The free X1/9 and what I'm doing with it post

Updste - I technically bought the X from him his son, so I wasn't sure as to the ownership trail until today when I received a package. Inside was the original showroom brochure, sales receipt, delivery receipt, loan receipts, and every single service record on the car from 1977 until today. I love this kind of stuff, it confirmed a number of things:

- The original mileage is correct as indicated (around 70k)
- The car was routinely serviced until 1997 or so
- The cost was $5474.59 which included an AM/FM radio, TTL, and delivery

Very neat. I don't think I've been the 2nd owner of a FIAT, ever, usually the 5th or so. I'll pick the car up from my house in Louisiana in a few weeks and bring it to Atlanta to get it running, then disassemble it to get it over to the paint shop. The "get it running" part is simply to run some tests on the engine and component condition, test the electrical system, etc... in other words, get to know the current state before the big plunge. I also want to go through it very carefully for rust. It seems like a good little car, but there's no avoiding it needs almost every wearable mechanical part!

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By the time you replace the fuel lines, gaskets, tires, etc., It will likely be a $2,500 investment. Body and interior look real good, though, so it's probably worth it. Nice to have the original documentation. What a find!
 
AZDrifter said:
By the time you replace the fuel lines, gaskets, tires, etc., It will likely be a $2,500 investment. Body and interior look real good, though, so it's probably worth it. Nice to have the original documentation. What a find!
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At least. The real bitch here is it is sat for so long some things are simply unrecoverable (clutch master for example) and if I'm going to work on them then everything in the surrounding area is being replaced. Should be fun
 
There is no reason to paint that car. The paint looks great. Other than the seats the interior is good. All that car needs is normal stuff after sitting. Clean the carb, new fuel lines, fuel pump and maybe a new tank....maybe. Dissemble the brake calipers, hone and put back together with new seals. Brake and clutch master, might as well replace, they're cheap. Go back with DOT 5 in the brake and clutch systems. New radiator hoses, flush the rad, new coolant, new tires.......then go drive it.

Under a grand easy to get that car back on the road. That's the exact car I've been looking for for 7 months now. Great body, no rust, great condition overall, just needs some love because it's been sitting. I can't believe you're complaining. I would have given the guy a grand for that car no question.....and you got it for free and you're bitching......and you weren't even close the the first person to express interest in the car, or contact the owner. Somehow you just got lucky.
 
Brad,

Congrats, looks like a great ride and you would not believe how many of those BROWN cars are out there.

If you keep the color and make it POP along with a simple single bar bumper you will have a great looking ride.

If it were mine, I would find some GOLD accents in a pinstripe and possible some touches on the wheels... Gold goes well with a BRONZE... and BRONZE can be easily made with some metallic CLEARS over that base color.

This will make for a beautiful and UNIQUE color combo for a "cruiser" type sports car.

Again, Congratulations~!
 
Not that it matters or anything; Ive always been the guy that stands alone on my love of brown X1/9s. Ive always wated one. Seems everyone else gets em :/ Oh and Id take ladder bumpers or big bumpers over corner bumpers any day of the week! Just not a fan of em!
 
Looking good

Look forward to reading more on your blog
 
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Looks very nice! '79 steel wheels would look nice as would CD30s... Gold of course! JK! I like the silver wheels on the Xs... If you go to 5" or 5.5" wheels you would stress the weak pre '79 wheel bearings. Have you considered replacing hub carriers when you rebuild? Fronts should be the same but I don't know regarding the rears... drive train changed but the outer CV joint might be able to fit both not sure. I had a '75 but it ate timing belts... I think 700 miles to the belt was my best mileage, or is it expressed tanks per belt... I digress. I drove it so little I could not tell if the bearings were weaker.
Regards
 
For goodness sakes, bring that car up to me and I'll give it one of my Friedman signature rattle can flat black paint jobs and then you can use any wheel you want...even gold color.....and it will look stunning.
 
As of today, it pumps fuel. A new fuel pump and a gutting and simplification of the fuel lines and fuel is pumping nicely. I removed the fuel inlet/outlet/gauge thingy and found the sock intact but varnished. A good cleaning and it flows well. This car still had the original (and recalled) aluminum-pressed one-way valve, jammed shut...it found the trash can. I made a fairly detailed diagram of the emission control lines if anyone needs them; given the age of the devices these are doing nothing but blocking the view.

Other things I found: this car is sporting 39 year old factory 2-wire clamps and probably the cooling system hoses as well. Headlamps go down but not up. Instrument lights work but can hardly be seen through the clouded plexiglass.
 
Probably the best thing that ever happened to the X1/9 community is Brad buying one. He will provide meticulous write-ups on how to fix/improve every aspect of the X.
 
carl said:
Probably the best thing that ever happened to the X1/9 community is Brad buying one. He will provide meticulous write-ups on how to fix/improve every aspect of the X.
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I appreciate the compliment. I have to admit this car is exactly what Carl told me it would be, a total opposite of the Spider. I've honestly never had to remove a seat to access a distributor, or been able to pull a car around the garage with a single jack on one fixed point.
 
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