FIAT 124 COUPE/SPIDER
THE VERY MODERN 124 SEDAN GAVE FIAT THE PLATFORM IT NEEDED FOR A SEQUENCE OF COUPES
With Alfa Romeo and Lancia both selling elegant sports coupes in their armouries, Italy's most prolific car-maker needed to get involved as well. Fiat for some years had built a range of pretty but slow-selling 1200 cabriolets and coupes with Pininfarina bodywork. It was these which would provide the basis for a new open-top model that could be shuffled almost seamlessly into the124 range.
Appearing in 1966, the very modern 124 sedan gave Fiat the platform it needed for a sequence of coupes and these, just like marrying a second cousin, were sufficiently similar to partner the open-top cars.
Australia saw its first 124AC coupes in early 1968 but sales didn't start until the following year. The Fiat with its fresh lines and huge glass-house cost $3648 – money that would buy an MGB or GTS Monaro with change left over. By 1976 that price would leap past $7000 and shortly afterwards the 124's reign ended.
The Fiat came with a five-speed gearbox, four-wheel disc brakes and a twin-cam engine. Media tests confirmed it would deliver a genuine 163km/h top speed, at which point the optimistic speedometer was hovering around 170km/h but the engine wasn't nudging the fifth gear redline.
More power was the only thing needed when AC became BC in 1970. Early cars stuck with the AC's 1.4-litre engine but did bring styling changes. The profile with its crisp lines and tiny roof pillars remained unchanged however its distinctive nose with single headlights was replaced by low-slung, paired lights set in a larger grille. In 1971 and accompanied by a slight price increase the Coupe acquired a 1608cc DOHC engine from Fiat's 125 sedan. Power reached 81kW and top speed was listed at 180km/h.
Two years further into the Coupe's life-span, Fiat uprated the design for a second and final time. The shape of the 124CC grille changed again and included a raised central section. Standard wheels were steel but optional were attractive Cromodora alloys.
Under the bonnet a 1.8-litre engine from the heavier 132 sedan should have provided a solid power boost but emission-controls slated for 1974 ensured the bigger engine developed only 84kW.
Spider versions of the 124 were offered In Europe and the USA but not here. Physically, the car shared nothing with 124 Coupes, having its origins in the Pininfarina-bodied 1200 and 1500 convertibles that were first seen in 1959.
The 1966 restyle brought a modernised shape that even today looks lithe and attractive. The Spider would almost certainly have sold well in Australia and other RHD markets had a suitable version been offered.
After many years of imports, open-top 124s in our market are relatively common. Most came from the USA although some have come via the UK, compounding concerns about rust.
Cars built after 1980 were renamed 2000 Spider and when Fiat stepped out of the North American market, Pininfarina sold the cars itself until 1985 under the ‘Spider Azzura' name.
Coupes in decent but not outstanding order sell for less than $15,000. Most of the available cars are CC models. Cabriolets span a wide range of years and engine types with the early, small-bumper cars usually worth more than fuel injected models. Values remain generally below $30,000.