Fiat Spider vs Triumph Spitfire/GT^

[anothersteveg]

I'm curious, what kind of answers are you getting on the Spitfire forum?

[Tobi]

I got a 2.0 l with a fuel injection. The motor has been redone a little, the exhaust is original except for the eliminated converter and the air box is customized. I think it sounds great and people keep yelling at me to slow down even when I am way below speed limit.
It sounds different than the British cars, it sounds aggressive and much faster and it is

[burgandy81]

My mistake, this is the exhaust of the spitfire, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOR9T56uQKU

That does sound good!!

[Redline]

For me, the British sound is all about what burbles out the back end, whereas the Italian sound (and also the Cosworth BDA) is all about what's happening up front. Here's my 1608 on twin IDFs. The only change is a swap to foam filters. The exhaust is stock.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiQsRVURbIo

The video is only about the sound, mostly just cruising around, but with some WOT at about 0:52. Nothing exciting happens, in case you're looking for Johnny-Fast-Hands.

[toplessexpat]

Just to add into this mix. For me Spider > Spitfire. The looks, the sound etc. I've had my share of British Sports Cars. The MG Midget was - too small , the MGBGT was - agricultural, the Spitfire was - unreliable, the TVR was - simply perfect

It's just a shame that you can't get the TVR Cerbera in the US, something around emission regulations and other things like bumpers etc. Here's a youtube of when they first came out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b1X9Tl_qe4 - there was a 4.5ltr version a bit later on with 420/440bhp depending on configuration and the homoglomoration version with 500bhp

So, the TVRs are - to me - great british sports cars. The Triumph and MG stable - not so much. The great thing about our Spiders is that they're semi-ageless. The looks are good in any era.

Just my 2c of off topic rambling...

Andy

ps. If you want to see a lunatic TVR - google the TVR Speed 12

[BritCars]

Andy, I would agree on the TVR. I chased at TVR 3500 for a while but it was just too expensive.

I want to offer observations on the Spitfire/Spider debate as a long time Spitfire owner and fan. I have owned and driven on a daily basis as Spitfire "4", the first model, and a '78 1500 [from 1988 - 1998]. I've also owned a '72 Spider as a daily driver. All of mine have been in the "well-used" condition upon purchase. My "4" was delightful but only if you like cardboard tunnel covers and fiddling with twin SU's. Oh yes, I can't forget the exciting swing axle suspension either.

A Spitfire 1500 will be very nimble but with a narrow cockpit and rougher ride. While my heater-defroster-fan worked I needed warm clothing during the winters. Unless you have an overdrive, it will cruise at 3500 + rpm on the interstates, nearly 4000 rpm at 70 mph. You will feel more road vibration and engine noise than you will in the Spider.

I had my used one for over 60,000 miles of daily driving. My Spitfire 1500 had the much improved rear end suspension but the double halfshafts also had a shorter working life than I would have liked; one time a broken yoke stranded it in central MA for three days waiting for parts and repair [the parts were easy to source, however] while I returned to ME by bus - ugh! The 1500's engine has a known bearing weakness - mine failed at 75,000 miles] but once rebuilt it proved to be just fine. The water-heated automatic choke made it difficult to start in the cold weather here but it was a fine snow car in the '80's and early 90's. The distributor key broke and stranded me; once the electronic ignition failed so I installed a distributor from an MGB and never had ignition trouble again. I had been told that the 1500's transmission had know weaknesses but I never experienced any transmission problems.

My life with my Spider was much closer to my life with my MGB and TR-7 than to my Spitifre[s]. I remember my Spider as being a more relaxed driver at highway speeds and conditions. It was a more comfortable car overall but certainly the Spitfire could be a more nimble car on tight turns on narrow roads. It has less understeeer than my Spider, too.

The GT-6 is another proposition altogether. I'm a big fan of Triumph's wonderful straight six and the GT-6 had greater refinement than the Spitifre, but it shared the same narrow dimensions. Parts availability is a little less than for the Spitfire as there were fewer of them brought into the US market. It's a coupe only with a nifty hatchback rear end, but it's still a smaller car.

