1976 sport spider new member

[vsr]

Just purchased a 76 spider. Stock condition 75k miles. No rust! NO MODS! 50 yo paint!

Owned a 75 spider back in the day. Glad to come back after 35 years!

[rdv]

Good morning
and welcome.. back! That sounds very interesting. Can we get some pics from this rare find?
And from where re you?

Cheers Ralf

[vsr]

Thank you Raif!

I, and the red 76 sport spider, are presently in Western Connecticut near Danbury. USA.

Here she is in my garage.



Not concourse but a nice patina!

Engine bay is still unmodified, except for a bypassed relay,




and interior is better than I would expect for a 50 yo car which hasn't been restored or molested (except for a JVC radio)!. The cloth top was definitely replaced and I can't tell if the seats were reupholstered. Hoping to track down the prior owner to get some history.





Best I can tell the paint is still original. And NO bodywork! There are a few small dings..this unfortunately(or fortunately) is the worst.



Underside is incredibly clean. Good aftermarket 1970's undercoating. There is zero rust underneath. a very small bubble of paint at bottom of front driver fender wheel well















The tires are Michelin MXV circa mid 1980's on original fiat rims.

This I believe may be the original spare from 1976. not sure but no DOT markings.


The other 3 (and a flat in the trunk) are DOT coded "106" and stamped made in west germany which suggests 10th week 1986 or 96 (But remember Germany reunified in 1990!) so I am sticking with 1986. Of course tires are not road worthy

Best I can tell....carburetor needs to be rebuilt... I think the radiator may not be sound, and the suspension looks original with bushings rotted and cracking.

I am tickled pink. I do not plan any big restoration. Just will leave her like this for now. Brakes....suspension ...carb and engine tuneup. I know I have some work ahead of me ! All in the spring. We already have had some snow and there is salt on the roads.

Vinny

[rdv]

Hi Vinny,
sorry, your pics upload doesn't work. Have you tried this way, found in the FAQ:

Can I post images?
Yes, images can be shown in your posts. If the administrator has allowed attachments, you may be able to upload the image to the board. Otherwise, you must link to an image stored on a publicly accessible web server, e.g. http://www.example.com/my-picture.gif. You cannot link to pictures stored on your own PC (unless it is a publicly accessible server) nor images stored behind authentication mechanisms, e.g. hotmail or yahoo mailboxes, password protected sites, etc. To display the image use the BBCode [img] tag.

Still interested in your pics..

Cheers Ralf

[Anbele]

Welcome back Vinny!!! And congrats on your recent purchase…I know for a fact that there is more than someone here that will be more than happy to advise you with any issues you might encounter…and yes please! Try to re-post those pictures. Cheers.

[vsr]

OK. I get it. I think the photos are on my google photos. I did use the IMG inserted link and I could see them in preview. You guys don't have permission!

Lets try this.

Let me know if it works! If so I will load ALL the pics I have. And then I would appreciate any comments. Good bad and ugly!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/NVCMUaCWHw4BWoaN6

[rdv]

Hi Vinny,
Link works, pictures are viewable! Fine, thanks!

I Know your car from the sales ad in august this year! You got the car from New York?
It's really look good and original! Some polisher and your baby is shining as new!

So your car is already listed in the worldwide Spider Register, see here:
https://www.fiatspider.de/register/vehicle/525
(link not static, monthly changing)

I will make an update with the car's new location.

Cheers and good luck with your car! Enjoy it (..next summer)!

[18Fiatsandcounting]

I would appreciate any comments. Good bad and ugly!

Nice looking car! A few thoughts:

1. If I'm a reading your paint code number correctly, 152 was known for spiders as "Vivid Red". It is similar to the color on my '69 and '71 spiders, paint code 120.

2. You have the lower engine splash shield installed on your car, and most of the time, this is missing. I did some experiments and found that having this shield in place does help keep the engine cooler. Not much of an effect below 40 mph or so, but above that, it drops the temperature by 5 or 10 degrees. It has something to do with how the air flows through the radiator.

3. Looks like you might have a coolant leak near the filler neck on the radiator. Could be a bad radiator cap, leaking overflow tube connection, or a crack in the filler neck (which can be re-welded).

-Bryan

[MMRMVA]

Continuing with the small world theme here with new members, I joined earlier this month, from Richmond VA, where the founder of this site is located (I did not know that) and then you joined from Danbury, CT...which is where I grew up. You have landed in a great spot, everyone here is so helpful!

Cheers!

[vsr]

Yes Raif I did get the car from a reseller in College Point Queens, NYC. Initially I thought.. a spider in college pont??? But the photos looked intriguing as did the presence of the engine splash shield as Bryan noted! I plan to keep the original steel wheels and hubcaps !

http://www.meritcars.com is who listed it

Since I live locally ~ 1 hour drive, and grew up in the Bronx, my wife, whom I met just after I bought a 75 spider, lived in Queens near College Point. Another small world circle brought up by @MMRMVA!. Thus I did have the opportunity to physically look at the car before purchase.

@18fiatsandcounting...and I was impressed by the splashshield, and completely rustfree underside. I also suspect the exhaust is original....undercoating still on the rear muffler. Original wheels on a nid 70's spider?????

Yes the paint is Rosso vivo (vivid red) and best I can tell not repainted. There is a small bubble of paint on the left front fender otherwise a good coat of polishing compound and wax and she is good to go.

The engine bay, except for a relay bypass, and the cap missing on the windshield washer bag looks untouched. J

In addition to the coolant on the radiator, I also suspect a seam crack, I think a new radiator is in order, one front caliper is frozen or at least doesn't fully release, and the carb needs to be rebuilt. It runs but not smoothly, could be old gasoline. I am thinking of a 34 adf carb as an upgrade replacement keeping the original aircover!

The car was actually last titled in New Jersey. I have the prior owner's name and address from the title. I will reach out to him and see if he can fill me in on the cars story...prior owners...any history...etc..

Suspension, brakes, and steering links will be my first project. There is some clunking and the steering box may be dry.

I also think I scored another barn find! A Pininfarina original hardtop sitting in a garage for 40 years! I just picked it up outside Philly today. Fellow bought a used 1974 spider in 1982, red, did some bodywork to correct rust...2 months later collided with a Cadillac and totaled the fiat. Top obviously wasnt on the car when he totaled it but it sat in his parent's garage until now. You can see some red spray on the top or bondo sanding dust. I am not sure yet.

The vinyl is black and the glass is clear under all that dust. The underliner is the original linear tan vinyl. It has separated, or more correctly the foam backing has disintegrated, from the top. I will reattach it

https://photos.app.goo.gl/tqeRMgG571ysJePk9

Anyway, thanks all for looking. Happy to be on this forum and I will keep everyone in the loop as I get the car up and running.

Vinny