Project 3P, Part 2: Ugliness Is Only Skin Deep (Fiat 128 3P Restoration)

P3P continues to impress, proving not to be nearly as rusty as it outwardly appears to be. So much for inferior Russian steel! (If anyone missed it, here's a link to a piece debunking that particular myth: https://uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com/2021/10/rusty-italians-and-russian-steel-fallacy.html.) Even the nearside sill - rusted through and potentially hiding any amount of further horrors - survived some spirited screwdriver thrusting by my panel man, revealing that the rot had only spread marginally beyond that which was visible on the surface. More on that later on ... .

*Yet to be cleaned!

The Alfa Male generously supplied a very tidy set of 14" Alfa wineglass wheels and 185 / 60 tyres from a 33, which we both think look better on P3P than they did on the donor car. They fill the guards nicely, don't rub on lock, appear to have plenty of upper clearance, and are sure to provide better grip and handling than the old 13" 175 / 70 rubber on steelies did.

Steve and Chris, from Hobart Italian car specialists Fogarty Auto, have got the brakes working again, and are also going to source and fit the last 18" of exhaust. They'll also suss out anything else that needs doing to make the car registrable which, short of fixing the sill (photos below) and inner brace (please see https://uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com/2021/09/project-3p-part-1-when-dumb-sht-works.html), hopefully won't be too much.

It's almost certain that the front and rear windows will come out, prior to painting, just to make sure their surrounds are sound. Whether that's done at the same time as panel man does the sill and brace will be a matter of timing.

In the interim, please enjoy the following pics. Until next time ... .

Probed to within an inch of its rusty life!

The author let loose with an angle grinder.

Mud that's worked its way into the sill.

If this is how Russian steel stands up to being subjected to 43 years' worth of dirt and water, I'm a fan!

Subsequent cleaning-up has failed to reveal any penetrating corrosion in this area.

Coming soon to P3P: Repairing the busted plastic grill with superglue and bog, rust-proofing and probably some trim painting, too. And hopefully no bad surprises!

U M P H

(uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com.au.)

All iPhone images.

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