1984 X1/9 Project Intro and Questions

Hello there,

New to the forum and indeed X1/9's so i'd like to introduce you to the car.

Photo's are in my gallery here, i'll be updating it when i can:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/robbiepoolephotography/
(Click on Sets and then the X1/9 folder)

The car was bought by my Grandma in 1989 as the 4th owner change, she drove it on few occasions and the car was put into storage in a garage in 1998 and never touched again for the next 15 years, she gave it to me last christmas and as it's the only car i've known my whole life i want to restore it regardless of condition and have no intention of ever selling it.

Cons:
Sadly in that time rust patches have occured in most places (Arches, boot floor, behind the side vents, brake pipes etc.)
Radiator is in a shocking condition.
The boot became a rats nest.
Paint has light surface rust but will need a respray.
Anything glued on, pin stripes etc needs re-glueing.
Door was left open so needs a full clean inside.

Pro's:
It's a VS edition (or says so on the log book)
1500cc Engine with Genuine 23k miles on the clock.
All the brake calipers seem to have cleaned up fine (New discs and pads)
Red leather interior and steering wheel.
Electric windows
Radio tunes into Classic FM.
Starts and engages all gears other than reverse (Play in the linkage)
Right hand drive.

Questions:
VIN ends in 150787, is this anything special or mean anything?
In the pictures, i'm not sure if the orange sticker means anything?
Any other UK owners? Never seen one of these before.

Thanks in advance.

Welcome Doc...

For a car in your part of the world, it looks to be in fairly good condition.

Do post some close-ups of the things you want to address and my BEST advice is to check with this site FIRST, before you even turn a screwdriver!

Best of luck with your new ride... I love all the other cars in your collection as well!

Welcome!

I love your car...I actually own it's mirror image, lovingly restored to its original condition (with a few performance upgrades) by the folks at Midwest Bayless. Here's a link



With regard to Tony's comments, listen to his wisdom. The folks on the forum are great, and so incredibly helpful. I would check in here before attempting even the most modest of repairs. There is so much experience here that you will undoubtedly save yourself a bunch of time and headaches. That being said, your car looks like a time capsule, so hopefully it hasn't been mucked with too much.

With regard to your questions, Bertone production of the X began with the 1983 model year with VIN 149379. Your car was likely assembled in 1983, as cars assembled in 1984 had a higher two tone belt line. I suspect it was sold and titled in 1984. The red X1/9 sticker was applied to the low belt line two tone cars that were either the Argenti/Grigio or Blanco/Grigio combination. It doesn't signify anything special. The VS (version speciale) cars were only sold in the UK, but other than the VS sticker, they are no different than the similarly appointed cars sold here in the states after import by IAI. Bertone went upscale with the car (leather interiors, plush carpeting, power accessories, color matched targa tops on the Argenti/Grigio cars, a/c standard, etc.). I'm excited for you to get your car cleaned up and running. You can have a great time with it! Cheers, and good luck.

Mike

Doc,

Welcome to Xweb and listen to Papa Tony's advice to ask questions here before you do anything. It will save you time and money.

From your description, it sounds like the car is generally mechanically ok (starts, just a minor issue engaging reverse). It sounds like the major issues are cosmetic and those are addressed a lot more economically than mechanical/electrical problems (generally).

Your pictures look great. Keep us updated with more as you get your X sorted out.

Mike

Hi all,

I have been lurking for a while but saw this post and thought I would share my X1/9 too. I acquired her in July last year and have been tinkering ever since. It only took me 20 years of dreaming about one, don't know why I waited so long!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidsx19/

Wow David, that is such a sweet looking ride...

I'd probably call it a "HER" as well. Too bad you could find a MALE version of the same... they may not be as pretty, but so much easier to deal with!

HA!

Welcome to the dark side!

David,

Tony is all wrong!!! I think your X is loaded with so many problems that I'd suggest shipping it to Southern California so we can deal with the problems and give the X an "extended" evaluation period. Maybe 6-12 months at least. We'll return it to you in excellent condition, however, 20,000 miles or kilometers might have been added to the odometer.:mallet:

Welcome to Xweb.

Mike

Thanks for the very warm welcome guys and the comments, the pictures do flatter her a bit. A bit of rust here and there, mainly in the rear bulkhead and along the sills and door bottoms. Third gear syncro is worn too. I've never worked on a car before but so far done most of the service items and really enjoyed it and learned a lot. The plan is to keep her original and gently renovate.