Death sentance pronounced

[dulcimerbob]

I took my recently aquired 76 Spider into a Fiat/sports car guy to look at the suspension testerday and he said the rust was too extensive to save the car. Shock towers etc. Now I am at a crossroad , I have friend who is a top notch welder and together we can possibly rebuild the damage. The other option is to sell it with the disclosure to the buyer about the damage. The guy I bought it from was not that honest and I was not savvy enough to inspect closer.Caveat emptor. Opinions please.

[BEEK]

shock tower rust is repairable, used or new parts are available. just check the rest of the chassis, and make sure there is no other extensive rust.

[2ndwind]

Bob,
Although these cars are not meant to be a good financial investment, you have to decide how much you want to invest in any particular car. So everything depends on how much you paid for it and have spent on it so far. Figure that into the time and money to fix the rust issues (evaluate that closely). Would it be cheaper just to get another one and use this as a parts car. Or maybe patch this together as a runner until you can get another one in better shape.

[BEEK]

FYI in the late 70's, fiat recalled many spiders due to shock tower rust. we parted out 30 of them in atlanta, had to send the serial number plates and the stamped in area from the firewall support, back to fiat

[dulcimerbob]

Think they'll still take mine?

[SLOSpider]

Yeah safety recalls never expire! I think Ill take mine to my old job over at Chrysler and see what they say.

I know how you feel about finding the rust and not being warned...I did check mine out pretty good just not good enough. Thick undercoating can hide alot! And next time Im taking a screw driver and a hammer with me!

Im going to fix mine mainly because I have already invested time and money to get the engine up to par and there is no other really rust any where in the floorboards, firewall or structural places. Also it a 1975 so there is no smog requirements here in Ca. There is a rusty drivers door and rear fender lips but not too worried about those.

I was considering fixing mine but another member was kind enough to sell me a used set and for the amount of damage I have its probably best. If you have a good welding friend and some metal then its not that big of job to make new support panels.

[dulcimerbob]

Thanks for the replies. The car runs good , drives good so I'm going to make the effort on my own without shops to make the car right. Of course i'll still need this forum . Glad you're here.

[spidernut]

Not to change the subject, but I'm changing the subject. Do you play Appalachian or Hammered Dulcimer? I used to build Appalachian dulcimers and still play on occasion.

[dulcimerbob]

Appalachian dulcimers Check out my site dulcimerbob.com

[Darsella1]

My car's rust issues were also a death sentence. Yeah, I know... buyer beware. The way look at it is - so, you own the car now. It's yours. Period. Now you have to decide where to go from here.

I spent the money to save mine because I love that car. It didn't matter how much it cost vs. how much it was worth. It's amazing to me what they can do to patch up cars (on the car TV shows & magazines) just because of an emotional attachment. They even show some of the oddest restorations in Hemmings Sports Car & Exotics magazine. From GTI's to Datsuns, Volvo's, etc. I think WTH? Then I think... oh yeah.. I'm just as crazy as they are! So I say it's up to you and how much you like the car to save it because you might be the only one who would.

Also, I have two horses- talk about money pits. Each month they are a car payment and that's just in a bunch of food, which consists of dried grass!

[perthling]

I just repaired the shock towers on my 124AF. They were in worse condition than the previous photo, but a mate and I welded them back up over a weekend. The repairs are not pretty, but they should last another 40 years... Down here Spiders aren't that common so it would be worth the effort to repair them - plus they are a lot dearer down here than in the States.

If you have the skills, time and wherewithal, I'd go with the repairs.