The value of your Fiat

[jbkurtzer86]

Hi my name is Jordan I live in a small town in Nebraska and was thinking about purchasing my fathers 1980 Fiat spider pinifarina 2000. He bought it a number of years ago and has it sitting in storage. When he bought it the car wouldent start because it lacked a fuel pump and we have never put one in it. I was just wondering about the value of a car that was in good condition outside and in but needs a little mechanical work. We believe the only problem is the fuel pump. I am going to get some pictures of it late tonight or tomorow and will then post them so any estimates would be greatly appreciated.

[fiasco]

Value varies both by the condition of the car, and the area you live in. The easiest way to get a comparison is to search craigslist in you area or nearby and see what other cars are selling for.

-- se

[kilrwail]

I think you shoud convince your Dad that you should pay what Jeff paid his Dad - nada!

http://www.fiatspider.com:16080/f08/vie ... =13&t=5456

[fiasco]

Plus, whatever the value, the cost of getting a Spider that's been sitting in storage for several years (or even a couple years) back to tip top running condition is likely going to be more than it's market value. You should probably just tell your dad that if he'll give it to you, you'll pay the cost of getting it running again. Otherwise you should buy a car that's already running. It'll cost you a little more up front, but you'll come out ahead in the end.

-- se

[mbouse]

i just finished ressurecting a '69 Spitfire to a condition that was comfortable to drive, but definitely wasn't something you'd worry about at the local A&P parking lot. He was far from a beauty. i socked over $2,000 into that project after the initial $500 acquisition cost.

IMO what it is worth to you needs to have the total picture taken into account. What are you willing to pour into in totally to get it back on the road? $500 or $5,000?? Once you have a good idea of what your REAL bottom line is, you can determine what you are willing to give daddy-0.

since the car obviously is worthless to him, evident by the fact that he wasn't even motivate to find a simple fuel pump....I would suggest that you give him no more that what it is worth to him. $400 is the value of a complete parts car in this neck of the woods.

ask him. after all, he hung onto it for you...

[tonyfromjersey]

I'm 4K into my 1200 dollar craigslist find. Probably another 1000 bucks will get it just how I want it. That's your reference point. You'll be surprised at the amount of things it will need. The problem is you just want to get it running and street legal. Then you want to clean it up a bit. Then you want it to run a little better, and look a little nicer and on and on....

Give him 500 bucks if he insists on selling it to you. These are great cars, easy to work on, and fun to drive. Parts are plentiful and you can step through slowly and buy stuff on here, ebay, craigslist, and of course our suppliers. Have fun with it and enjoy the "cool car" compliments from guys driving 80K Mercedes.

[rlux4]

I bought my car from a lady who had stored it in her garage for five years. It was in good shape and after the gas tank and fuel lines were purged, it started and ran fine. I got it home and worked on it a bit and it ran even better. On your Dad's car, if the engine turns over, I'd run a compression test on it. If it is OK there, it shouldn't take too much to get it up to snuff. After that, Tony is dead on, it depends on how much more you want to put into it. I paid $2850 for mine on Ebay knowing it would need a tranny before too long. I've since done that and I've never felt I paid too much for my car.
Ron

[speedracer]

I don't understand guys.

Maybe I'm missing something here, but $500, $400, a freebie, for a car that sounds like it is very good cosmetically and might only have a fuel pump problem? I realise that there are likely a couple of more problems that will be found later, but it certainly doesn't sound like a parts car. I think it could be worth far more than that!

If the car is in decent storage, and you change the fuel pump, compression is good, and she runs good and looks as good as you say, I'd say that car is worth 3-4 grand or better on the market. A spider might not get that much in Nebraska though because of the winters, but I think that car is certainly worth much more than a couple of hundred bucks.

I think the questions you have to ask is, what did your father pay for it and does he want the full value from you?

[pope]

The son is buying his dads car and you want him to pay more! What ever happened to the family deal.

[speedracer]

I was just wondering about the value of a car that was in good condition outside and in but needs a little mechanical work.[/b] We believe the only problem is the fuel pump. I am going to get some pictures of it late tonight or tomorow and will then post them so any estimates would be greatly appreciated.

Pope,

From the OP's statement above, I think he's asking what the fair value of the car is, not what he should give his father.

[pope]

I was thinking in terms of fair value to his dad, because it didnot sound like he was going to turn around and sell it. I could be wrong.

[speedracer]

I could be wrong.

Me to!

I guess we'll find out when the OP shows-up.

[Kevin1]

Maybe you can approach it this way. Go over the car and get some idea what it will take to get it on the road. You already know it needs a fuel pump. If it is carbureted you may need to remove and clean the carburetor. Things that you can assume you will need to do to a Spider that was in storage (typical stuff for most cars) are cleaning out the gas tank and fuel system, new fuel filter, spark plugs, ignition wires, distributor cap, rotor, air filter element, new timing belt and tensioner bearing, and new fan belt. The cooling system should be flushed and refilled with fresh coolant. Brake calipers on our cars can seize up from sitting, you'll at least have to flush and bleed the system. And check the e-brake cable, they have a nasty habit of rusting up. Another thing that may be needed from sitting is a battery, and tires may be dry-rotted.

Those are the things I can think of off the top of my head that typically need attention to get a sitting car that is in otherwise good shape back on the road. Get a feel for what items this car will need, what that might cost, then compare that to what you find others in your part of the country selling for. Go from there to determine a fair price.

Good luck!

[jbkurtzer86]

Well the compresion on all cylinders are all within 15 pounds and there is no visable rust on the outside and only one small spot in the trunk. We have turned it over so we know its not locked up so hopefully within the next few weeks I will get a fuel pump and see what happens. Hope for pics next weekend

[fiasco]

I know he's got access to the car and can do some thorough investigation. However, setting the father/son relationship aside fair value for a car that has sat in storage for an extended time, won't start and the seller "thinks it might be the fuel pump"...even if it does look good, I wouldn't pay 3 or 4 grand for a car that won't start. Add the father/son deal to that, and I'd either say, give him the car and let him spend the money to fix it, or let the dad spend the money to get it running if the son really wants to give him fair value for the car.

-- se