Which One is the Better Base Car?

[rjonah]

Hi All,

I am posed with a dilemma. I have 2 124/2000 Spiders.

I have a 1979 and will shortly have a 1981 parts car. I use the term parts car cuz in has been taken apart.

The 1979 is complete the only 2 issues are there is rust. I don't yet know to what extent because of the cover up job that was done...and the fuel lines rusted through and flooded the cab with fuel. The seats are new, the top is new, the rugs were new. 104K miles.

The 1981 has been completely disassembled, rust work done and primed. The drive train is out of the car. The seats, top and rug need to be replaced. So does the front windshield but the rubber is new. The dash is brand new.

It seems like there is more work to be done to the 81 (unless the 79 is a rust bucket). But a lot of work has been done to the 81s body.

So here are my questions:

Does either year have a better build quality that the other?

Is one year more valuable than the other for resale?

If all things are equal, excluding the drive train, which drivetrain would you choose? To be more specific, would you use the fuel injected or the carb engine?

Other than the FI, what are the differences between the 79 and 81?

Given my situation would you build the 79 or the 81?

As members of the Spider community, which do you prefer the 1977 or the 1981 and why?

Or...

Should I be a good steward of the bloodline and sell one and use that money to buy parts for the other? I know the right answer is 'finish them both' but that is not practical at this time.

I know I am being a little lazy presenting this to the forum but you all have seen many of these in real life and have experience on the bloodline from the 60s thru the 80s. I have read books, worked on the Brit cars, and only have 1 Spider and as of tomorrow have 2... Neither of which are running.

Thanks in advance.

Cheers,
RJ

[JohnMc]

I am probably just going to leave you with more questions for you to find out.
In the great state of California we have the California Air Resources Board and must smog cars every 2 years that are 1976 and over.
So here you cannot play around with emissions - and therefore the 1979 and all its smog equipment would have to stay. Do not know about putting in a FI engine of later year - maybe ok here but do not know but certain others would.
So at least here in CA I would rather have the '81 because the FI engine is much easier to deal with IMHO and of course much faster.
Another question to ask is why not scrap the rusty '79 and just get a 124 that is already in good shape? Cost is still very cheap for good cars. You will still have enough work to keep you busy on a good car.
I have already spent $8k myself in various parts and machine shop work (not including the original $2,500 investment) and still have the interior and exterior to do - but now my 1970 is buzzing around the levee roads in Sacramento and I am putting on 500 miles a week and enjoying it.

[fiat50state]

Hello ! I have a 79 spyder 2000. some the comments are right on track. emissions, smog check every 2 yrs. So with that said alot of decision comes down to time and money. Do you do all your own work ? Or send it out to a shop for each and everything. Do both cars actually run ? is one an automatic trans and the other a 5 speed ? In my case the 79 was purchased by me while stationed in Hawaii in 1980-83. I later married and sold the spyder to my brother, He drove it till it quit. then garaged it for 20 yrs. THEN... he gave it back. So my resotation also comes with sentimental value. I think both models have the same frame , so for me i would have to consider the shape of the sheet metal and the condition of the suspension. Next make a list of parts the car must have ( and that depends on if its going to be a daily driver, show car, or your going to flip it ) Then research all the places you can get theos parts, rock auto, vicks, auto ricambi. ebay,Midwest-bayless, in the end you might find you cant afford to do either car. But ...if you need info on the 79, im here to help. Lots of experiance, i have the factory shop manual, the owners manual, chilton and haynes repair manuals and wiring diagrams. You can still find most parts for both cars but they can be $$.......Keep in touch

[Nanonevol]

I don't think one year is more valuable than the other in this case but I have heard that in 1979 Fiat produced the most Spiders.

[joelittel]

My vote is to build up the one with the least rust, which sounds like the later model year car. I’d also put the fuel injection on it if it were mine.

The L-Jet is really simple to troubleshoot and easy to maintain. This link is focused on an Alfa but the L Jet information still applies.
http://www.hiperformancestore.com/ljetspider.htm

These cars are surprisingly easy to assemble/disassembled so combine the best parts from both and make a really nice one.

[TX82FIAT]

+1 on build up the one with the least rust (the 81). Also, depending on what type of driving you will be doing and where. The basic L jet fuel injection is much more versatile and requires less maintenance than the carb. Don't get me wrong, I love carb cars. But the 79 has a lot of emissions stuff that is less complicated on the 81. If you are going to have the car for the next 20 years then build the 81. If not, the 79 would be easier.

[basso]

Hello rjonah,
both years have the same build quality. in my opinion Fiat (pininfarina) never changed the build quality.
but due cost optimation the materials like the metalsheets had to be cheaper...

In my opinion it is better not to mix the cars, and i personally prefer the Fuel injected spiders.

Your question wich to choose is not easy to be answered, it depens on Your skills and of course the time You plan to do the job.
I started my journey by zero ( the only thing i had ever done to a car was to change summer and winter tires ) now 5 1/2 years later i am able to do every necessary job on my Spider wich will save me a lot of money in future... the restauration its self become my hobby

If You like to have a short overview of what i did, take a look at my restauration thread in this forum

There are several ways to fix rust and some of them wont last long but are still state of the art ( i.e. overing rusty areas with a sheet of metal ).

If You do not know who has done the metalwork ( or have an photo documentation ) i would say
take the rusty one and weld it to a masterpice