67 Fiat Dino Spider restoration

Well, the day has come. We can no longer ignore the elephant in the room. This car has some serious electrical issues. We put in the new Wiper motor. It works sort of but blows the fuse. It turns out there are some jumped wires and the ignition switch is the wrong one. We could jump around it but our feeling is to get to replace the switch with the correct one and then sort it out properly. The problem is this switch is an early version which is crazy expensive and hard to get. I'm checking now.

Then we have to sort out all the jumped wires in the center console. This may explain why we aren't getting power to the switches, the fan, and the radio. But right now until we dig deeper its all a guess. Its..... a mess.
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I ordered the correct ignition switch. I swear this thing must be made of solid gold to be that expensive.

I take that back. If it was made of gold it would be less expensive.

But hopefully this will solve some of the electrical problems.

 

Yah and I'm stuck for a good 2 weeks waiting for this. Maybe more. Car just sitting there collecting dust.

To me long ago they were chasing electrical problems. It explains the jumped wires and the removed wiper motor. Now we have to sort out what they did or tried to do and correct it. Would be easier if they did nothing.

We have fixed some electrical stuff. The radiator fan works. The lights work. We replaced the stalk which fixed some of these. The gauges work. But the wipers are now the issue along with what's going on behind the lower center dash.

 

WHAT'S IN THE BOX FROM DINOPOINT?
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Well, this was in the box. These tiny little Pininfarina badges that go on the front wings clipping over the "Fiat Dino Spider" badge. UNOBTAINIUM! Absolutely perfect. I've been looking for months.

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This is also in the box. A custom made Knock off tool so that you don't have to use the lead hammer. Much safer and won't damage the chrome knock offs (or damage the body or wheel if you miss)

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And... TADA! Something I also searched for months. A complete tool kit with new lead hammer with the bags. There is so much misinformation about what the tool kits look like it was tough to find what it really came with and where to get one. A wood handle screwdriver! Can't thank Marco at Dinopoint enough!


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And now for the really exciting news of what is in the box.....

Dinopoint is going to create for my car a complete new interior in Leather using the original patterns. Seats, door panels, rear bench and rear pockets. They sent me these samples. I'm thinking I will pick the center (lightest) one for the dark red paint.

I've already contacted a well known installer here in Vegas and they agreed it was better to have the skins made there and installed when they arrive. Not cheap -- but for sure will increase the comfort and value of the car over the vinyl.
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Went to visit the car today with the leather samples and the decision is.... Cappuccino Nuvola. If you want to know what it looks like in reality its exactly like the coffee drink. I think it has more of that 60's leather color I'm looking for. Its not too light or pink-ish or yellow-ish like modern beige. This picture of the interior was my reference. It may not look like it in the photo but the color in person is very much like this.

 

Well, the ignition switch may have finally arrived in the USA after a month. Checking with the mechanic now but we might have it next week. Super hard to find this. Frustrating!
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Bad news.... and GOOD NEWS! It is the wrong switch. However the supplier has the correct switch. We are communicating now about how to get it.

This is the correct one.

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The paint color I intend to use.... No Fiat Dino's came in this but it was periodic for 1967 Ferrari.
rosso rubino metallizzato
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There was a Fiat Dino Coupe color called Rosso ossido that was somewhat similar to Rubino. Ossido translates to "oxide" in English but I'm not sure how metallic it is.

 

Yep my second choice. But I want a metallic paint to bring out the curves.

Darker reds are more classic looking Ferrari colors. Rosso Corsa more modern.

 

Its hard for me to explain the technical issues as its pretty complicated. I will tell you, I got a lot of different information when looking for this thing. Some very knowledgable people say the switch I had in the car "will work". Clearly the switch was working as I drove the car. The issue I believe the wiring of the fuel pump and accessories, which is why this one has additional pins. This switch is really rare and hard to get today. So some have used different switches or put electrical connections together on the same posts.

And I searched everywhere for this thing and it was sold out. It clearly existed but was impossible to get and very expensive if I could get one. Over $1000 which is "just plain crazy".

If you go search on the Fiat Dino forum you'll find people going back years who have used relays and whatever to get around the problem that this 16 pin switch is becoming hard to find. And, that was our last resort. After 2 months of waiting for it I was beginning to lose hope.

We're trying to trace down an electrical problem and the mechanic thought it best to get the correct switch to start with. At first I thought no big deal. Then it became a big deal.

From what I understand, this switch has an inherent problem in that they wear out fairly easily. So Fiat stopped using it and went with and updated switch with fewer pins that is used in more Fiats of the time. And this is the switch that most people sell as a replacement. Not sure if its the same on Coupes and I know its different again for 2.4L.

I had a conversation with Superperformance about it. They also have a switch but no 16 pins. Yet they say "2000 spider" on the catalogue page.

Believe me I really challenged the mechanic on this one to ask why we need it. And he agreed it probably could work but was concerned it would take longer to debug the electrical system to find the issues. He wanted to use the wiring diagram as his basis and needed the 16 pin switch to do that.

It is what it is. There's no clear understanding out there so its easy to see how parts suppliers can look at a catalogue or parts book and say this is the correct part. I got different answers from different people. As I did I discussed it with the mechanic but he was hoping a correct switch could be found.

So, basically there's a lot of confusion out there about what switch works for what model. From what I've been told, there are even two different versions of the 16 pin switch!

If there is any benefit, I am now the world's leading expert on 2L Fiat Spider Ignition switches.

If I can get this electrical problem sorted the next step should be to the body shop. It will still need some work afterwards but at least its drivable. I'm ordering the interior from Dinopoint next week. That will take 2 months. Trying to get it finished in one year of work but I think the Spring is more likely.

I would like to drive it to Monterey next year. 8 hour drive from Vegas.