1961 OSCA-Fiat 1500S semi barn find | FerrariChat

1961 OSCA-Fiat 1500S semi barn find

Discussion in 'Other Italian' started by kiesan, Feb 17, 2011.

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  1. kiesan

    kiesan Formula 3 Silver Subscribed

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    "semi" since it really was not a barn. It was a nice house in Bellevue, WA., thats on the market for over a million dollarinis.

    An older guy showed up at my Seattle bike shop with his 1990 BMW K1 that he bought new. Wanted to sell it so I bought it. Was giving him a ride home and he was telling me about the old Fiat he had owned since 1974. He had bought it for his son in hi school who evidently never liked it that much. 34k miles on the clock it had.

    He paid $2859.84 for it 5/26/1974 from Metro Imports here in Seattle. The story was the car belonged to the Fiat western region sales manager at the time.

    Checked out the car and it was a model I had never seen or heard of. And this is coming from an absolute gearhead geek who's first car was a '72 124 Spider and has owned countless Fiats/Alfas with a few F-cars sprinkled in.

    I left and did some research. I came back yesterday the 16th, made an offer and towed it out of there to my friend's shop 3 miles away. But first we were crawling around in his attic rounding up all the extra parts and I spotted a pair of vintage 60's table lamps.

    Turns out his wife bought them at Frederick & Nelson in 1969 and stored them away in the 70's. $150 each over 40 years ago. I had to have them so we did a deal. The guy compared me to the dweebs on "American Pickers" at that point but I was not offended :) After a brief self-reflective moment I was right back in the game.

    The car has had some work done in the past. Tune ups, brakes, gearbox rebuild, etc. It actually runs pretty well. The clutch starts to slip within a few miles but thankfully the guy had sourced new clutch parts way back in the day. He was the kind of guy who would buy whatever he could find for it over the last 37 years and pile it up. The pile of extra parts is fairly extensive. The crown jewel being a factory hardtop that I don't suppose grows on trees.

    What do you think f-chatters? Restore or sell? It would not take much to make her into a reliable driver. She's pretty solid with not much rust.
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    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    kiesan, Feb 17, 2011
    #1
  2. James_Woods

    James_Woods F1 World Champ

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    Well, I like it.

    Did you get the hubcaps? And, the bumpers?
     
    James_Woods, Feb 17, 2011
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  3. kiesan

    kiesan Formula 3 Silver Subscribed

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    Yeah and yeah. The 'caps are super nice however the bumpers need rechroming.
     
    kiesan, Feb 17, 2011
    #3
  4. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

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    What a great find, I'm jealous! Interior picture?
     
    Miltonian, Feb 17, 2011
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  5. Reece

    Reece Formula Junior

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    Wow, it's gorgeous!
     
    Reece, Feb 17, 2011
    #5
  6. Mang

    Mang F1 Veteran

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    Kiesan, you are often stumbling into these finds, awesome! I dream of stumbling onto something interesting like this!
     
    Mang, Feb 17, 2011
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  7. kiesan

    kiesan Formula 3 Silver Subscribed

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    Thanks man. Yeah the interior is a treat on this thing. Right now there are quite a few spare parts stacked in there but in the next few days (prolly tomorrow) I'll have those out and take some pics.
     
    kiesan, Feb 17, 2011
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  8. readplays

    readplays F1 Rookie

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    Congrats on the find.

    The car looks fantastic. I would keep it and perform whatever mechanical repairs you deem necessary as you are running it (back) in. It really presents itself well for a car that has been parked up. I think it would be great to leave it in the present condition, hold off on the restoration, and Drive It.

    Best of luck and, most importantly, enjoy it!
     
    readplays, Feb 17, 2011
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  9. velocetwo

    velocetwo F1 World Champ

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    I see a nice driver, a few repairs, then miles and smiles. have fun.
     
    velocetwo, Feb 17, 2011
    #9
  10. Santiago Montenegro

    Santiago Montenegro F1 Rookie

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    A beauty! Enjoy in good health.
     
    Santiago Montenegro, Feb 18, 2011
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  11. kiesan

    kiesan Formula 3 Silver Subscribed

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    kiesan, Feb 20, 2011
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  12. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

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    That's the tag for the Pininfarina build number. It belongs in the engine compartment.
     
