Lancia Motor Club

Has anyone ever produced or seen a 'sensible' list of important spares and tools to carry on e.g. a continental journey in a Fulvia?

I'm sure that there will be varying opinions on this and perhaps it would depend on the mechanical skills possessed by the driver but never having driven such a distance in mine, it got me thinking about how best to balance the achievable with the necessary.

I know that some are obvious and others would be a legal requirement on the continent but I'd be interested what people come up with, particularly the more experienced to there....?

I have always found that the chance of breaking down is inversely proportional to the number of spares/tool that you carry, so fit a tow-bar and fill a trailer

I am sure others will give a more sensible answer !

I go along with Simon's theory, but don't overdo it, on my first Continental trip from the UK to Portugal in 2004 I took a load of tools and spares, including a small trolley jack and a battery power pack, we had so much that we had to put a lot of our own gear on the back seat instead of in the boot! Anyone who knows how big a Fulvia 2c boot is will realise this is quite a feat.
It worked, 3500 miles later the only problem was a puncture with a pinched inner tube after hitting a big pothole.
However, the result of such a load was the rear springs had settled, never to return to their original position.
Thereafter I was more circumspect in what I took, but still enough to dare her to break down.
And numerous trips since has seen another puncture and a bonnet release cable, so the threat proved sufficient.
One thing to remember is, prior preparation is all.!
Brian
8227  8)

Wise words indeed gentlemen.....thank you.

Out of interest, has anyone ever temporarily substituted original Fulvia seats for a long excursion? I did wonder if there is anything out there that easily fits to provide a bit more comfort and a headrest perhaps for additional safety?
My series 2 has no headrest.......

Each year we make a long European journey (for example from Northern Italy to Riga, Latvia, or Malta, or Dordogne or Corsica in France etc) adding up several thousand Km. Prior preparation of the car is essential and anything even remotely suspicious should be repaired or replaced before the trip. In addition to standard consumables, we carry a box with spare alternator and regulator, starter motor (failed on two different trips), distributor, water pump, light switches, and relays. We should bear in mind that time is flying and Fulvias (and owners ;)) are getting older every year. Andrea

Something to keep in mind is just how quickly you can get stuff delivered these days.  I've a friend who'll take pride in "never finished the journey on the end of a rope, never had to call anyone else to help" but that's very rare these days. My missus has a great question "what would a normal person do" (she has to ask that A LOT) and the answer is "get recovered to a garage, settle in to a hotel, make some calls".  You'll then take a view on getting whatever you need delivered and fitted or renting a car to complete the journey.

A phone (with a booster battery and cable, I'd take one of those!!!) must be the modern essential.

"Getting stuff delivered" might be from a friend or home rather than a specialist.

I'd have thought THE tip is to build up the use.  Its got to be a car you'd trust for long trips in the UK before you'd go overseas.  You'd not do a long trip in the UK if you'd not done some day trips in it.  You'd not risk a day out ruined by a break down without doing some "test runs".  I went with a friend to Biggen Hill museum on Saturday (new, recommended) but the whole point of the run was to give his car a test.  We started early, the phone had full charge, I've got an RAC card.  I took a battery tester gizmo I'd bought to do a bit of diagnostics should it miss behave but it ran perfectly and the conclusion was "it needs more use".  When we go on rallies in that car we don't take tools or spares.

If doing an expensive event or a "once in a lifetime" and not being able to carry on was an issue?   I'd take a complete distributor to drop in, spare coil already mounted.  I'd trust a dynamo and points over alternator and electronic ignition but a second battery, even just a small one, would reassure me in the same way as a spare can of fuel for "when the electricity runs out".  Many on the forum have a mechanical fuel pump on their Fulvias plus an electric for starting which is some redundancy.  Rally cars often have a spare electric pump mounted ready to cut over, or twin pumps for redundancy.

There are a couple of books and links on car prep (and spares and tools to take).

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/401730141934

https://www.rallyround.co.uk/preparing-your-car/

Of course the one I wanted to find I now can't...but I think that Philip Young book is worth getting.  They'll be something in there about how "the first time I took the kitchen sink but in reality what breaks is A, B, C so what you need is X, Y, Z".

Am surprised by starter motor failure.  What broke?

When I started continental rallying I carried everything but the kitchen sink but soon found out that all I really needed were small component parts. These days one can park up at a nice hotel overnight and wait for DHL to deliver next morning.

Peter Baker, you've sussed it out, hat off to you.

P

Starter motor: in one case the solenoid just disintegrated the starter motor (no hint of trouble at all for over 1000 km). In the other case, on a motorway there was no chance to make diagnosis.

I very much like the relaxed attitude if something fails. Unfortunately I find this unfeasible if we are heading to catch a ferry for a long sea crossing (not just Dover-Calais) or on a busy motorway on a public holiday and pre-booked reservations. I consider myself lucky that in many years I have never been left stranded even when very, very far from home. It is also probably true that if you have a spare with you, it is unlikely will be needed. Andrea

Many many thanks gents. Exactly the kind of advice and discussion I was looking for never having been that far before......

