1971 Fiat Spider

850 Convertible

4 - Cyl.

Manual

100GBS10103277

Gasoline

I bought this car in early 2010 from a man who had owned it since around 1980. The car was sold locally in by a Fiat dealer in Presque Isle, Maine. The previous owner was the auto shop teacher at the Presque Isle high school for many years before retiring in the 1990s. When he sold it to me, his ad read "no rust." I found that hard to believe for an early 70s Fiat originating in the fierce winters of northern Maine, but when I took a look, he wasn't too far off. This is a really solid car...possibly the most solid original 850 remaining that first sold in the northeastern US. The reason a 1970s Fiat can survive here is that locals often put these types of summer cars away in October and don't drive them again until May. There's no point at trying to drive a car like this when there's snow/salt on the ground from November into April. This car was in dry, semi-heated indoor storage every winter of its existence as I understand it. I think most of the surviving 850s are in the US Southwest...or have been shipped from there in recent years. I've had some 850s from the southeastern US and they were badly rusted from the constant moisture. The owner had painted the car in the early 80s. This is the one and only repaint on this car. It wasn't done professionally. He just used basic enamel. I wouldn't give him an A grade, but the car looks presentable. I take it to shows without hesitation. I don't think the car has been hit and the previous owner claimed it had not been hit...outside of one his students backing into a front fender and causing a small dent (repaired with that early 80s paint job). When I got the car, it hadn't been driven in 5 years. After an oil change, fresh gas, and a new battery, I was able to drive it home. It didn't run too well and I did end up rebuilding the Weber, installing new spark plugs and points. I also installed all new belts, hoses, fuel filter, air filter, brake lines, a clutch cable and an alternator. The car showed almost 50,000 miles. While speedometer cables do break, I just don't think this car did much more than that as a summer driver in northern Maine. I've seen quite a few low mileage toys from the 70s up here. Most of the miles were in the 1970s. When I got the car, the top's back window was shot and the seats were recovered in cloth during that early 80s 'restoration.' I installed a new OEM-type black vinyl top and new OEM replica seat covers. The foam under the seats was excellent under the passenger side and good under the driver side. The dash top was not cracked at all. That's another benefit of northern Maine summers. The sun is never hot enough to crack a dash and doesn't dry out rubber trim. In fact, I've never gotten into a car here during the summer and felt hot...like you do in the Southern US. Even the sunvisors are solid and feel like new. The original vinyl floor covering material was mostly intact and I just cleaned it up. It's not perfect--a little brittle, but I like it. It's the way an 850 is supposed to be. It has a period AM radio. I left it in there too. The rest of the interior materials are in good shape too. It also has one of those original black cue ball shift knobs. All the gauges work except the oil gauge needs a new sender. I also had the extreme pleasure of installing a new window regulator on one side. All in all, the interior is pretty much like it left the factory. There are speaker grills on the doors. I don't know if that was done by the dealer or by an owner in the 70s. The tires are period correct white sidewalls with good tread. The wheels were repainted in the correct color and the hub caps are very good with no rust/pitting. It has the larger original 903 engine. Everything in the engine compartment looks original and all the bits are there. Nobody painted everything black! It has a Monza/Abarth type dual pipe muffler which adds nice sound and perhaps some minimal extra power. It makes the car look more aggressive from the back. I've always thought that the stock muffler looked wimpy. Even the air cleaner has that original gray paint with the original Fiat sticker. I detailed it and got all the grime cleaned out. I also changed all the motor mounts. All the wiring in the car is uncut and unmolested except the wires to the rear lights. All of the emissions gear is intact. For some reason, the rear lights are different than stock, but look nice. I did find one decent OEM tail light for the right side, but haven't found the left side yet. This light is included in the auction. I assume a lens or two was damaged during the 80s when the taillights were even harder to source (before the internet). It has the original style gas cap. The doors close with a nice tight fit. The chrome is all very good with virtually no pits. I bought all new trim pieces such as the Bertone front fender badges and the rear Fiat badge. It has the spare, jack, and tool kit. Going back to the "no rust" statement, the floors and front trunk are are solid. Someone did weld in a new battery tray. The bottom of the front fenders in front of the door have a couple of paint bubbles. I found that some dirt had been trapped between the fender and the layer of metal behind it. The spare tire compartment has a small rust hole. I stripped the rust with rust dissolver and then coated with POR 15. Underneath the car, the X bracing thing (cross member) has a rust spot towards the back but is basically solid. The suspension mounting areas are solid. You can jack up the car using the original jacking points. I drove the car around town all last summer and went to a car show or two. I've had some additional toys this summer and haven't driven it much. It's a fun car to drive. You can run the engine to the redline in each gear and still not end up too far past the speed limit on the highway when I shift into 4th. It revs right past 6000 rpm with ease. It has all the power I need around town here and I find it comfortable cruising at 60-70 mph while getting an honest 35-40 mpg. It is amazingly small. My teenage son even says it looks exotic. It definitely gets a lot of attention and smiles. It is a Bertone design after all. The car includes the factory repair manual along with a Chilton's. All in all, I think this is a nice presentable driver for not much money. You can buy "fixer upper" 850s for under a thousand or two, but you can sink $5-10K into one of these real fast...and still not have a decent car (or a long term garage queen). I will work with international buyers to get this car to port. Shipping from here should be done through John D. Crafts of Lisbon Falls ME as they have a truck here at least once a week. They'll get the car to Boston for about $300.