Fiat 124 problem areas

Found a '74 Fiat 124 Spider for $300 locally; going to look at it tomorrow. Last registered in '85, 86k miles, current owner inherited the car from her grandfather when he passed away last year. Judging by pics, it looks a lot better than many $1000 124's I've seen. I'm sure my intentions are obvious, just wondering what I should look for on one of these rust/problem wise - I don't even plan on trying to start it, I'd rather not bust a timing belt and destroy a potentially solid engine. Advice?

Rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust rust

Other than that, make sure you check for rust. Mechanically, they're fairly robust. Cooling systems can be kinda funky, but it sounds like you don't expect much from the engine anyway. I think some interior trim can be slightly hard to find, but could be wrong on that.

Problem areas for Fiat 124 Spider....

Pretty much the entire northern half of the US!

My site Click on the link, I've got a lot of 124 specific info on my site and I'm pretty sure there's a link to the Buyer's Guide there too. Rust is the thing...front control arm mounting points, rear trailing arm mounts, steering box and idler mounts on the frame rails...that sort of thing in addition to the usual floors and rockers. If it's a true '74 it will have painfully unique bumpers that are nigh impossible to find if you care about originality. If you have specific questions after you see it zap me an email and I'll help you out. I've only owned a dozen or so of those things.

Did anybody mention that you should check carefully for rust?

IIRC, those are not interference motors.

If the body is too rusty, the drive train might make a nice transplant.

worst part of the 74.. there are TWO versions of those painfully hard to find bumpers.. the 48 state and the Calfornia/maryland bumpers that have porsche 914/spitfire style rubber blocks on them.

Transmissions can also be weak. Fiat used springs to hold the car in gear instead of springs to help you get out of gear..

Syncros can be weak

Also worry about the electrics. Most problems can be traced to bad grounds

I had one back in the day. The only consisent problem I had was with moisture in the distribitor cap, and ignition point corosion. Used to set the points with a matchbook cover. Carry starter fluid, and maybe a fire extinquiisher.

Also, the seating position is positively mad. It will build up your upper legs, though.

There was a control on the wooden dashboard that was described in the owner's manual as the (get ready for this)

Ideogram illumination intensity adjustment potentiometer.

It dims the dashboard lights.

The '74 was the last year of the chrome bumpers before they went to the sidewalk monstrosities. Take the front ones off altogether. Pinafarina would understand.

This is what I ended up doing to it. Not my best move.

Jensenman wrote: IIRC, those are not interference motors.

I'm pretty sure they are, actually.

My 124 Sport Coupe seemed to always collect other cars. I swear, everytime i drove it someone hit me. REALLY look for rust underneath. As a unibody it is a bitch to fix. GREAT engine though. For a really good time, take off the hood, time it 180 and shoot flames out the carb while tuning around the neighborhood. You will also discover that whomever designed the electrical system was obviously drunk.

All Fiat OHC engines were interference until 1979.

No kidding. I knew the 128 and X1/9 1.3 was interference and the 1.5's weren't, I thought the DOHC motors were non interference. Ya learn something new every day.

nope... the DOHC will definatly see pistons meeting valves if the belt slips.

Definatly replace the timing belt FIRST thing you do before starting. they are only good for about 20,000 miles. This is to be expected as the 124 was the first mass production car to have a rubber belt driving the cams.

You 74 should have the 1800. Aside from the euro 1600 with the dual carbs, the 1800 is the sweetest of the engines. Actually a 132 series (the 1600 was a 125 series engine) it is a short stroke free revving engine that will pull to redline and beyond.. shame the US versions were strangled to a paltry 80some HP.

Do not worry about the handbrake.. they are ALL mediocre. Unlike most rear disc cars, the handbrake works on the caliper instead of a seperate drum. It will hold the car on level and slightly unlevel ground, but it will not lock the car when on a roll.

Car should also have TWO dimmers for the interior. The round one next to the windsheild wiper two speed switch (yes, the wipers are activated by the lever on the column, but the high/low is a seperate switch) controls the gages.. while the square plastic one above it controls the centre console (lit by a single lamp and fibreoptics btw)

High beams are on a seperate stalk behind the turnsignals, pull it down ( or up, I forget) to activate them.

Yes, the driving position is the classic "italian ape" style with the wheel too far away (and at a bus like angle) with the pedals slightly too close.

Also check the rear trailing links (there are 4 plus a panhard rod) for kinks. Too many got jacked up on them and bent the thin wall steel. If bent they will eventually tear and break. Cheap and easy to replace though.

Look for excessive camber on the front wheels. Back in the 90s a BIG batch of bad ball joints came into the states. I happened to get three sets and all lasted no longer than 5000 miles before breaking. Excessive negative camber is your sign things are bad.

Also check the oilpan for dents. It sits lower and forward of the crossmember.. you run over anything on the road, it will take the blow and probably break off the oilpump pickup. The engine will continue to run as long as you keep the oil level a quart high.. but best to drop the pan and replace it. You can get guards to protect the pan.

124 engines run LOW oilpressure at idle new. As long as the light is not on and the needle is above zero, you are fine. in 1979 Fiat eleminated the oil pressure gage as too many cars were coming back for "warrenty work" for low oil pressure that was naturally low. Americans were used to high pressures in their domestic steel.

Honestly that is all I can think of right now. A fiat 124 is a beautiful little pininfarina design (Chris Tajarro actually) with an engine designed by the same man who designed the Ferrari v12s (I forget his name right now) And it has a storied rally pedigree.. great little cars. I have owned one or two ever since I was 18 (38 now) and I used to DD one all through college. Mind the rust, keep up on the maintance, and they will bring miles and miles of smiles

Designer at Pinin was Tom Tjaarda, methinks. Same guy that did the Corvette Rondine show car (and it's apparent when you see a picture of it). Aurelio Lampredi did the engine (he's brilliant).

I can vouch for the inteference design with the valves/pistons...Very expensive lesson when I first tried to start my MG Midget Fiat 124 Hybrid. My first attempt at reassembling a DOHC engine!

Brillant engine and tranny. Rust in these cars seems to take place at a whole new dimension than any other car. It is like they were ment to dissolve into the environment after a couple of years...uncanny, and I would hate to try and preserve one even if only driving on sunny days. Perhaps if it were stored in a vacum?

Pete

If you start with a nice shell they aren't hard to preserve. I had one for about 20 years, had it resprayed around the 5 year point and stayed in the garage but for washing and the occasional rainstorm. It never blossomed again. I was pretty liberal with the rustproofing inside the doors and anyplace under the car to try to stem the tide. They are notorious rusters, but Minis rust far worse.

IMHO the biggest problem with 124's is your AADD (automotive attention deficit disorder). There's a picture of John Brown in the dictionary for this.

None the less, there are enough experts here that can get you through it if you can follow through, which I hope you do.

Eric

this is a committed BA/BE car, is the thing. uploading pics tomorrow