ZinMaster, I have a dilemma about a sports car. You seem to be the resident expert hereabouts, so I thought I would direct this question to you, but am looking for helpful advice from everyone, really, who has any ideas on this subject.
Someone wants to give me a 1979 Fiat Spyder 2000 convertible, silver with red leather interior, stick shift!
It has been lovingly maintained, garaged, etc. The top and the interior are in really good condition--there's one small worn place on the driver's seat that would not be expensive to have fixed. The rest of the interior is in basically new condition. No dents, no accidents, recently repainted the original color, a really pretty car. Excellent mechanical condition--it needs a tune-up. It's basically very close to being totally cherry, EXCEPT . . . there is some problem that will cost about $1000 to fix where the engine is no longer being held in place because of a broken axle or a problem with the motor mount or something--I can get the details but have not yet.
I'm also curious about the resale value of one of these, in immaculate condition. I looked in the paper and there is a very wide range, depending what's wrong with the car, from about $1200 to $3200. I will be putting money into the car, so it has to make sense financially if I ever need to sell it. Does anyone know? Will it become more valuable as it ages?
I almost bought a new Spyder in college because I think they are really beautiful cars, and are much more practical than a lot of sports cars because they hold four people. I like old cars a lot better than new ones. However, I am wondering about how mechanically sound this model/year is--did it have any particular weaknesses that would keep it in the shop a lot? Is this a really tempermental car? Also, although I used to take a lot of risks, now I really like Mercedes and Volvos because they are very safe. Having a child really changed some of my perceptions on this issue, and she would be riding in it (hoping to inherit it when she learns to drive, probably. Ha ha!! She MIGHT get the old Volvo station wagon if she is very lucky).
Would installing a rollbar and getting a hard top make this a reasonably safe car? Or is it a very sweet little death trap? It seems to be pretty long and solid, just awfully low to the ground. It would not have any advantage in an encounter with a truck or something. In San Francisco we whip these little vehicles out and drive them with the tops down on the rare warm, sunny weekend day.
Advice, everyone? I love this car in lots of ways, but in my wiser middle-aged incarnation am trying not to make stupid decisions that will just suck up all my money. |
