Don’t let the Fiat 124 Spider scare you
With bad examples entering the UK, it’s more important than ever to buy carefully
The new Mazda-based Fiat 124 Spider is driving interest and values for the Tom Tjaarda-penned original. For good reason – twin-cam engine, five-speed ’box, fourwheel disc brakes, easy-to-use soft-top; the 124 Spider was cutting edge in 1966 and remained in production for 19 years. The driving experience is remarkably good and easy-going too, and with thorough rust protection these cars can still make surprisingly good everyday classics.
Some of this guide is based on my own experience of buying a 1985 model from Germany in the early 2000s and running it as my daily driver for two years. But we have also called upon the encyclopaedic knowledge of British specialist Paul De Turris of DTR European Sports Cars (02086 455050; dtrsports.com), who has been selling, restoring and providing parts for Fiat Spiders for more than 27 years. He says, ‘The recent rise in values has seen quite a few continental cars of dubious quality arrive in the UK. They photograph well but that’s where the good stuff ends!’ This guide should help you avoid those. Which one to choose?
As with MGBS, it’s the pre-impact bumper models that are preferred and which therefore cost the most money. Numbers of these are steadily increasing in the UK, unlike later models.
It would take a lot more space than we have here to detail the various body code and detail changes – from AS to DS with various numbered sub-species – so we’ll keep it simple with three phases: chrome bumper cars, those with impact bumpers, and Pininfarina Spiders from when that company took over production in 1981. There’s one exception – the AS code cars, built from 1966-69 and notable for their flat bonnets and 1438cc engines, are starting to attract collectors who value their design purity. Later cars got double-hump bonnets whose bumps grew in phases. The ASS were also significantly lighter than later Spiders and that small-sounding 1.4-litre engine produces 96bhp and equivalent performance to a 1.8-litre MGB.
Least favoured are the 1975-81 cars, which were built exclusively for the American market and – that old story – got impact bumpers and an increased ride height. These rubber-padded chrome bars added 350lb
at the same time as emission controls were sapping power from their 1.6 or 1.8 engines, especially on Californian cars. However, many European imports will have been de-smogged, which is good, or even given later and larger engines. This is also perceived as good and doesn’t harm values except on AS models.
By the time Pininfarina took over production at the end of 1981 and badged its first own-brand cars Pininfarina Spider Europa (in Europe) and Azzurra (in the US), carburettors had been replaced by Bosch fuel injection, improving economy and emissions, and engine capacity was up to two litres. If you can live with the impact bumpers (or even if not – we’ll come to that) these are the best option for regular use or classic tours. A way to identify later cars is that from 1979 they switched from grab-type door handles to flushmounted ones shared with the Alfa Spider and various Ferraris, whose bodies were also made by Pininfarina. Body matters
If ever you needed encouragement to follow that old cliché and buy the best, the 124 Spider provides it. De Turris reckons it takes 700-900 hours to restore one, so even if you can find someone to do it for £20 an hour the man-maths really don’t add up. And unless the car is a fresh southern States import, much of that work will be on the body because these were Italian cars that got no factory rust-prevention treatment. De Turris also cautions that from 1979 the steel used was appalling and reckons that on the older cars lasts three times as long. There is fairly decent panel availability but good-quality stuff is drying up and some pattern parts are poor. Front wings are £286, or £188 for pattern ones; rears are £678, or £258 for three-quarter repair sections. If you’re looking at a car that needs bodywork, do your sums with those numbers to calculate whether it’s worth it.
Doors are becoming a big issue and are one of the first areas to display rot – you can find it in the corners even in supposed dry-state imports. You can get skins for £88, but you can only get complete new doors for 1966-1969 cars at £1000-plus each, or right-hand doors for post-’79 cars at £787. Also there are three different types of striker plate for each of our chosen eras, which means doors are not easily interchangeable between different ages of Spider. In effect, any car with rust in the door frames is best avoided.
Underneath Chassis legs can crack where the front crossmember bolts on, which loosens the mounting bolts. This is often revealed by creaking noises on the test drive, but you can also check by trying to turn the bolts with a 17mm spanner. Repairs here are often tricky and time-consuming and it’s probably best considered a deal-breaker.
Don’t be fooled by smart outer sills – they’re just cosmetic bolt-on panels. It’s what’s behind them that counts and needs careful checking from beneath. The three-part sills total more than £250 per side in panels, and fitting can add another £1500 a side.
Always check on the condition of floorpans (or past repairs to them) around where the rear axle location arms mount. If not done correctly – and with years of low values a lot of these cars have been run on tight budgets – you can wind up with a misaligned rear axle. Running gear
It used to be that you could almost ignore the condition of the engine – they were an advanced design and but also very tough and vice-free. There was also a ready supply of cheap secondhand Mirafiori units to draw on, but that has all but dried up now. So listen for any rumbles or rattles of discontent; the exhaust might be fruity, but the engine itself should be smooth, making faults easy to spot. These are easy engines to work on, but parts are expensive – easily totalling £1000 on their own – so a full professional rebuild can end up costing £4-5k, or you can buy a fresh unit from Germany ready-to-fit, but that’s also around £4000. On the plus side, it’s an opportunity to replace a power-strangled Us-spec engine with a higher compression European unit. The added performance can help you forget the bill.
Most of the gearboxes are tough and long-lived too, apart from those in the Pininfarina cars which were of an inferior quality. They tend to fail without warning so there are no checks to make, and replacement with a unit from an earlier car is the best solution. In general listen for whining in all gears, which shouldn’t be there and is a sign of coming expense, as is any dropping out of gear on the over-run. Exchange reconditioned ’boxes are around £1200. Interior and hood
Less of a worry, in fact more of a bargaining point, the inside of the car is well served by 124 parts specialists. You can buy a complete trim set for £2000-2200, or even upgrade to leather seats for around £500 more. Just make sure the seat frames are good – they are often broken by drivers leaning behind
‘There is fairly decent panel availability but the goodquality stuff is drying up’
to raise the hood. On that subject, a new top is in the region of £750 fitted. Add another £200 if the header rail is rusting and needs replacement. And check this, especially near each end, when you inspect a car. Squeeze it and feel for any crunchiness and give. Improvements
As touched on earlier, improving performance through removing emissions gear and even swapping in larger engines from other Fiats that used the twin-cam can actually improve a car’s appeal and value. Another popular mod with US imports is to fit European-spec springs to get the ride height down and improve the handling on post-1974 cars. You’re in luck if it’s already been done, but if not a set of springs costs almost £200 plus a similar amount for fitting.
A growing number of impact-bumper cars is being fitted with the more delicate bumpers of earlier cars, which are available new for £525 a set, and you can buy the brackets to carry out the conversion from Spiderpoint in Germany for £130. If that sounds like a lot of money, it’s now not uncommon to find corrosion in the twin tubes of the impact bumpers – and a new pair of those can set you back £900 without any of the rubber sections or light housings. If nothing else, that cost threat makes it another area to check carefully.