Italian sports car aficionados were spoiled for choice in 1966 as not one, but two, iconic roadsters were born. In the UK the one we’re most familiar with – perhaps due to its starring role in The Graduate – was the Alfa Romeo Spider, but the rarely seen and no less beguiling Fiat 124 Spider was an equally fine machine.
There were many similarities between the cars – joyous twin cam engines, five-speed manual gearboxes and stylish exteriors, both penned by Pininfarina. While the Alfa is perhaps the better known car it was actually the Fiat that was produced in greater numbers.
The Fiat 124 Spider employed the tried and trusted practice of taking its mechanical components from the contemporary saloon and mating them with a stylish convertible body on a shortened version of the Fiat 124’s platform. While the saloon and contemporary coupe models were built by Fiat the 124 Spider was assembled by Pininfarina.
It was a long-lived model with production stretching all the way from 1967 to 1985 while the twin cam engine was available in several different capacities. This particular left-hand drive example is offered with the 1.8-litre version of the engine and dates from 1977. It was originally sold in North America and was imported to the UK four years ago.
The current owner is a serial classic car owner and imported this 124 to the UK from California four years ago with the intention that it would be an excellent starter classic for his daughter. However, his daughter has yet to learn to drive so the Fiat is now surplus to requirements, but such is the charm of this little Italian convertible that he has been loathed to part with it.
Despite not being used by its intended driver, the vendor does take the Fiat for a spin on a regular basis, top down, to hear the sweet twin cam engine all the better.
Prior to its arrival in the UK, its previous Californian owner evidently loved and cherished the Fiat, using it as an everyday car to commute to his office in the Californian sunshine – the hood was hardly ever raised. As befitted a daily driven classic the American owner appears to have kept on top of all necessary maintenance with significant expenditure on mechanical components during his ownership.
There’s a comprehensive history file to accompany the Spider with records of work carried out both in the UK and America. Recent big ticket items include a new clutch, rear brake discs and calipers and front brake discs and pads. The lovely period 5x13-inch Cromodora alloy wheels were refurbished at a cost of £800 and wear a set of matching Continental tyres with a 2018 date stamp.
Invoices for other expenditure include a replacement pedal box – a common failure point on these cars – as well as a cambelt change and a new alternator.
There are two sets of original keys to accompany the car as well as its original handbooks and a workshop manual.
It’s very easy for a convertible to suffer from wear to its interior, especially in sunnier climes, but this car’s interior has stood the test of time very well with its beige leather seats being in fine fettle and contrasting well with the red paintwork. The vestigial rear seats are similarly in fine condition.
The wooden dash parts have also survived well and the classic instrumentation is in fine order with the exception of the clock whose glass has gone a little milky. There is one small crack to the top of the dashboard by the passenger side screen de-mister vent. The two-spoke wood-rimmed steering wheel is lovely to hold and presents well. Everything in the interior appears to be original, bar the modern Kenwood CD player and the vendor believes the carpets aren’t the originals either.
The hood is an older Mohair item and while it’s not in its first flush of youth the owner reports that it is watertight and there was certainly no trace of dampness in the interior – impressive for a car that’s over 40 years old in the depth of a British winter. The rear screen is starting to go a little milky and the tonneau cover that neatens things up when the hood is down still fits well.
The interior of the Fiat exudes a wonderful patina – it wears its age very well and feels snug and welcoming.
The interior’s patina continues to the car’s bodywork with the red paint exhibiting a few marks consistent with its age and originality. The paint appears to be the same coat that was applied at the factory and still presents very well, responding well to a coat of polish – it certainly drew many admiring looks and comments while we were photographing the car.
When the Fiat was new it would have been fitted with large American spec impact bumpers but the current owner has replaced these with reproduction chrome bumpers that would have been fitted to the European versions of the 124. They are in very good condition and complement the car’s styling so much better that the US-spec versions it would have originally worn.
The car’s originality can be witnessed within the boot where there’s the original steel spare wheel sitting under the original wooden boot floor panels. The rare factory tool kit is still present as well as the original jack.
Having come from a warm, generally dry climate the Fiat appears not to suffer from the rust issues that tend to affect 1970s era Italian classics that have spent their lives in the UK. While we haven’t inspected the car on a ramp, from what we can see of the underside it appears to be very solid.
A 1970s Italian twin cam is a thing of joy and during our time with the car the 1.8-litre four-cylinder burst into life at the first turn of the key – hot or cold – and settles down to a steady idle. On the move the Fiat seems responsive from the passenger seat and there’s a throaty roar from the exhaust – the rear exhaust box is an aftermarket Magnaflow item.
The vendor tells us that American specification Fiat 124s were fitted with longer travel suspension which feels a little softer than the European models and this car certainly rides very well on pockmarked and speed bump-filled London streets.
As mentioned above the Fiat has been subject to recent expenditure including replacement brake pads and discs and a new clutch assembly. Looking under the bonnet further clues to how the car has been looked after is evidenced by a new distributor cap and new HT leads.
As the Fiat dates from the late 1970s it is both MoT and VED exempt. It was last put through an MoT in April 2018, which it passed with no advisories.
This Fiat 124 Spider looks to be a very honest and presentable car with just enough patina to show its age. Sure, there are a few marks to the bodywork but to our mind this makes the car wonderfully usable – it’s not a pampered concours example that is so fine you’d be afraid to use it. The flip side of the coin is that it’s obviously been well maintained which bodes well for its usability.
In the winter gloom its red paintwork certainly lifts the mood and assuming we’ll be out of lockdown when the summer comes we can think of few finer cars to cruise about in. It’s a very stylish machine and thoughts of driving along some twisting roads taking in the sights and smells of the countryside while being serenaded by that classic Fiat twin cam is very appealing indeed.
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1977 Fiat 124 Spider
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