New member in Phoenix

[sshanky]

Hi everyone...I recently acquired a 1969 Spider and am excited about it! It needs a few things, like a tuneup (it hesitates unless the choke is slightly engaged), a new timing belt, an oil leak fix, a suspension or drivetrain banging when starting from a stop, and a rusty attachment point inside the passenger door where the hinge attaches, making the door shake and move a bit. I'm sure I'll want to ask for a bit of advice on lots of this stuff. I have some car and motorcycle engine experience, but most of my recent learning is on a couple of old Mercedes diesels from the early 80's. Here are a few pics of the car:






Looking forward to getting to know everyone!

[aj81spider]

Nice car. Welcome to the forum from another recent joinee!

[johndemar]

Nice looking car. Not many 69's still around to be enjoyed.
Locally bwilson and azruss are in the valley as well as myself, although none of our cars are in one piece at the moment.

[2ndwind]

Welcome,
Nice car, nice pics. That engine bay looks so uncluttered!

[azruss]

welcome to the neighborhood. good looking car. I see some non-stock mods on the car (69 had a flat hood, heater control levers are off a newer car), so be aware of other non 69 stuff when dealing with the car. The shaking on start up is a drive line issue. If you crawl underneath you will see a carrier bearing that splits to 2 drive shaft sections. this bearing is located in a rubber casing that rots away. may also be symptons of the driveline u-joints going out. also inspect the rubber donut at the front of the driveline for cracks and missing chunks. If you take the driveline apart, keep track of how the 2 pieces align as they were balanced that way. mechanical parts are easily available thru the fiat/alfa vendors and places like this website. phoenix is a big place...where are you located. I'm in peoria

[HuntingtonSpider]

Car looks great, always nice to have another 69 on the site. Your car looks to be the same color that mine started its life as, paint code 120 I believe. Some parts for this year can be difficult to find, but it looks like you wont be needing too much.

[sshanky]

Thanks, everyone. It's running well, leaking oil (more than when I got it) and banging when I start off, but otherwise it's a neat and very compelling car. Everyone comments on it!

I did read some of the Spider history and thought my hood was nonstandard, too. I also notice some strange body work or fender difference from one side to the other near the headlight, different wheels, lots of Abarth badging, etc. I would like to get things in good running order and make sure to fix the stuff I think might result in bigger problems if left alone (like the rusty door hinge attachment point on the passenger side, and the banging with the clutch).

azruss, I live in S. Phoenix. If you would like to take a look at the car sometime, it would be great to hear your thoughts and opinions! Please feel free to send me a private message!

Talk to you all soon!