Hello From Shreveport La!

[dkunce]

Hi, I'm new here. My name is Dustin and I just recently bought a 1974 Spider from a friend of the family in Chicago. I'm hoping to restore this car to the best of my abilities. She needs a good paint job and some special attention to the interior as well as the top, but apart from that the body is in amazing shape! Hardly any rust at all, and all my lines are very straight. I couldn't be happier with it! Right now she doesn't run, but I'm working on fixing that soon!

[ventura ace]

Hello Dustin, and welcome! You should have an interesting and rewarding time working with the 124 spider. After you resolve the problems and get it running, you'll be amazed at the simplicity of the mechanicals of older cars, though I don't mean to take the ingenuity of the design lightly. It was made to be easy to work on and easy to maintain. And if you do that, it will be a fun, reliable car.

Alvon

[dkunce]

Ace right? I believe you may have spoken with my father a few days ago.

I'm absolutely thrilled with this car. I had been driving it to and from work for about month or so now, and I have to say, even though its not at 100% it is still possibly the most fun I've had driving.

[ventura ace]

Dustin,
Yes, I enjoyed comparing notes with your dad over the phone. It sounds like you may have some bent valve stems, since your valves seem to be hung up at about 3/16" gap between the shim and the cam shaft. Unfortunately, that means the head will need to be pulled, and the valves replaced. Take good care with handling the head/cam towers assy when it is off the engine, since there will always be at least 1 valve sticking out the bottom surface of the head, just waiting to be bent. And be aware that the pistons can bump into the open valves if engine is turned when the alignment of the camshafts is not correctly timed with the crankshaft.

Pay close attention to the details, and your head rework will go fine.

Alvon

[dmwhiteoak]

Hello and welcome Dustin. I too am a new owner of a spider and have driven it to and from work for two months now. You are the closest spider owner to me on this forum so if you get in my area ,let me know. It took me a month to get mine to where I thought it would make a mile without a breakdown. It is now a very dependable ride. And fun too!

[CajunMike]

Welcome. There are a few la members around. I'm from Lafayette. My fiat was originally bought from a Shreveport dealer, Wray imports. There may be an ex fiat mechanic in your area if you look around enough. Your car looks like it's in pretty good shape.

[dkunce]

Thank you for the pointers Ace. At this point I'm working on lifting the head, I've had no problem out of the exhaust manifold, with the exception of a bad gasket, but expected that much. I am having some troubles removing the intake manifold. Its somewhat difficult to reach the mountings, but I didn't put a lot of time into this evening due to low light issues. I'll tackle it again Wednesday, and I'll definitely keep my eye on the exposed valves when I lift it out. I'd like to make this mistake only once! HAHA

dmwhiteoak,
Where are you located? It's nice to know theres another Spider close to Shreveport.

[dkunce]

CajunMike,
There is an older German gentleman who works exclusively on import vehicles no more than 25 miles from me. Which is a relief! He at one point, according to my father, specialized in Fiat; having owned several in the past.

Thank you for the compliment, I'm very impressed with the condition as well as how little I was able to pick it up it for. Which initially was a little scary not being able to look at it (aside from pictures), drive it or anything before I bought it.

[ventura ace]

. . . I am having some troubles removing the intake manifold. Its somewhat difficult to reach the mountings, but I didn't put a lot of time into this evening due to low light issues. . . .

You can leave the manifolds on until you get the head out of the car if you like. I've found that to be easier, especially for the intake side.

Alvon

[dkunce]

Sounds like a plan. I'll give that a try. Thanks Alvon. I'll keep you updated on my progress.

[dmwhiteoak]

I'm located 66 miles west of Shreveport. Just the other side of Longview off hwy 80.

[dkunce]

Wow! Thats not too far at all, maybe we'll cross paths one day, I'll make sure to give you a honk if I see you!