Looked at an 81 Spider

[jimincalif]

Approx 50K miles, but speedo, temp gauge and oil pressure gauges don't work. Has had recent front suspension work, can see new bushings and steering seemed tight. New exhaust manifold, heat shield is cracked around front bolt hole. Tires look new. Owner says brakes and rotors are new, braking seemed good, no pulling.

No rust seen, some oil leaking around oilpan. Top in good condition, rear window is pretty hazy. Driver's seat frame is bent - reclined more on the right side than left, pretty noticeable and uncomfortable when driving the car. Starts and runs well, shifts easily, does not pop out of gear.

Paint is rough, it was repainted (red, same as original). I don't think it was actually done using a roller, but it looks that way all over and has some sizable paint cracks on trunk lid and hood.

Any idea how much a good quality paint job would run? And fixing the seat and instruments? Paint seems likely the most labor intensive, I think all the existing paint would have to come off to get a good result.

[fiasco]

Good quality paint job is a relative thing. Several hundred dollars will get you a paint job that I would be satisfied with on my non-show-quality, kids walking on the seats, banging the doors on stuff in the garage, daily driver. Count up from there into the several thousands to establish your range.

Or do what Trey (htchevyii) does and paint your own.

-- se

[mdrburchette]

It sounds like you found a decent car. The seatback frame may need welded to repair it. As for the paint, it can be quite expensive. My suggestion is to drive it and make sure you want to keep the car before deciding on how much money you want to sink into a paint job.

[So Cal Mark]

depending what part of the country you're in, a paint job in the $500 range will last 3-5 yrs and look okay from 10 feet if you don't have any body work. Expect to pay $2k for something decent with some repair included and keep going up if the car needs repairs

[sjmst]

I agree with the estimated for the paint jobs, just add this number to the range for a concours job: 5,000-7000 (IN NYC area).

[ga.spyder]

In the North Georgia mountains,a quality paint job will run you about $50(rust-o-leum).A standard job(Krylon) will be a little less.
Craig

[mbouse]

gauges....

1st rule of Fiating, if it is electrical, check the ground connections. then, after you have checked them, check 'em again. most electrical issues revolve around failed ground connections.

that applies to both the oil pressure gauge and the temp gauge. once you have proven those connections, we can discuss the next step....however a solid cure is not too far away, regardless of the issue.

once we know we have good grounds, are we getting a signal? a faulty sender may need to be replaced.

Speedometer/odometer are mechanical connections, back to the transmission via a steel cable inside a plastic covered sheath. could be as simple as a loose connection at either end of the cable, or more common, the tip of the cable at the meter end has snapped off. the cure generally is to 1) ensure that the cable ends are secure or 2) replace the inner cable or 3) replace the cable and sheath. Generally under $30, and an hour of your time, with no special tools required.

in a rare instance, the fault of any of these could be the meter itself. Which, to replace all three, should be under $50 for decent used parts. of course, they can be rebuilt, but at a much higher price than the value of the gauge.

[rlux4]

Mike, you sure sound like you know what you're talking about on the speedometer cable. Had a little experience there, have you?
Ron

[mbouse]

LOL, some.

[fiasco]

Speedo always breaks on these cars when you get to 195 mph. You guys just need to slow down a bit.

[KNOTSANE]

In regards to your paint. If this is not going to be a show car and you have some "hands on" ability, you CAN do it yourself. 95% of a good paint job is in the prep work. You can practice shooting some old panels or a $10.00 hood from the junk yard to get the hang of the gun and how the paint flows. Filling, shaping/sanding is where you want to pay attention to details. Just remember......whatever Putty (or bondo if that's what you'll use) can be blocked and shaped 100 times until you get it the way you want it. You don't have to prime anything until YOU are satisfied with the look. Once you start playing with the fill, you will quickly learn what works and what doesn't. Eg. too much hardner= not good. the right amount of hardener + mixing too much to work with in a couple of minuets= not good. Just play with it. Make sure ANY rust is COMPLETELY remove or it will come back to visit you. When it comes to masking for paint, I like to remove as many non-painted parts as possible. (lights, chrome, etc.......) Do some research and you'll see that you can get a quality paint job by doing it your self for the fraction of the costs of a paint shop. Air compressor (which most of us have in the garage), Gravity fed sprayers (1cheapie for prime and a decent gun (about 100 bucks) for base), and an oil/water seperator (to keep these contaminates from spaying your work) are the basics of what you need. Have fun, go with the flow (no pun intended) and you'll be proud to drive around with YOUR paint job shining in the sun. Good luck

[kuhndg]

I am looking at $4500 "ended up working out a barter after the fact" for my car. I talked to a couple different shops and decided on the higher price because that guy insisted that the paint be totally stripped down to the bare metal to get a quality long lasting paint job. Plus not knowing what the po's have done over the years I will know exactly what I have when I am done.The car is FINALLY going into the shop on Monday for paint. As for my efforts on the project, the car has been stripped of everything inside and out including the engine bay, gas tank ect....

I agree with Denise, we all know we don't see a huge return on our investments in these cars, our reward is the enjoyment of both driving, and working on them, along with a little Fiat comradery. So with that said before you spend a lot of money on a paint job, make sure you love the car.

[sawmkw]

I had my 82 repainted last year. The individual that did it runs a paint booth during the day and did mine on the side in the evenings and weekends. I had new rear wheel well arches welded in, the bottom half of the driver's door replaced, side markers welded shut and a couple of floor pan repairs. The car was taken down to bare metal and that exposed previous damage (braising) that was cut out and welded correctly. I gave him the care completely empty except the dash. No engine, tranny, drive train, or interior. I also gave him a replacement hood as mine was an aftermarket that was flimsy. It took 2 months, cost $3,100 and I had to wait 6 months for him to have the time to do it. I thought it was a bargain and it looks amazing now with its original 899 Smoke Gray Metallic. Picks can be seen at: http://s173.photobucket.com/albums/w65/ ... h%20Paint/. Paint colors for others is at:
http://www.spidercenter.com/colorsheet.html

Now, my driver is probably going to Maaco.

[pope]

Scott, thats a beauty. Great color!

What color interior?

[sawmkw]

Pope, Going back with a tan interior. I had the consoles and door panels redone in leather though. I've only posted a couple of pics... http://s173.photobucket.com/albums/w65/ ... /Interior/ The dash is getting recovered in black but I haven't gotten it back yet.