1974 Fiat Spider | FerrariChat

1974 Fiat Spider

Discussion in 'Other Italian' started by porkchopious, Apr 25, 2012.

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  1. porkchopious

    porkchopious Formula Junior

    Oct 11, 2009
    329
    Oakton, VA
    Full Name:
    David
    #1 porkchopious, Apr 25, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Well after trolling ebay for years, I finally found a car exactly like the one I bought in high school as my very first car.

    1974 Fiat Spider. Exact same color and interior as my old one. The thing that attracted me to this car is that it was still in the possession of the daughter of the original owner. It lived in a garage its whole life in Minnesota as a second car and then moved to California about 11 years ago. It still has its original paint and top! Never been in an accident and only has some surface rust underneath. Included are the original title, manual, and even the user manual for the cassette deck installed by the dealer.

    Here are some pics of the car being delivered to me two hours ago. My plan is to drive it the way it is for a while and then fully restore it. Comments? Advice?

    David
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  2. Mang

    Mang F1 Veteran
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    Jul 11, 2007
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    Mike S.
    Nice....my very first car was a '74 124 spider as well....white with red and had the bigger rubber bumper 'nipples' 'breasts actually!'

    Love the wheels yours came with, great score! Enjoy! Congrats.
     
  3. wax

    wax Five Time F1 World Champ
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    Jul 20, 2003
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    Dirty Harry
    Just enjoy the flood of memories old and new - then fuss over it.
     
  4. Napolis

    Napolis Three Time F1 World Champ
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    Jim Glickenhaus
  5. Dino V

    Dino V Formula 3

    Sep 21, 2005
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    Chicago
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    Dino
    Nice find! Enjoy!
     
  6. classic308

    classic308 F1 Veteran

    Jan 9, 2004
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    Paul
    Molto bella!
     
  7. parkerfe

    parkerfe F1 World Champ

    Sep 4, 2001
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    Franklin E. Parker
    I too once owned a Fiat Spider. Sold it to a fellow FChatter.
     
  8. Ehamilton

    Ehamilton Formula 3
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  9. alfas

    alfas Formula Junior

    Sep 17, 2009
    639
    chicago
    looks wonderful... enjoy
     
  10. Isobel

    Isobel F1 World Champ

    Jun 30, 2007
    10,533
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    Is, Izzy for Australians
    My favourite colour combo. Same engine as in the Beta coupe I once owned. Had my brother do the belt and it was trouble free afterwards. Nice find and congrats.
     
  11. Sunracer

    Sunracer Formula Junior

    May 18, 2005
    661
    Makati City
    Full Name:
    Pierre Beniston
    Change the timing belt if you can't verify when it was last done, it's an interference engine. Have a careful inspection done of the front end-in particular the crossmember where it bolts to the subframe rails and around the front a arms and the lower arms themselves. The T-belt is easy and a lot cheaper than a top end rebuild, The crossmembers can come loose and crack and tear off if neglected, some ball joints sold as replacement parts are suspect and can pull out of their sockets. The A arms get fatigued and crack around the ball joint. The rest is the usual old car story-rebuild the whole thing over the years as you drive it : )

    Congrats it's a great looking car and you have the super light magnesium Cromodora made factory mags, their Cromodora number is CD 3. '74 has the best single plane intake the cars ever came with and the non-CA origin means you got chrome bumperettes, rather than the big tit rubber bumperettes. A non CA 74=last of the good ones in my opinion.

    Best single upgrade is to convert to the 79 and later electronic ignition system or add The Crane 3000 electronic ignition kit to the existing distrib. Have fun!

    I am a regular at mirafiori.com which was mentioned earlier, another big site is fiatspider.com. The crowd is smaller at mira, but the knowledge base higher IMHO.

    PB
     
  12. DetroitDetomaso

    DetroitDetomaso Formula Junior

    Mar 6, 2006
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    Las Vegas
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    Chris
  13. alberto

    alberto Formula 3

    Aug 25, 2001
    2,395
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    Alberto
    Great looking car, why restore it?
     
  14. porkchopious

    porkchopious Formula Junior

    Oct 11, 2009
    329
    Oakton, VA
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    David
    Good question. I plan to drive it as for a while. No parking lot stress! However, all the bushings are worn out, the interior is shot, and everything is very worn. It starts, drives, and stops well, though.

    My plan is to totally restore the car and upgrade the drivetrain, suspension, brakes, etc. I want all the mods to be fairly invisible. I like the stock interior and I don't think I can improve on the design so it will get a stock redo. Lovely steering wheel.

    I definitely want more power, but not so much that the car is too high strung for driving around town.

    I've been trolling ebay and parts seem plentiful, unlike my Ghibli.
     
  15. TheMayor

    TheMayor Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    Feb 11, 2008
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    Vegas baby
    I used to have one just like this -- same color and everything. I actually liked the 1800cc carbed version better than the F1 2000's.

    Have fun!
     
  16. porkchopious

    porkchopious Formula Junior

    Oct 11, 2009
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    David
    I agree. I had a later 2-litre example later on and I thought the engine wasn't as "revvy"
     
  17. ProRallyCodriver

    ProRallyCodriver Formula 3

    Oct 25, 2005
    1,250
    Alexandria, VA
    Full Name:
    Dave Shindle
    Hi neighbor (I grew up in Vienna),

    The DC Fiat club is very active and fun.

    http://www.dcfiats.org/

    and the Fiat Lancia Unlimited club is holding their annual 'Freakout' in Charlottesville VA this year.

    http://www.fiatclubamerica.com/

    I've owned several resto-rodded Lancias with same engine and know them pretty well.
     
  18. TheMayor

    TheMayor Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    Feb 11, 2008
    98,540
    Vegas baby
    Exactly. And, they blew out the ring and pinion's like crazy at about the 60K mark.
     
  19. Ehamilton

    Ehamilton Formula 3
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    Eric Hamilton
    Do the mods still ban users for excessive understatement? :)
     
  20. Mang

    Mang F1 Veteran
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    Jul 11, 2007
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    Mike S.
    Apparently these 124 spiders were 'gateway' cars for the many of us who became sportscar obssessed! :D
     
  21. damian in nj

    damian in nj Formula Junior
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    Aug 24, 2009
    970
    This is a common discussion with Alfa owners between the 1600, 1750, and 2 liter cars.
     
  22. mspelt

    mspelt Formula Junior

    May 28, 2010
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    Mark Pelt
    #22 mspelt, May 3, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  23. porkchopious

    porkchopious Formula Junior

    Oct 11, 2009
    329
    Oakton, VA
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    David
    I've always loved the coupes as well. Nice lines and cool interiors.
     

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