Upper Middle Petrol Head:

I was going to open November, 2019's, Classics by the Beach post with the extremely tidy Fiat 124 AC coupe that follows on from the image above.  However, I was so taken by this very, very Aussie, very , very , VERY  1970s' Ford Super Roo decal on the side of a V6 Capri (also featured further down the page) that I had to go with it instead! It is, afterall, Ford Australia's own equivalent of Lancia's Hi Fi the charging elephant but, as an Aussie boy who grew up in the '70s, I reckon it's way cooler!  Ford South Africa's Super Rhino (yes, he really does exist!) is also pretty damned cool but our cheeky marsupial mascot tops the lot of 'em, in my not always so humble opinion! So, despite being second best to a cartoon kangaroo, this Fiat is just lovely.  It's been beautifully rebuilt, featuring all period-appropriate parts and is powered by an 1800 cc motor, five-speed gearbox and diff, all sourced from a later model 124 CC coupe.  The ...

I am genuinely in awe of the ingenuity, skill and time that many members of the X1/9, Italian and broader car communities put into their restorations.  Seeing people refurbish, adapt and engineer parts and panels - often to a higher standard than factory items - blows me away.     As a man of lesser skills, I enjoy doing what I can, generally confining myself to cleaning things up, wire-brushing, rubbing back, painting, plus wrangling electro-spaghetti and fitting the occasional accessory.  If it unbolts, I'll more than likely have a crack at it ;  anything much more complex than that, maybe not so much ... .  This is what was lurking beneath the fluid reservoirs. As the owner of a 41 year old X1/9, I do experience the odd moment of fearful anticipation.  Take, for example, the munted, bubbled sound deadener / weather sealant that greeted me when I went to explore the ominous seepage emanating from one or both of the X's fluid ...