1980 Fiat 124 Spyder 2000
I found this little Fiat on Craigslist one day, and it was actually on the same side of town as I am – that’s hardly ever the case. It belonged to an older gentleman who had a modest collection of cars he could no longer enjoy. It had extensive records and seemed to be in decent condition, so I paid the man and drove it home.
It was pretty and also fun to
drive, but a bit frustrating for me if I’m being honest. It needed some things,
which I tried to address, but it never was going to be as nice as I wanted it
to be. I kept this one for a couple of years and then sold it on to another
local guy.
The paint was excellent, and when you have a car with really good paint it can make the rest of the car seem a lot cleaner than it really is. This little Fiat was a good driver but would have taken a full restoration to be collector quality. The interior was a little bit tired, and the undercarriage showed like a 40-year old car.
Despite its shortcomings, I really should have kept this one. It was cheap and fun when it worked, and with the paint and new top, along with clean brightwork, it was presentable as-is. These Spyder's will be collectable some day for sure. They’re Italian, cute, easy(ish) to work on, and very fun to pop around in. Mine left because I just lacked the space to keep everything. I should have bought another building and stashed this one away in it.
