1967 Fiat 850 coupe Series 1
Back in about 1976, a woman I was doing some work for noticed my passion (even as an 18 year old) for classic cars. I owned a 1958 VW Beetle at the time. Her advice to me was to search for and buy an early Fiat 850 coupe.
46 years later, in 2022, I have finally followed her advice. I have for decades been enamoured of the timeless design of the Series 1 850 Coupe by Felice Mario Boano and Gian Paolo Boano at Centro Stile Fiat, so it was a joy to find a pretty good example to finally add to my garage. I have always preferred the purity of the original design, which I think was increasingly lost with subsequent model updates and 'improvements'
It is a 1968 model year Series 1, produced in October 1967 at Fiat's new Rivalta plant, so for this page I will denote the car by its production year (1967) rather than its model year (1968).
This car had been owned long term by an enthusiast in Gippsland, Victoria. Fortunately, it had been stored well for most of its life, so the usual rust issues with this model were much less of a problem with this car than I'd feared (or so I thought; see below!). Mechanically it is in great condition, with only the expected brake issues due to the long period the car had been inactive.
Interior is good, other than the front seats which have been very amateurishly retrimmed in the past. I look forward to getting everything back up to top condition before long, as this little gem just begs to be driven!
After spending much of
its life in Gippsland, Victoria (Australia), the Fiat begins its trip to its
new home.
Straight into the workshop for a quick appraisal...
...and meets its new
friends in the garage.
Fast forward to February 2023...
On February 3, 2023, I finally freed up a hoist in my workshop to properly
inspect the coupe.
After many depressing hours, this is the pile of rust, filler, dirt, and
badly made metal work (including a beer can and Coke can) that I chiselled
away from the underneath.
This is what the workshop
floor looked like before being swept up, and the first botched 'repair' that
had been done, and carefully hidden. The following photos show the rest of
the depressing story that unfolded.
So, this car will go to near the rear of the queue. The seller, just like the other classic Fiat I purchased, was dishonest, and I fell for it. I will fix it, properly, but paid much too much for the car, and it will take some years for me to face it and give it the full rotisserie body restoration it will need. In the meantime, it will be carefully stored, and the required parts for restoration gradually purchased as I can afford them.