Thinking about buying an '82 - Advice and thoughts welcome

[Burningmustard]

I hope to be looking at a 1982 Spider on Craiglist this Saturday, as long as it doesn't sell before then. Listed at $2,995. I really didn't want to go over $2,500.

I have found lots of information on things to look for, but I would appreciate any additional thoughts on this car. This would be my first Spider, but my parents owned a couple back in the 70's before, and around the time I was born.

Here is what the ad says. Please let me know what you think, and what would you would consider to be a fair price.

1982 Fiat Spider 2000 with only 110K miles. Dark metallic green with tan top & interior. 2 liter, fuel injected, DOHC engine, 5 speed trans and 4 wheel disc brakes. New timing belt, steering idler gear box, front crankshaft and camshaft oil seals, distributor cap, rotor, & plug wires. Fresh oil change & coolant. Rebuilt differential, less than 5K on tires. Interior and top are fair. Body is rust free, but lightly dimpled from hail - it's only noticeable close up. Drive train and suspension are in very good condition - it runs and drives great and it's lots of fun. Priced well below normal matket value at $2995 OBO









Thanks for all help.

[So Cal Mark]

nice looking car in the pix, but a lightly dimpled body will result in about $4k for paint and body work. My experience has been that a "fair" top needs to be replaced

[Burningmustard]

Yes, the hail damage is a wildcard. I guess it just depends on how much it bothers me. I think that is the reason the car is selling for a little less than others. At least what I think is a fair price range.

Any comments on the mechanical work that the seller says have been completed. Do these comments strike anyone as a big plus, or just standard repairs?

I read through the buying a spider .pdf that is on the forum, and it was quite helpful.

As for the top, I assumed the same thing. Interior and top are things I would enjoy working on.

If all goes well, I will make an offer on Saturday, and look forward to joining the club.

Zach

[So Cal Mark]

I'd say those repairs are part of routine maintenance

[rlux4]

That's about what I paid for mine 2-1/2 years ago. The difference is mine was great, body-wise, but needed a tranny rebuild. I had Jon Logan at Midwest 124 do the rebuild for around $1200, and I never felt I paid too much for what is now an excellent car.
The one you're looking at seems to be a very nice one. And hey, it's an 82. That right there is a big plus.
Ron

[Burningmustard]

Well...I bought it. More later, got to go drive.

[So Cal Mark]

congrats! We'll be anxious to hear about the drive

[rlux4]

Woohoo! Another 82 owner amonst the pack.
Congratulations.
Hope you're having a great drive.
Ron

[kristoj]

Congrats on the purchase. Can't wait for an update.

[Burningmustard]

Well, I have put over 100 miles on her the last two days, pretty powerful little car. Upper 90's here in KC, and the car did great, even when stuck in construction on the highway. Temp got just a little over halfway at the extreme. Electric fan did run one time after I turned the car off, but shut off automatically.

The car has no radio, piece of metal covering the opening. I know some prefer to just listen to the car, but I think I want the option, so I will be installing some sort of stereo. I noticed there are what appear to be decent speakers in the doors, so hopefully most of the wires are back there.

Car has Limited Edition badges on truck and hood. How can I tell if it is a true limited edition. I thought I read I could tell by the dash. It has a black dash, that appears to be fairly well padded.

Working clock, which after reading this site, appears to be brag-able. But it is a little cloudy...

[rlux4]

The Limited Edition spiders were all made with a unique color scheme. The body was "champagne", the dash and top part of the door panels were dark brown, and they have an identifying badge on the glove box door with the number it was, there were 1000 made. There are a couple of people who are keeping a registry of the ones that have been identified and I think they have about 300 of them on a list. They were made for the 1981 model year only.
You can get a new glass for your clock face from IAP (http://www.international-auto.com/) if i remember the vendor correctly.
I made my own without much trouble. I posted a thread on what I did here:
http://www.fiatspider.com/f08/viewtopic ... ear#p20958
Great news about your drive!
Ron