HomePick of the DayPick of the Day: 1972 Fiat 124 Spider classic sports car from...

Pick of the Day: 1972 Fiat 124 Spider classic sports car from Italy

This example is presented in what appears to be exceptional condition

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The first car I ever owned was a 1968 Fiat 124 coupe, so I am a bit biased. I loved that Fiat as it was everything that I could have asked for in an Italian car when I was 16 years old. It had a cool twin-cam Lampredi engine, classic Italian styling and was fun to drive.

I really wanted a 124 Spider, but at 16 I could afford only that used $400 coupe in boxes, assembly not included. Many years later, I had a wonderful 1968 Spider and ended up driving it to Monterey after a sympathetic restoration.

fiat

The Pick of the Day is a 1972 Fiat 124 Spider, which looks to be in exceptional condition, finished in Oriental Yellow (orange) with a black-vinyl interior.  Restoring a car gives one an eye for detail like nothing else in the world, and this one truly looks to be a fine example.

The Alsip, Illinois, dealer advertising the Fiat on Classicars.com provides many excellent pictures with the listing, plus most of the details you might want to know without going to a full inspection report.

The sports car was with its last owner for almost 40 years, the seller says. During that time, its 1,608cc inline-4 engine was ported and polished, and it received Euro-spec dual Weber carbs, a stainless-steel header and Ansa exhaust. An electric cooling fan was added and the brakes were rebuilt, including 4 new brake calipers.

The paint has to have been redone as it looks tremendous, and Fiat paint did not last this long looking this good. The owner also installed a new and correct-pattern vinyl interior, replaced the dash and the wood inserts in the dash, according to the ad.

fiat

The Fiat roadsters were styled by Pininfarina,  and this model was designed by Tom Tjaarda, who also styled many cars for Ferrari, including the 275 GTS. If you see a 275 GTS side-by-side with an early non-hood-bulge 124 Spider, it becomes apparent that Tjaarda simply scaled down the Fiat and created a 5/8-sized Ferrari. The fact that the engine was also designed by former Ferrari engineer Aurelio Lampredi solidifies this idea.

These Fiats are classic Italian cars that are very easy to own. They are roomy for anyone and have what has to be the finest roadster top ever designed.

Not to anger all the Alfa Spider owners and fans out there, but I have owned a number of Alfa spiders as well as a few 124 Spiders, and I honestly feel that the 124 is simply a better car, and less expensive to run.

This car has an asking price of $19,900, which for a Fiat as nice as this one looks to be a pretty fair deal.

To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.

Andy Reid
Andy Reid
Andy Reid's first car, purchased at age 15, was a 1968 Fiat 124 coupe. His second, obtained by spending his college savings fund, was a 1966 Ferrari 330 GT 2+2. Since then, he has owned more than 150 cars—none of them normal or reasonable—as well as numerous classic motorcycles and scooters. A veteran of film, television, advertising and helping to launch a few Internet-based companies, Reid was a columnist for Classic Motorsports magazine for 12 years and has written for several other publications. He is considered an expert in European sports and luxury cars and is a respected concours judge. He lives in Canton, Connecticut.

7 COMMENTS

  1. Yes, great choice. I’ve been wondering about these memories for a while. And the very popular (and more practical) sedan for a while.

    This looks like a real sweetie – and compared to similar say TR6 or MG – well priced.

    It looks to me now more like a Tiger than I recall, although that is set off by the wheel choice.

  2. …oh I worked on a lot of these back in the day; they were wonderful/awful… the interiors were especially short-lived! – also the trim, lenses etc… this one is a rare example indeed. 🙂

  3. Dear sirs:
    I too was a proud owner of a brand new 124 Fiat Spider back in 1970. Presently I own a 1978
    124 Spider since 1993. It’s been an excellent example for me——Fun, exciting to drive and really
    pretty dependable. As an x-Fiat technician, having driven then when brand new, they are comparable to cars costing thousands more in a high-end class by themselves.

    • I completely agree Gary. The Fiat Spiders I have owned have always been more inexpensive and easier to own and service than any of my Alfas. They truly bat way above their page grade to be sure and are fun to drive and stunning looking cars that were well built.

  4. Can’t believe what a rare and beautiful Fiat I had & stupid I didn’t take a picture of it!!! It was told it was a 741/2 what made it it recognizable, it had the twin jumps on hood, chrome bumper with two front verticals with rubber on front the F emblem with a chrome trim rocker panel 1800 with five speed on the oriental yellow ( Orangish red) color. & I can find all those details but not on the same car! Don’t think it was pieced together cuz was told a little old lady on Palm Springs owned it in which is why the car was perfect when I bought it but buy being in 100 + tempiture is why why everything started to fall apart. Including the Moyer witch seazed up on me! But after I pulled & rebuilt the motor buy the help of a friend that was a Fiat mechanic was the most reliable car I ever owned. I never painted it like a dumb young jerk with primer etc but when I finally did it was beautiful! The one day body & paint on Harbor Blvd had it on display cuz it was so awesome. But stupid me never got a picture of it. No wonder the kid I sold it for a measly $1000 when he came over to buy it!

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