Those are my experiences with those British models.

Jeff

[baltobernie]

Also, is there any examples you all can give me of a good sounding spider?

http://s271.photobucket.com/user/baltob ... 0.mp4.html

[Exit98]

There really isn’t a comparison between a Spitfire and a Spider. The Spider is just a better car. It’s got a twin OHC bullet proof motor (7000 rpm), 5 speed, 4 wheel disc brakes and a comfortable interior that accommodates most any size. It’s got the coolest convertible top of its day, one hand get’s it up or down. Try that with the erector set that comes with the Spitfire. We have a bunch of great vendors, a great community, and they made so many of them that parts are easy to find and relatively cheap.

And that’s just what the car mags said back in the early 70’s. The Spider always came out way ahead of the British cars in the comparison tests.

But you know what? We don’t buy old cars rationally. They really don’t make any practical sense. They are slow, noisy and unreliable and leak all over the driveway. A lot of us buy an old car because is connects us with an earlier time in our life. Nostalgia is a very powerful force. If you were smitten by a GT6 back in the day then maybe that’s what you should buy. If you buy a Spider instead will you regret it later on? When it breaks down will you kick it and wish you’d have bought the Spitfire instead?

On the other hand if you get the Spitfire and it pisses you off enough, and you still want the fun of a 60-70’s sports car, maybe then you’ll decide that a Spider is the right choice for you.

[fiatferrari]

Is there any way to kind of, 'delete' the back seat from the spider. It's just a little peeve of mine, that when I think 'sports car', I automatically think 2-seater. I really do prefer 2 seats as opposed to 4 for that classic sports car look. Also, when I look at spiders online, although not so much when I saw one in person, the car looks very high off the ground, something with the height of the car off the wheels, maybe too much of a gap between the tires and top of the wheel well. Something just doesn't look right to me. Has anyone else noticed this/changed this?

[azruss]

many owners change the back seat for a deck. Makes it a very usable space for carrying stuff. The early spiders had a good stance. when bumper height regulations came in, fiat just raised the car to get legal. They didnt make any other changes than spring height and a little heavier to compensate for the 5 mph bumpers. The rest of the suspension remained the same. It also seems that the newer the car, the more they raised the rear. All it takes is a spring swap and you are back to looking and acting like a sports car.

[Tobi]

Is there any way to kind of, 'delete' the back seat from the spider. It's just a little peeve of mine, that when I think 'sports car', I automatically think 2-seater. I really do prefer 2 seats as opposed to 4 for that classic sports car look. Also, when I look at spiders online, although not so much when I saw one in person, the car looks very high off the ground, something with the height of the car off the wheels, maybe too much of a gap between the tires and top of the wheel well. Something just doesn't look right to me. Has anyone else noticed this/changed this?

Why are we all trying to convince this guy that the Fiat is the better car?

[csi2000s]

Exactly Tobi! Why are trying to convince a fish and chip lover to eat pasta. I also had a look at English cars when I was shopping around for a sports car 23 years ago. I settled on the Fiat Spider mainly because of it's modern mechanics compared to the agricultural nature of English cars from the same era. I still have the same car and with subtle upgrades over the years have tuned it into a real drivers car.

[Tobi]

Here is an idea fiatferrari, consider a Lotus super 7 kit car. You can build it yourself the way you like it.
It's small, low, fun to drive, fast, good sound and no back seat.

[johndemar]

My best friend in high school had a 67 Spitfire. 2 things I remember about the car.
1. the top was a PITA to put up or down. 2. the passenger side floor board had a hole in it the size of a basketball.
I was able to watch the road go by without ever thinking the seat I was in could be on the ground at any moment.
Oh to be young and stupid and still live. Point being whether Fiat or Triumph, make sure the car is structurally sound.

[djape1977]

i'd really like to read topic with same name on a brit car forum...