Sometimes, I'm never as dumb as when I'm trying to be smart. Love that saying, and it sure applies to some of the dopey stuff I've done in my life. One of the really silly things that hasn't worked out as I imagined it might, is the two plus years of fun and frolic I've had with the little piece of crap (the '69 Fiat 850).
When I decided to have my Barracuda 'restored', I knew, based on what needed to be done, and the extent to which I wanted it repaired, that it would be costly. Heck, the new interior alone was pricey, not to mention all the bodywork and full paint job that I wanted.
But the little 850, I figured, wasn't going to be as bad. First, I had no plans to bring it up to the same level of repair as I had done with the Barracuda. I figured a cheap Maaco paint job, new seat covers, maybe new floor mats, you know, simple stuff. It's a tiny car, how much could it be?
Well, I still haven't figured that out, because as I've found, just keeping the damn thing running has cost a lot more than I ever thought it would. For example:
Had an issue with the car stalling and refusing to restart after it'd been driven a while. Finally figured out it was 40+ years of gunk, rust, and corrosion in the little 6 gallon gas tank. Mechanic said the tank was beyond flushing and re-coating, so I had to look for a 'new' one. Now, back in the day, when I had my first 850, a gas tank would probably have been around $100 brand new from the local Fiat dealer. So, imagine my shock when I found out that decent used gas tanks were going for well over $600!
The muffler on the car is not the correct one. It's way too small, the pipe coming out of it is tiny, and I'm convinced that this too small muffler is restricting the exhaust, therefore causing the engine to be 'choked', which is resulting in a loss of power. And since the engine was only rated at 52 hp when it was new, this is an issue. Back in 1973, I bought a brand new set of headers with a dual chrome tip exhaust for about $50 from J.C. Whitney. Again, shock set in when the same set up today was priced at $750 (imported from Italy).
Even simple things, like the balky, cheesy, unreliable window cranks, which used to be about $4.50, are now $50.
Everything has increased in price by a ridiculous amount, it's way worse than parts and repairs on the Barracuda - and at first I couldn't understand why.
And then it hit me. Chrysler must have made, and sold, several million Valiants, Darts, Barracudas, etc., with those old 225 cu. in. slant six engines between 1960 and 1976, when they were finally discontinued. And there are probably a couple hundred thousand still being pushed around the roads; so parts, some at least, are still being made, and are still readily available. Yes, they're a bit more costly than they used to be, but nothing like the Fiat parts.
On the other hand, Fiat sold only about 125,000 850 Spiders in the USA from 1967 to 1973. Not a huge amount, and since most of those cars arrived here pre-rusted from their long journey on ships from Italy, there aren't many left. Resulting in very low demand for parts - most of which haven't been manufactured since 1973. So what you have, is the 'perfect storm' to make keeping these little pieces of crap on the road a very expensive proposition! Now, of course, I've doped this out, but only after making the purchase of the car - which was, obviously, a bit of an impulse purchase. If I'd have given any real logical thought to the potential costs of this fiasco before I bought it.....well, you all can figure out the rest.
But, I didn't, and while the car is currently actually running pretty well (!), my mechanic has already informed me that the rust issue has reared it's ugly head, and the bottom of the car is in pretty bad shape. Which means there's decisions ahead in terms of fixing or dumping. Which would have been a simple call had I not put those expensive parts into the damn thing.
So, I suppose, live and learn is the lesson here; but I live, and never quite seem to learn. At least not where these dopey cars are concerned. The little piece of crap is under the cover for the winter, the new muffler safely inside the car, awaiting installation in the spring. The rust will have to wait, and hopefully nothing will fall off the car before I can get that repaired. And meanwhile, please, don't anyone send me any Ebay auto listings again!
