1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

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texanbrit
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1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by texanbrit » Mon Jun 01, 2020 9:50 pm

In the latest round of "but you have all of these unfinished projects....what are you thinking?!?!?"

I've acquired a real project, one that might keep me busy for a long time. It'll be a while until I can get my hands on it and get started, but here are some initial shots.
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2013 Abarth 500c (NGen Turbo'd) - Isabella
2012 500 Pop (broken, engine rebuild on hold) - Popabella
2014 500L (Daily workhorse) - The Hulk
2013 Abarth 500 (broken engine, current project) - Abby

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MadFiat
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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by MadFiat » Mon Jun 01, 2020 10:24 pm

coffin dance.jpg
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2015 Rosso Abarth 5MT - MAD FIAT - EC Phase 2 + Supporting Mods
2015 Granito Lucente 500T 6AT - Projecto Estupido
2017 Fiat 124 Spider 6MT - Another one???

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texanbrit
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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by texanbrit » Tue Jun 02, 2020 7:41 am

lol
2013 Abarth 500c (NGen Turbo'd) - Isabella
2012 500 Pop (broken, engine rebuild on hold) - Popabella
2014 500L (Daily workhorse) - The Hulk
2013 Abarth 500 (broken engine, current project) - Abby

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texanbrit
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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by texanbrit » Sun Jul 05, 2020 5:37 pm

So it’s arrived in Texas, or most of it. The hood vanished in transit. Thankfully a spare was packed.
Properly Italian, I need a translator for the gauges.
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2013 Abarth 500c (NGen Turbo'd) - Isabella
2012 500 Pop (broken, engine rebuild on hold) - Popabella
2014 500L (Daily workhorse) - The Hulk
2013 Abarth 500 (broken engine, current project) - Abby

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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by sportfan » Sun Jul 05, 2020 7:31 pm

In the early 70's several guys in the sportscar club I was a member of , in Va. had 850's. They spent about the same amount of time working on them as driving them. I wish you luck.

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MadFiat
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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by MadFiat » Sat Jul 11, 2020 11:35 pm

As soon as I finish my latest repair I need to see your disaster.
2015 Rosso Abarth 5MT - MAD FIAT - EC Phase 2 + Supporting Mods
2015 Granito Lucente 500T 6AT - Projecto Estupido
2017 Fiat 124 Spider 6MT - Another one???

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texanbrit
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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by texanbrit » Mon Jul 13, 2020 1:01 pm

sportfan wrote: Sun Jul 05, 2020 7:31 pm In the early 70's several guys in the sportscar club I was a member of , in Va. had 850's. They spent about the same amount of time working on them as driving them. I wish you luck.
I can see why that is. I got hold of the owner's book online and the maintenance tasks are extensive. Even when it's running well there seems to be stuff to do. This is definitely a little sports car that thinks it's an Italian exotic.
2013 Abarth 500c (NGen Turbo'd) - Isabella
2012 500 Pop (broken, engine rebuild on hold) - Popabella
2014 500L (Daily workhorse) - The Hulk
2013 Abarth 500 (broken engine, current project) - Abby

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texanbrit
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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by texanbrit » Mon Jul 13, 2020 1:50 pm

So I'd made a decision to park this car up until I've completed the existing projects that I'm behind on, and until the weather in Texas was more reasonable.

That said I have been poking around to see what the future might hold.

The first thing I noticed is the engine is tiny. It also has stuff that I don't understand, I guess I'll have to learn what was going on in 1970 when the car was built.
tiny engine
tiny engine
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My eyes were also drawn to some numbers written under the trunk lid (is that the correct name for a rear engined car, rear hood?). Those look a bit like compression numbers, so that suggests some internal issues. I was planning to dissemble the engine anyway, but still....
compression?
compression?
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I started pulling out the interior to clean things up a bit. Discovered that there were some extra ventilation points under the seats.
speed holes
speed holes
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I also test fitted the spare hood (frunk?) since the original is somewhere between Vegas and Houston.
new hood
new hood
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It fits well, but now I have some doubts about what color scheme I want. Thankfully I'm probably years from that decision needing to be finalized.

I also found a partial, mangled original FIAT tool kit, so some positive news (clutching at straws here).
Tool kit
Tool kit
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Last edited by texanbrit on Mon Jul 13, 2020 2:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
2013 Abarth 500c (NGen Turbo'd) - Isabella
2012 500 Pop (broken, engine rebuild on hold) - Popabella
2014 500L (Daily workhorse) - The Hulk
2013 Abarth 500 (broken engine, current project) - Abby

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MadFiat
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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by MadFiat » Tue Jul 14, 2020 4:33 pm

After I finish my project, would you like me to drop my engine hoist off at your place?
2015 Rosso Abarth 5MT - MAD FIAT - EC Phase 2 + Supporting Mods
2015 Granito Lucente 500T 6AT - Projecto Estupido
2017 Fiat 124 Spider 6MT - Another one???

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texanbrit
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Joined: Wed Sep 19, 2018 11:01 pm
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Re: 1971 Fiat 850 Sport Spider - Unnamed

Post by texanbrit » Wed Jul 15, 2020 8:48 am

MadFiat wrote: Tue Jul 14, 2020 4:33 pm After I finish my project, would you like me to drop my engine hoist off at your place?
That would probably be smart, although the engine weighs less than 50lbs.
2013 Abarth 500c (NGen Turbo'd) - Isabella
2012 500 Pop (broken, engine rebuild on hold) - Popabella
2014 500L (Daily workhorse) - The Hulk
2013 Abarth 500 (broken engine, current project) - Abby

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