Skip to main content

Series 2 Fiat X1/9

 

The red 1983 Series 2 X1/9 on the right has an interesting history and is a little less standard than it may first appear to be.  According to its current owner, it's an ex-Launceston car that was written-off in a front-end bingle only a short time after it was sold new.  It was then bought by a well known Hobart-based Fiat aficionado, who had plans to turn it into a rally car, but ended up rebuilding it for road use.


Although the car looks quite stock, the front-end was actually re-engineered with an entirely new space frame.  All the forward panels were repaired and a new bumper was added, following the Series 1-style, but covering the full width of the nose.  A cut-down Commodore radiator was also fitted.  However, everything aft of the front windscreen remains standard, even retaining the original duco.  


As a Series 2, it came standard with a 1.5 litre motor and a five speed box, both of which remain, having only amassed a paltry 90,000-odd kilometres since new.  However, the engine is now running twin down-draft Webers and a modified cam, giving the car a bit more oomph.  


It certainly is a head-turner with its Rosso Arancio colour scheme and low-slung, wedgy profile.  The 15" Compomotive wheels and low-mounted Cibie Oscar+ driving lights also add to the allure.





U M P H

(uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com.au.)

Thanks to the owner for the info.















Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

EJ or EH Holden? (Up-dated December, 2022)

EJ or the later EH? Several years ago, I posed the question:  Can somebody please explain the difference between an EJ and an EH Holden ute or van?  The response at the time wasn't overwhelming, so I did a bit of Googling and ferreting through my photos and came up with my own rough guide to EJ and EH identification.  Sedans and wagons are easy to tell apart ;  the EH's vertical rectangular tail lights are a dead give-away.  However, the workhorse versions of both models share the rear-end treatment of the earlier EJ, making it harder to identify one from the other.    No super obvious hints here. Or here ...  . It turns out that the main clues are in the placement of the front   H O L D E N   lettering and GMH lion emblems, the style of the radiator grille and the width of the vents in front of the windscreen, with all EJs - sedans, wagons, utes and vans - having one combination and the EH line-up having their own . So what exactly are those diffe
9 comments
Read more

Vick Auto Prima Fiat X1/9 Brakes: An Owner’s Assessment

At the end of 2022, I fitted a set of Vick Autosport Prima front brakes to my mildly worked 1.5 litre Series 1 Fiat X1/9 . I was fortunate, having picked them up at a very, very reasonable price, brand new but surplus to the needs of a fellow X1/9 Australia member who had imported them from the US. The kit included: New single pot callipers , new vented rotors (standard X1/9 front rotors are smaller, non-vented items), DOT approved stainless steel brake hoses, and all the necessary mounting hardware. They are a value proposition, being particularly well priced compared to other manufacturers’ packages - even at RRP - with everyone I’ve spoken to saying they’re made to a high standard, too. Here's a link to a piece that I wrote about them at that time, including some costings: https://uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com/2022/11/the-x19-gets-prima-brake-upgrade.html . Initial Assessment: I was a little underwhelmed by the brakes' performance, finding that although they had a tiny
Post a Comment
Read more

Random # 301: Nanna-Spec KE36 Corolla

  Once upon a time - six or seven years ago, actually - there was a lovely pale yellow GC Galant station wagon getting around Hobart.  It was totally nanna-spec; its paint was umarked, the chrome work and hubcaps were immaculate, and its very original interior was pristine. Then someone stuck feathers in its dashboard.  Next, the windows were adorned with Tibetan prayer flags.  And a hubcap went missing.  And the the rear bumper was pushed in, mangling the bodywork behind it.  And a mudguard got dented.  And rust set in.   I fear for this sweet, innocent KE36 Corolla.  Somebody please save it before it's too late.  Nanna needs you to do it. U M P H (uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com.au.) Photos by GlamRock.
Post a Comment
Read more