I've had a weird and wonderful week - weird because I've been working half days from home while my daily commuter car was being 'undeered' by the body shop. Wonderful because I had every afternoon to devote to my Spider.
Part of that time was devoted to mechanical and cosmetic issues such resolving intermittent problems with the rear lights and fixing a tear in the upholstery (see thread Vinyl Seat Repair
http://www.fiatspider.com/f08/viewtopic ... 30&t=11291). But the
best part by far was simply driving her.
As I'd mentioned before this was really the first time in the twenty-two years I've owned this car that everything was 'just so' at once. The only main system that hadn't been completely overhauled was the motor, but following a tune up and a new coil she ran great.
When I'd picked her up several weeks ago, Alex, the proprietor of AVA auto restorations in Dublin NH, had told me I'd have to give her some time and put on some mileage before she'd really run up to her capabilities. That, I suppose, to overcome the effects of sitting without even being started for four years.
Well run her I have. And this week she finally seemed ready for a traditional "Italian Tune Up" - a phrase common in the days of my youth when cars were still hand-cranked (just kidding!). An "Italian Tune Up," for those unfamiliar with the phrase, simply means running a motor hard enough to burn up any deposits in its innards and to free up any recalcitrant parts. And believe me,
that we did!
Not far from my home (indeed it is a large part of
why I bought my home) are several great motorsports roads. One can easily drive here for 75 or even 100 miles without a single traffic light and during some parts of the day be able to transverse the roads in a spirited manner without having to make a single over-the-line pass. These roads wind through the Monadnock valley following various rivers and streams, dipping up and down, twisting and turning as do the water ways the road designers followed in their design.
These are not "fast" roads in the top speed sense. Most are marked 45 or 55 and many have tight turns with a posted limit as low as 15MPH. But for spirited driving - the type I prefer - they are excellent. And the Spider was seemingly made for these roads. Approach a turn -- sometimes down hill -- on the brakes, downshift into 2nd, and let her wind. And for an Italian Tune Up that means wind to red line. Woo hoo that's fun!
So that is how I spent most very afternoon this past week. Feeling the Spider's responsive steering wheel in one hand, her smooth-shifting gear lever in the other, my feet working the pedals as they have not in years, double clutching, dancing with the accelerator and the brakes, and listening to the inimitable sound of a freed up Lampredi Twin.
I am becoming convinced that it is for this that I was born.
- - -
BTW, I am planning to lead a ride on some of these very roads on Sunday Sept 26th. This will
not be a road burner, but a quiet and serene one more concerned with observing the scenery than the limits of traction. It is listed on the Events page. There is still room for one or two more Spiders to join the three already considering joining in, along with a Maserati and a lone (but sweet) Miata.
PM me or respond to the thread if you are interested.
-don
