 - 1989 58,5 Uno 60
146.A2.000 80 63.9 1301 1285 1985 - 1989 105 Uno Turbo Mk I (specification A)
146.A2.000 86.4 55.5 1301 1302 1985 - 1989 105 Uno Turbo Mk I (specification B)
146.A8.000 80.5 67.4 1372 1372 1989 112 Uno Turbo Mk II
146.C1.000 80.5 67.4 1372 1372 1989 - 1993 72 Uno 70SX
149.C1.000 86.4 63.9 1498 1499 1988 75 Uno 75 SX i.e. (cat)/Selecta
159.A2.000 80.5 67.4 1372 1372 1990 - 1993 76 Tipo/Tempra 1.4 (carb & i.e.)
159.A3.000 86.4 67.4 1581 1581 1990 - 1996 75-86 Tipo/Tempra 1.6 (carb & i.e.)
160.A1.000 80.5 67.4 1372 1372 1988 - 1993 72 Tipo/Tempra 1.4 i.e.
160.A1.046 80.5 67.4 1372 1372 1992 - 1993 69 Uno Selecta
160.A2.000 86.4 67.4 1580 1581 1988 - 1993 83 Tipo/Tempra 1.6 (carb & i.e.)
176.A4.000 80.5 67.4 1372 1372 1993 - 1995 136 Mk I Punto GT (GT1), CR 7.8:1
176.A4.000 80.5 67.4 1372 1372 1995 - 1997 133 Mk I Punto GT (GT2), CR 7.8:1
176.B6.000 80.5 67.4 1372 1372 1997 - 1999 130 Mk I Punto GT (GT3), CR 9.0:1
176.A9.000 86.4 67.4 1581 1581 1994 - 1997 88 Mk I Punto Sporting & Cabrio
835.xx.xxx 86.4 67.4 1581 1581 1989 - 1994 75-77 Lancia Dedra (1.6)
835.A1.000 86.4 67.4 1581 1581 1995 - 1997 90 Lancia Dedra (1.6 i.e.)
Key
1st Generation  
2nd Generation  
3rd Generation  


Applications

List of vehicles utilising variations of the Fiat SOHC engine.

Fiat

  • Fiat 128
    Fiat 128

    The Fiat 128 was a small family car manufactured by the Italy manufacturer Fiat from 1969 to 1985.Although the styling was similar to the 124 and 125, the 128 was an advanced and influential design that pioneered the front-wheel-drive revolution at Fiat....
    : 1969-1985
  • Fiat 127
    Fiat 127

    The Fiat 127 is a supermini car produced by the Italy automaker Fiat between 1971 and 1983. It was introduced in 1971 as the replacement for the Fiat 850....
    : 1971-1987
  • Fiat Regata
    Fiat Regata

    The Fiat Regata was the sedan version of the Fiat Ritmo small family car, produced by Italian automaker Fiat. It was produced from 1983 to 1990, corresponding to the post-facelift Ritmo....
    : 1985-1990
  • Fiat Ritmo/Strada
    Fiat Ritmo

    The 1978 Fiat Ritmo, styled by Bertone of Italy, was the most distinctive looking small family car in Europe on its launch in 1978 Turin Motorshow....
    : 1978-1988
  • Fiat Punto Mk I
    Fiat Punto

    The Fiat Punto is a supermini car produced by the Italy manufacturer, Fiat, since 1993. It is currently in its third generation....
    : 1993-1999
  • Fiat Uno
    Fiat Uno

    The Fiat Uno is a supermini car produced by the Italy manufacturer Fiat. The Uno was launched in 1983 and built in its homeland until 1995, with production still taking place in other countries....
    : 1983-1989
  • Fiat Tipo
    Fiat Tipo

    The Fiat Tipo is a small family car designed by the I.DE.A Institute design house and produced by the Italy manufacturer Fiat between 1988 and 1995....
    : 1988-1995
  • Fiat Tempra
    Fiat Tempra

    The Fiat Tempra is a medium family car produced by Italian automaker Fiat from 1990 to 1999. The Tempra was intended as a replacement for the Fiat Regata....
    : 1990-1995
  • Fiat X1/9
    Fiat X1/9

    The Fiat X1/9 is a two-seater mid-engined sports car designed by Bertone and built by Fiat until 1982 and Bertone between 1982 and 1989. Production lasted from 1972 to 1989 with the first official right-hand drive variant arriving in 1976....
    : 1972-1989


Lancia

  • Lancia Delta
    Lancia Delta

    The Lancia Delta is a small family car produced by Italian automaker Lancia with the first generation being produced between 1979 and 1994, the second generation running from 1993 until 1999, and the third generation Delta entering production in 2008....
    : 1979-1994
  • Lancia Prisma
    Lancia Prisma

    The Lancia Prisma. was a midsize car built by Lancia in the 1980s. It was basically a sedan version of the Lancia Delta, and like its smaller hatchback "brother", shared its chassis and engines with the Fiat Ritmo and Fiat Regata....
    : 1980s
  • Lancia Dedra
    Lancia Dedra

    The Lancia Dedra is a compact executive car produced by the Italian automaker Lancia from 1989 to 2000. It was initially designed to support, and later to replace, the Lancia Prisma that, six years after its launch, was having difficulties to keep in pace with its latest opponents....
    : 1990-1998

zastava

  • Yugo 55
  • Yugo 60
  • Yugo 65
  • zastava 101
  • zastava 128
zastava florida, yugo sana 1.3 1.4

