Rusty But Trusty

If you were setting up an Italian garage, circa 1964, I think a Fiat 1100 would look pretty neat parked next to something less practical – like, say, a 1964 Alfa Giulia Sprint GT. While retaining a bit of the charm of older Italian sedans, it’s become a bit more angular, keeping up with more modern designs like the aforementioned Alfa. This particular car is available on craigslist in Parker, CO near Denver for $1800. With only 39,000 miles – admittedly unverified – and in running condition, this car shouldn’t need much to run the next California Melee in comfort, with plenty of trunk space under its boxy rear for tools and parts.

Here’s the right hand view. Seller says there’s a dent in the fender (as well as a couple on the roof, plus a crack in the windshield), but it’s not readily visible in this photo. With any luck, it can be pushed out. You can see the paint’s seen better days, but on a car like this you might just focus on shining up what’s there until you sell or decide to get it redone.

Front looks pretty straight. The hood looks like it’s open, and the bumper seems to have done its job at some point over the last 45 years, but everything’s generally clean compared to others on the market. Dark blue is a handsome color that makes this sedan appear more formal and dignified than the yellow example featured earlier.

Even with torn seats, this interior would look better than with these loose-fitting, red plush seat covers. That said, new dark red vinyl upholstery would look great in this car, especially if done in the correct pattern, without breaking the bank. If you wanted to go fancy, I’d guess they originally used a half-vinyl, half-cloth (with some wacky pattern) solution for the seating.

Finally, a shot of the left side. On this side, you can also see how straight and complete this car is. While these cars are no power monsters, like even the simplest Italian cars I’d wager they’re made to be driven hard. Since they were very prolific in Italy, and still serve as the basis for countless etceterini, parts should be easy to come by too. While $1800 might be a bit optimistic for this car, it’s definitely worth a look. Driven one? Let me know what you think in the comments.

Tags: 1100, Feature, Fiat, italian, under $2000

This entry was posted on September 18, 2009 at 4:01 pm and is filed under Feature. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.