Newbie here

[warrenrhen]

Hi guys I'm not new to Fiats, I have a '12 500 Abarth. However in my old age I'm tryint o consolidate my fleet to what's needed +1. So here's the dealer My wife has a Jeep Cherokee that she only drives 3 miles a week. But I feel I must keep this as the goanywhere do anything vehichle. I have the Abarth that has 24,000 miles in 3.5 years. Reason being I ride 2 wheels as long as weather permits. For example I got a new Vespa the end of May and it has over 6500 miles on already. I have a Scarabeo 500 that is our touring bike with 32,000 miles on it. So My wife doesn't like long trips anymore on 2 wheels. My plan is to sell the Scarabeo and the 500 Abarth and get a convertible for my wife and I to tour with. I want something 25 years old to maybe get vintage plates and insurance. My short list is 2 cars. An older Miata or a 124 spider. I had a Miata already (we went to Texas in it) and it was a great car but just a tad smaller than I'd like to pack all our stuff in. Also the early Miata were 1.6's which had crankshaft problems. So that leaves the 124. I would prefer to have a later one for the Fuel inj plus the possibility of less rust. The thing is I see some guys advertize these saying "I went on a 250 mile trip already with no problems" WHAT? I ride furthher than that on my Vespa 1 day a week. So my question is: are these not reliable enough to jump in and head cross country? Any qualified opinions please. Sorry to use up so much band width

[spiderdan]

jump in and head cross country?

Never done it so I can't comment.
But I can comment that on my 68 (non FI) I have put over 80,000 miles on it since I bought it 14 years ago. I usually put on a little over 6.000 miles a year. A few cross country trips I figure. Maybe I'm lucky, but it's never been towed.
So is the Fiat Spider a dependable car?
IMO YES!

Dear Fiat gods, please don't punish me for that "never been towed" statement.

[So Cal Mark]

if you go through the car, it can be reliable for cross country trips. The cars you're considering are 35-40 years old now, so unless it's been serviced/updated regularly you have some old parts still in use

[Frog2Spider]

Yo Spiderdan,
The problem might not be with the car, but with the driver and passenger!

From my experience of owning 3 Spiders, not one has ever let me down on any trip. However, that said, after 4 hours behind the wheel, ya might be a bit stiff. So might your passenger. So, there's that.

Next issue is the limited room for luggage. I too rode motorcycles for years. Mostly on long trips, so packing has become a 'art form' of sorts. Even so, the Spider is a sub-compact, and motels with a laundry room is always welcome. (And sometimes needed!)

The third consideration is 'if' the Spider was to break down, parts my be a few days away, and someone who would be able to work on it may be further.

But it's all part of the adventure! So start with a well maintained car, and have a blast!

Oh, there is one more thing. Every time you stop, someone is going to fill your ear with questions about the car. But then again, it's all part of the fun.

Enjoy the ride!

[aj81spider]

I've had two Fiats. I loved the 81 (now gone) and have a love hate relationship with my 74. They are the most fun cars I've ever driven. When updated and maintained they are reasonably reliable (OK the 74 is still getting there!). On back roads running up and down the gears from 30-50 they are a joy to drive.

That said - even if you made one bulletproof I would rather hitchhike than drive cross country on the highway in one. The highway experience is fatiguing at best. The engine is wound out at about 4000 RPM, air buffets you from all sides (I'm assuming your top is down - and yes I have a windscreen), and there is minimal storage space for luggage. You are low and largely invisible so you constantly have to worry about SUVs changing lanes on top of you, and unless you upgrade your horns they won't even hear you when you honk. I used to drive mine to work (about 30 miles on the highway) with earplugs, and wouldn't have wanted to go much further than that.

I'm sure others will weigh in and disagree, but in my opinion if you are looking for a car to go long distances on the highway the Spider is not the one.

[DieselSpider]

If I had not picked up the 78 Diesel Spider the Fiat 500 Cabriolet was a serious contender. With the availability of a Lifetime Bumper to Bumper Warranty and being a convertible two door sedan that you could put the power top up or down on at speeds up to 50 (55?) MPH along with having decent highway manners it is an attractive package to me. The full passenger cage makes it a bit safer and quieter on the interstate too. The top also has the ability to be open partially too giving you some options on how open you want things.