Induction


Production


The Fiat SOHC used the full gamut of induction techniques through its long production run. The original 128 and 138 series engines originally used a single down-draught carburettor. The carburettor was normally of progressive twin-choke design (two asymmetric sized chokes operated progressively) such as the Weber DMTR and DATR of the X1/9. Multi Point fuel Injection (MPI) was introduced late in the 138 series to help meet lowered emission requirements in the US. The original MPI system comprised a large cylindrical plenum running parallel to the engine with individual runners to each inlet port and a single throttle controlling air-flow into the plenum. This plenum was pressurised in the Mk I Uno Turbo. The plenum was slightly redesigned to a more angular "box" shape for the 3rd Generation engines and was again pressurised for the Uno and Punto GT Turbo models. For the 3rd Generation engines the down-draft carburettor was replaced with a Single Point fuel Injection system (SPI) in the base-level models. The SPI system mounts on a manifold similar to that of the carburettord models and looks, as well as acting, much like a single-choke carburettor with a single throttle plate but no venturie and a centrally mounted single injector.

Tuning & modification


Carburettor
Traditionally both down-draft (DCNF & IDF) and side-draft (DCOE) twin-choke carburettors have been used to extract more power from the 128 derived engines. IDFs are rarely used due to an incorrect orientation of the float-bowls (causing possible surge/starve issues under cornering), the correctly orientated DCNF being the preferred down-draft carburettor in this application (also having a much lower profile than the IDF). For ultimate power the DCOE carburettor is used even though the float-bowl direction matches that of the IDF (i.e. incorrect). The aforementioned carburettors are usually used in pairs (effectively giving one independently tuneable carburettor per engine-cylinder), though applications where a single DCNF/DCOE are used to feed a shared manifold do exist. DCNF's tend to be either 36 mm or 40 mm, the larger 44-DCNF is deemed too large for the engine. Both 40-DCOE and 45-DCOE are commonly used where space allows.

MPI
Tuning of the early MPI systems has previously been difficult as the electronic control systems are analogue making them difficult to "re-map". Low-cost DIY Fuel Injection (FI) controllers (such as MegaSquirt
MegaSquirt

MegaSquirt is an aftermarket electronic fuel injection controller designed to be used with a wide range of internal combustion engines. It is a patented hardware platform sold by Bruce Bowling and Al Grippo, engineers that work on the US East Coast....
) have made it easier to alter the characteristics of the early MPI systems and release similar potential as the DCNF/DCOE carburettors. It is possible to "chip" the later digital MPI systems though aftermarket FI controllers again give greater flexibility.

Throttle bodies
Individual FI Throttle Bodies (TBs) are available for mounting to DCNF and DCOE manifolds as well as custom-built FI systems which, with aftermarket controllers, give the most flexibility and control over fuelling out of all the options.

Motorcycle carburettors
Motorcycle, or "bike" carburettors, being a modern and cost-effective alternative to DCOE/DCNFs, have been adapted to work with the 128-derived engines. They potentially offer better control over fuelling than DCNF/DCOE, but their use on the Fiat SOHC engine is still in its infancy.

Camshaft profile

The camshaft was a main methods of varying the 128 series engines characteristics for different applications/markets. The high-revving oversquare design of the 128 engine lends itself to high-overlap high-duration cam profiles better than more traditional square/under-square engine designs without losing drivability. Though a beneficial characteristic for sports orientated engine the high-overlap high-duration cam design gives poor emissions output which was unacceptable under the tightened US emissions regulations. To remedy this (in addition to the introduction of MPI) camshafts for emission-restricted markets featured asthmatic low-lift, low-duration, low-overlap profiles totally unsuited to the nature of the 128 engine.

Production

Standard production camshaft specifications
Profile Duration
(degrees)
Overlap
(degrees)
Lift
(mm)
Clearance (mm)
Inlet/Exhaust
Application
12/52-52/12 244 24 - - 1.1 L 128
10/54-54/10 244 20 - - US Spec 1500 X1/9
24/68-68/24 272 48 9.9 - 128 Rally / 1300 & 1500 (carb) X1/9
9/39-31/1 228-212 10 8 - 1.3 L Uno
0/30-40/10 210-230 10 8 - 1.3 L Uno Turbo
14/36-44/6 230 20 8.8 - 1.4 L Uno Turbo


Tuning & modification

Fast-road/race camshaft specifications
Manufacturer Profile name Profile Duration
(degrees)
Overlap
(degrees)
Lift
(mm)
Clearance (mm)
Inlet/Exhaust
Application
Kent FT7 35/67-67/35 282 70 10.33 0.20 / 0.20 NA - fast road
Kent FT8 52/76-76/52 308 104 10.82 0.20 / 0.20 NA - race
Piper BP270 33/67-67/33 280 66 9.80 0.20 / 0.20 NA - fast road
Piper BP285 36/72-72/36 288 72 10.40 0.20 / 0.20 NA - fast road
Piper BP300 39/71-71/39 290 78 11.18 0.25 / 0.25 NA - race
Piper BP320 53/83-83/53 316 106 11.18 0.25 / 0.25 NA - race


Images


Footnotes