no pics yet

I will now recite the story of the Fiat. It all began when my housemate Jon let me drive his Miata, a light, two-seat convertible that was like a E-drop on wheels. It was then that i resigned to look for a fun, cheap car that i could love and wrench through the few warm months of the year.

The search was an easy one; sit back and see what comes my way. There were some misses, for sure, but then i found the red, 1979 fiat spider roadster. It was on E-bay and i watched it not make the reserve and fall into obscurity. Knowing my time had come, I made a move to contact the seller and arrange a viewing. Since it was located in Butt-nowhere michigan in the middle of winter, i could low-ball him. Because he had several vehicles on his property and the Law was coming down on him, he was desperate to sell. The car also included several boxes of spare parts, plus things like extra doors, windshield, tranny, which though i had little interest in, might be useful in recovering some money when it comes time for me to peddle them.

I talked it over with my person Fiat consultant and religious guide, Notorious. Turns out he has the exact same car of the the exact same year. We discussed the nuances of owning such a vehicle and the total package worth of the particular car in question. The consensus was, it was a good deal and would be a fun ride.

I made the seller an offer which turned out to be nearly 20% lower than his desperate E-bay reserve, and then i waited. After some time, he took the bait. (Of course, should the car say, explode, this story shall forever be re-told as "I took the bait") The car was mine... but now what?

Since the recently re-worked transmission had no gear oil in it, it could only be driven for short distances. Also, the brakes were needy. So it would have to be trailer-towed for the 100+ mile trip home. The seller was sounding remorseful on his
decision to go low and was threatening that more prospects were coming by and he would have to take any higher offers. (having conceded mentally this was a good use of money (HA!), and getting used to the idea of the car being mine, i was getting a little nervous about losing it) I told him i'd be there Friday with a trailer and cash, i just didn't realize how hard those are to come-by.

There's a big chunk of the story that involves me spending hours on the phone finding the cheapest way to transport the vehicle, arranging schedules and trying desperately to release the funds from my account and put them into cold-cash form. I wouldn't bother you with details... But i will say, there's a line in the movie Serenity that goes a little something to the effect of " You can know all the math in the 'Verse, but take a boat in the air you don't love, she'll shake you off just as sure as the turning of worlds. Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down, tells ya she's hurtin' 'fore she keens." On the long trip back, housemate Jon and I discussed the adventure on our hand-radios and decided the seller, based on wardrobe and location, must have been a member of the arian nation (well, probably not... but maybe). So in essence, we rescued the Fiat from a racist strong hold, and delivered it into a loving house and a fine garage.

But in the end, the hardest part about this whole experience is the nay-sayers, the nonbelievers and the anti-italian-car clowns; Those who refuse to let the dream live and instead chose to stomp it down with their short, wide feet that almost certainly smell of cabbage. Why, why, WHY! they would cry... If i have to explain it to you in a rust colored picture of oil leaks and top-down excitement, then you'll never understand. They can't taint a wonderful idea that almost certainly cannot fail... I mean what could go wrong now?

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(The Original E-Bay posting... not sure how long it will be up)