Mine, which shares daily driver duties with an Aprilia Sport City 250 (30,000 trouble free miles so far), had to be put on a flatbed once when the starter solenoid gave up the ghost however most other issues have been easily overcome without much fuss or interruption.

Other vehicle is wifes Saturn Vue with the Fiat 5 speed and electrical power steering which in 11 years has also been trouble free aside from the clutch slave cylinder and an errant tire tech forcing the Getrag shifter and popping the cable end of the cross selecter leaving her only 1st and 2nd gear to limp home with.

[DUCeditor]

I love my `77 which I've enjoyed as a Summer car since 1988.

When we were a bit younger and more flexible my wife and I regularly did full day or multi-day trips of several hundred miles. We never were let down and stranded, although I did on several occasions have to resolve some little problem along the way.

But the car was younger then too. Frankly I'd not feel comfortable doing that now, even though she is well cared for and "seems" to be running great.

Even when new Fiats of the 124 era were not Japanese car reliable. Fiat was said to an acronym for "Fix It Again Tony." And while that was a bit of an exaggeration, and to the extent true it was as much because Americans were not used to caring for their cars -- just putting the key in and driving -- none-the-less problems and failures were none to rare.

Miatas are a different story. They are Japanese cars that happen to be little euro-style roadsters. Quite modern, too, in comparison to a 124 Spider whose original design dates to the mid-sixties.

To me that is the frank truth. If one can live with it fine. If not... well there is a new Fiat Spider that should have all the reliability of a Mazda coming out soon. That it will actually be made by Mazda in Japan -- well the importance of that you can again decide for yourself.

In any case, happy Spidering!

-don

[KevAndAndi]

Anytime you take a 35-year-old car on a cross-country trip, you are taking a risk. You significantly reduce the risk the more well-sorted the car is.

A gentleman named Peter Schmidt recently took a long road trip all over Europe in his 124 and posted photos along the way in the Spider Facebook group. He went everywhere, from the Alps to the sea. I believe he said that he didn't have any major problems. But who knows how long it took to get his car into the state of repair necessary to embark on such a trip.

If I were to take a cross-country trip in our '81, I would tow a small trailer filled with tools and spare parts. We have had our car for only a year, and I don't have confidence that the car is up to snuff for long trips. We have not taken it out of the state of NJ. I've found too many maintenance issues that should have been addressed decades ago. (Currently, the drive shaft is being rebuilt, and this winter I will be upgrading the brakes to modern calipers. I will also be replacing suspension components; I believe that most of the rubber bushings are either original or very old.)

Even if a Spider is mechanically as sound as can be, there is still the safety issue, especially on the interstate highways. I've seen too many really ugly accidents, in modern cars with airbags, that resulted in injuries or death. Now, imagine getting in an accident like that in a glorified go-kart. No matter what the mechanical state of our Spider is, we'll minimize our time on the interstates and stick to the back roads as much as possible.

It is safer than a motorcycle, though.

[redcars]

I find my Spider to be my most comfortable car for long trips and it dosn't have cruse control. I m 6'4" and 250#s. I have a wind screen and find it a joy.
I will cruse for hours at 4,000 rpm 80 mph. I like to jeep my milage down to 400 miles per day. I only do one or two trips per year as I don't like long drives in any vehicle. Check collector car insurance and see if it will cover you for the use you what to do before you buy car.

[davery]

In my younger days (and the cars younger days) I would hope in my spider in a second and drive 18-20 hours straight with the top down to Texas or Florida. I have been thinking of making the 1000 mile trek to Florida again, but I am a little hesitant. For one, I'm older and the thought of driving 15 hours without cruise control is something I'm not looking forward to. While I'm pretty sure the car would make it, I'm not so sure about my body.

[DieselSpider]

I work with a number of folks who have not be backing up Mazda reliability claims lately and have had to go through arbitration to get things straightened out under warranty. Their rear drive manual transmission failing and requiring repeated rebuilds at low mileage has been the more common issue. These are guys who have been driving stick for years and have multiple vehicles including older Mazda's however it is only the newer ones that they are having issues with to the point they are considering dropping Mazda from consideration for their next new vehicle.