I purchased a 1979 Spider on 4/22/12.

As I mentioned in my new member post, I’ve never owned a Fiat, but I’m excited to begin restoring my new purchase.

The car is in pretty rough condition and will need quite a bit of work, but it should be a great project.

My plan is to attempt to document the restoration on this forum and a personal blog. Hopefully this will serve as not only documentation, but will keep my motivation at a high level. Also, I expect I’ll need quite a bit of advice and assistance from all of you during this process.

Since I like posts with photos, expect to see quite a bit of those

Here she is on the trailer during the first night home 4/25/12:



Since the tires were dry-rotted and I could not roll the vehicle around, I needed to get some tires. I took the rims off and picked up some tires at PepBoys

Cornell 185/70 R13’s for $55.99 each:



Here she is with the new rubber before being rolled off the trailer:



On 4/28/12 I rolled her into the garage:



The first thing I did was pop the trunk, there was quite a bit of stuff in there, misc. bumper parts….



I cleared everything out so I could get a look at the gas tank, looks to be in pretty good shape, even the bottom of it only appears to have a very small amount of surface rust.



Next I pulled the hood off to get a good look at the engine:





There was quite a bit of debris on the engine, especially in the top part of the engine where dirt can collect by the plugs. I taped up the openings and took my leaf blower to it, kinda amazing how much dirt and dust flew off… kinda wish I would have done that in the driveway before bringing the car in the garage.

I know the water pump needs to be replaced, so I started the process of taking it off. I ran out of time and didn’t get finished, but here is where I left it.



One problem I kept running into with removing the hoses is that those old school hose clamps were rusted and the heads kept snapping off.



Since I’m going to take the timing belt off and replace it as well, I’ve been reading about that process, doesn’t seem too difficult. Just need to rotate the engine to TDC and mark everything. Probably should order a manual to make sure I don’t miss any steps.

Also, on a different note, I noticed that the drivers door kinda sags just bit.. the door opens and closes ok, but not at smoothly as the passenger door. When I took a closer look, it looks like someone made some repairs to it in the past…



Trying to repair this is not possible, but since it’s on the door, I’m thinking I could probably just get a replacement door…. Probably low on the list of items to fix at the moment.

A few thoughts on the process so far:

- This is going to take a lot of time. I’ve done this before in the past with other vehicles, but I guess at that time I had less commitments in my life. I’m going to come up with a plan to follow so that I can make steady progress.
- I’m going to need some additional tools, mainly all different types of bendable/flexible ratchet extensions and more deep metric sockets. I can already tell that one difficulty of most jobs will be “getting to” the nuts, bolts, or screws of that particular project.
- PB Blaster is my friend

yes get a manual

The long, happy addiction begins..... <{:^)

welcome to "fiatspiderdom" it is a sickness, usually followed by "goingbrokedom" . these cars are in my opinion one of the coolest and underrated cars ever built. granted i have owned on from the time i was 15 till now, over 30 years. i owned a fiat junkyard, a fiat parts and service dealership. so my opinion is a little biased. im no longer in the "fiat business" but i still have 10 fiats and lancias. i have so many projects in mind. just cant have just one.

this forum is a great place for help. there will be many opinions about your build, sift thru them and decide which way you want to go. there is no right way or wrong way, meaning stock or modified. do what you enjoy and your mechanical aptatude will allow. but most of all, enjoy the car.

by looking at the pictures, you have a ways to go to make a concourse car. again that my not be what you are looking for.
dont get discouraged, the great thing is most everything for these cars is available new, and what isnt is available used, at reasonable costs. they are relativly simple to work on, and fun to work on in my opinion.

good luck and happy fiating!

5/1/12 UPDATE

I've finished removing the radiator.

Just ordered new hoses, water pump, and thermostat from Vick Auto. Will be dropping the radiator off at a shop to get pressure tested, flushed, and dipped in a tank to be cleaned. Hoping it passes the test so I don't need to repair or buy a new one. I tested the electric fan and it works fine, just need to clean it up.

Decided to leave the timing belt on for now. Appears to be in good shape and my goal is to just get the engine running, can always replace it this winter when I plan to do some more in depth engine work. Plus I have quite abit of other work before the car is driveable even if the engine runs.

Will post more pics later today.

Don't take a chance on the timing belt. If you don't know how old it is, replace it. Costs about $25. It might look OK, but the damage that can be caused if it lets go is significant.

Hi,

Those wheels were originally silver, with the cloverleaf part black, I think they look pretty neat like that.

If I were you I'd replace the timing belt and its tensioner now that it is accessible. You really can't judge the condition of the belt by looking at it, and you can't check the tensioner without removing the belt. While this engine with the stock pistons is non-interference at the valves, if the T-belt breaks the crank can hit the fuel pump lobe on the auxiliary shaft, which can put a hole in the engine block!

I never let a customer leave with an old timing belt it's not known when it was changed last.

Why is it necessary to replace the tensioner? How does one tell if it must be replaced?

Those wheels were originally silver, with the cloverleaf part black, I think they look pretty neat like that.

Yeah, I noticed that when I pulled the spare tire from the trunk. Think it looks pretty cool as well... haven't seen pictures of any "blacked out" Spiders.... guess the chrome / shiny look is more popular, guess cause its like original..

Thanks for the advice on the timing belt. Went ahead and ordered a new timing belt and tensioner.. Tensioner was much more than the belt, but figured while I'm there... also picked up the alternator belt... Ordered from Auto Ricambi this time around... Ordered them both today.... will see who ships faster :>

While I'm waiting on those, I'm going to remove the fuel tank & lines. Looks like the tank will just need to be cleaned up and painted... sure the lines will need to be replaced..

the only way to tell if the tensioner needs to be replaced is to check it with the timing belt removed. it is as simple as spinning the bearing, if it is smooth and noise free, the bearing is good. i would recomend replacing the timing belt, tensioner, all cam seals and front crank seal while in there. it is a easy job and not too costly, failure of the belt and or tensioner can be catastrophic. the cam seals and front crank seals are old and will leak. it is just false economy not to replace the seals while in there.

BEEK wrote:.... it is a easy job and not too costly,

I agree that it's a good idea to replace the seals, but for the home mechanic without an impact gun it can be a huge PITA to remove the pulleys, and then torque the bolts properly when reinstalling.

I think you all talked me into the seals, plus after closer examination, I see quite a bit of oil build up on the lower part of the engine. Also, finding this post (http://www.fiatspider.com/f08/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=13215) made me feel a little more comfortable about the process.

Update 5/4/12

Good news!, got some parts in the mail today. These are from Auto Ricambi. Props for quick processing and shipping, although I usually prefer UPS to FedEx. Will definately order parts here in the future.



Bad news, found out today that my radiator is shot . Was quoted $325 to repair, will just order a new one .. Was hoping to not have that expense.




Other news, still waiting on the parts from Vick Auto. Estimated delivery date of 5/8 despite the fact I ordered before the Auto Ricambi order.

Also, been using this product with some good results to clean up parts that I'm reusing, especially nuts/bolts.



Here is before and after of water pump pulley. Not too bad, will put some paint on it now.





All for now.

Take a good look at Mark Allison's radiator/fan package. It's pretty substantial and a fairly good price.

courtenay wrote:Take a good look at Mark Allison's radiator/fan package. It's pretty substantial and a fairly good price.

Do you have a link to it? I don't see a radiator package on his website, unless I'm looking at the wrong place. Thanks.