    Miltonian, Feb 20, 2011
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  13. kiesan

    kiesan Formula 3 Silver Subscribed

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    Ah good to know thanks man.
     
    kiesan, Feb 20, 2011
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  14. pearsonhaus

    pearsonhaus Formula 3

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    Nice find! Those are really sharp looking cars...
     
    pearsonhaus, Feb 23, 2011
    #14
  15. Rory J

    Rory J Formula 3

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    I'd double check on that PF tag. It's identical to the one on my original PF hardtop for my Fiat 124 Spider. Not super familiar with 1200/1500 cabs though, so Miltonian may be correct.
     
    Rory J, Feb 24, 2011
    #15
  16. Crawler

    Crawler F1 Veteran

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    Fantastic! I don't believe that the OSCA-engined cars (this one and the later 1600S) were ever officially imported into the US by Fiat, so yours was likely brought in by a private individual. I believe that the early US spiders all had the 1200 cc ohv engine until the styling was revised (around '63) with the full-width grill and engine size increased to 1500. It was at this point that the OSCA unit was increased to 1600, but again that car was never imported to the US by Fiat. In 1965, the cars got an all-synchro 5-speed gearbox to replace the 4-speed that's on your car (which if memory serves has no synchro on 1st gear).

    If you need any hard to find parts, try Danny at Fiat Fun in CT. The website lists mostly stuff for later models, but he had replacement brake calipers for my '65 Fiat Moretti Coupe.

    http://www.funimported.com/new_usedparts.htm

    When my dad ordered our car, he has the option of getting the Fiat 1500 engine or the OSCA 1600 twin cam. To my eternal regret, he went with the Fiat engine due to the concern about long-term parts availability for the OSCA. My car is pictured below. It shares its chassis and many parts with the spiders, including the unusual steering box set-up.

    By all means keep it!
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    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Crawler, Feb 24, 2011
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  17. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

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    It appears that I may be wrong about the tag belonging in the engine compartment, I haven't been able to find a picture that shows it. Somewhere, there must be holes that match the holes in the tag. Does it belong with the top? Could be!

    As far as stateside availability of the OSCA-engined 1500, the car tested by Road & Track in April 1960 was provided by a private owner, but the magazine says that "....Dealers no sooner get one (a 1500 Spider) into their showrooms than it is sold, which is just dandy for the dealer and Fiat, but made it hard for us to find one for a road test."
     
    Miltonian, Feb 24, 2011
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  18. Crawler

    Crawler F1 Veteran

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    Well, from that it certainly appears that the early OSCA-engined cars were imported by Fiat after all. I'm quite sure that the later 1600S was not.

    Jeff, do you have a copy of that road test for scanning? I'd be very interested in reading it. I do have the 1500 Spider R&T road test from 1965.
     
    Crawler, Feb 25, 2011
    #18
  19. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

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    I would be happy to scan that article for you. Send me a PM with your preferred email address.
     
    Miltonian, Feb 25, 2011
    #19
  20. kiesan

    kiesan Formula 3 Silver Subscribed

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    kiesan, Feb 25, 2011
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  21. Rory J

    Rory J Formula 3

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    The PF tag on my hardtop is on the inside of the top, driver's side, between the rear window and the bottom edge. If you search around the lower rear perimeter of the hardtop, you'll likely find a couple rivet holes.
     
    Rory J, Feb 25, 2011
    #21
  22. Miltonian

    Miltonian F1 Veteran

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    Sorry if you have to sell the car before you get a chance to drive it. There probably are not many people who know what it is, but it appears that to some extent, you have a "time capsule" example. If you can get it running, and hold out until the next Italian Concours, you might find a good buyer at a good price.

    Here's an old magazine cover showing a blue one.
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    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Miltonian, Feb 26, 2011
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  23. bleuhavana

    bleuhavana Rookie

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    Hello there,
    Do you still have that osca? Or the hardtop for that car?
    Look if you have disc brakes in the back.
    If you do then it's a 1962 model.
    Only in 1962 Fiat 1500S osca had disc brakes all around.
    I was reading that they only made 80 1500S osca cars but I find it hard to believe.
    If you sold on Ebay how much did it go for?
    I have one and I was thinking about auctioning it.
    GB
     
    bleuhavana, Jun 20, 2011
    #23
  24. fiatjeff

    fiatjeff Rookie

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    I would be interested in your Fiat Osca. I have several, parts , etc.

    will you send me some details?

    [email protected]
     
    fiatjeff, Jun 27, 2011
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  25. fiatjeff

    fiatjeff Rookie

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    Bleuhavana...I was addressing the request to you. I am interested in your OSCA.
     
    fiatjeff, Jun 27, 2011
    #25
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