I must admit, my experience also has been that if I have it I'll probably not need it!

I do agree with the 'use the car' theory though. Like most things - use it or lose it I guess......I do aim to build distances up now that the salt has gone (shhh he says..).

Meantime - back to the messy Waxoyl job!

36 days from Peking to Paris...

...in a Ferrari GT4?

https://www.classicdriver.com/en/article/cars/ferrari-308-gt4-rally-was-built-race-peking-paris?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=232019%20Ferrari%20308%20GT4%20Peking%20to%20Paris%20EN&utm_content=232019%20Ferrari%20308%20GT4%20Peking%20to%20Paris%20EN%20CID_399e0078354134d9a7932d316124d231&utm_source=newsletter

They're taking some spares....

I remember reading an article by Denis Jenkinson a few years ago. As Continental Correspondent for Motorsport he clocked up tens of thousands of miles around Europe, even servicing his cars at the roadside. But he said as soon as he picked up a car 'he went over the whole thing with a set of spanners'. No harm in going around doing basic checks for tightness,  making sure hoses, fuel lines and wiring aren't rubbing or getting pinched etc. It's amazing what a really good look under the bonnet with a powerful torch can throw up!

I used to always carry the special tools for the castellated nuts for the hubs, since I had them anyway. I figured that most things could be got around but someone was unlikely to be able to help with those. Now I think about it, though, the number of jobs that require them that would stop me getting home is fairly small....
otherwise small bits and pieces seem the way to go to me.

Spare bulbs, plugs and a head gasket. Wire for electrics, fuses, insulating tape, gaffer tape, PTFE tape, cable ties and a tube of Hermatite joint sealant. Mainly though make sure the car has run a good mileage before your long trip, and of course go over it thoroughly beforehand. If a special tool is needed to get to the brakes (like the castellated hub spanner) take that and a decent complement of spanners, sockets etc, and a few small bolts and nuts.

Not a Lancia but my 1925 1100cc Salmson has done many thousands of miles in France and even did a two way crossing of the USA. I found if I took more than the above it was never needed, even on the US trip when in 9000 miles just one bolt stripped its thread on the dynamo mounting bracket and the carburettor flange nuts came slightly loose making the exhaust pop a bit going down the Rockies near Aspen.

Mike

I go along with Mike but would add a small analogue multimeter and wiring diagram, spare quantities of fluids esp if running silicone brake fluid, a tyre mouse repair canister.

As an aside, please note that very few tyre garages stock inner tubes and rely on next day delivery, meanwhile the Lancia driver is expected to relax. In Northern Italy the Michelin stockist is in Bergamo. Andrea

Tim - "tyre mouse" - to help with the squeaks ?

Also, today's Classic Car Weekly suggests a roadworthiness certificate acceptable to the country being visited.

MOT then? Not a bad idea anyway. What other document could you use?
Mike

Last summer I did a 3,400 round trip to Italy via Switzerland with no issues so I can certainly recommend a long road trip in a Fulvia!  :)

I agree with the other folk who have replied on the basis that prevention is better than cure. I used the time before I went to clear up some messy wiring relating to the ignition and other minor niggles to de-risk any issues as well as doing full fluid changes (and I can thoroughly recommend an addition like Millers Extra Cool). I also took the Fulvia to a Lancia specialist for a tune as well as a full check over for extra peace of mind.

Do you normally have your fuel tank fully filled? I hadn't normally as with shorter journeys and advice that petrol 'goes off' I would only have a half tank of petrol at any time. It was only shortly before my long trip that I filled the fuel tank fully to find that the seal between filler pipe and tank had perished allowing fuel to leak; something that would have been a PITA to fix on the journey and not something I had predicted or even thought about. Fortunately finding this in advance meant it could be fixed.

With all this prep work I then took only a fairly basic tool kit and spares. The only thing I wish I'd taken? ... some copper grease! The brakes developed a squeal on one side at the rear (probably all the brake activity on those Swiss mountain passes!) and where a coating of some copper grease on the back of the offending pads would cure this niggle. I must have visited about a half dozen petrol stations en-route to try and find some with no luck and couldn't find any Swiss equivalents of Halfords! In the end I used the local knowledge of some chap admiring the Fulvia to locate a friendly back street mechanic and blagged some grease from him!

For additional peace of mind it's also worth considering breakdown cover and on that check your classic insurance policy. My policy for instance handily includes UK and European breakdown assistance.

I have always filled my tank especially for putting my cars up for a winter hibernation. I have never suffered from bad fuel (always fil Shell Vplus) at the beginning of the season with my cars. Fuel in the tank stops the consensation (yes there is always time when the water vapour pressure is high enough to condense) rusting the inside of the tank. This rusting leads to muck in the fuel lines and consequent problems en route. Always have a spare in line filter if you suspect a mucky tank.

As an aside I did have "poor fuel" problems with a Ducati I woke up this year after 3 years hibernation. At the MOT station I complained of poor running and told them I thought it was bad fuel. They said try this Wurth Fuel Cure product. A cap ful in the tank and the engine ran like a dream.....