New Austin Owner

[74ausfiat]

hey everyone!
i just got an amazing deal on a 74 spider.

and since i know just enough to really screw things up i figured id make a formal introduction!
(because ill be asking many, many questions!)

I've worked on old cars before, i had a 71 (71?) baby blue chevy luv. well. that was mostly me holding various tools for my friend. so "worked on" may be a bit of a stretch. but hey, its a start!!

I've been looking around the forums and thought to myself... these people are in very different income brackets than myself.... but I've had some encouragement from people (esp the person who sold me my car) to just go slow. do one thing at a time, try not to rebuilt the WHOLE car all at once. so hopefully with some hints from you crafty spider owners i can find the best way to make over this awesome little machine.

(i mean headlight gaskets at 45 bucks a pair?! yikes!)

i love old cars for their styling. i could see myself in 20 years driving this 74. can't say that about a civic or corolla!


thats it. time to start posting questions!!!

also,

my name is sam
the end.

[dmwhiteoak]

Hello and welcome Sam. Post some pics of your new ride.

[RRoller123]

WElcome aboard! Post some pictures:

Here is an instruction that I have been developing to help with getting that done:

HOW TO POST PICTURES IN FIATSPIDER.COM

Well that picture-posting thing sure is confusing. Took me forever to figure it out. Here is what I do:

First, you must post your pictures on photobucket.com or one of the similar competing websites. You can't post pics directly from your computer. So set up a free account there first. The instructions here reference photobucket.com.

Then in your FS.com post, look for the "Img" box at the top of the post, #9 from the left in the row of command icons.

Put the cursor where you want the pic to appear in the post (leave a few spaces after text is a good idea) and click the "Img" button/icon above.

Then go to the photobucket.com site (or competitor) and find your pic. Hover the cursor over the pic and a drop down menu will appear. Then click the "Direct Link" or similar button. In Photobucket, it will respond with a "copied" indication.

Go back to your FS.com post and make sure the cursor is EXACTLY in between the 2 Img boxes: [img](cursor%20in%20here)[/img] then right click and hit "paste" and the web link for the pic will show up in between the 2 img boxes. DON'T hit the IMG button a second time. MOVE your cursor out of the IMG info you just created before you hit enter.

Now when you post the post, the pic will be there!

Remember that if you delete the photobucket "master" pic, it will no longer appear in the posting here on FS.com

Also: there is a size limit to the pictures that can be displayed here, I think it is 750 pixels in width, someone correct me if I am wrong. So you may need to resize (typically downsize) the pics so that they fit properly and all of the pic is displayed and not cropped. What I do is really simple: I email the original picture to myself within AOL. AOL will automatically prompt you to see if you want the picture "optimized". Say "yes" and send this new pic to yourself. I then save it with a "small" addendum to the picture name and put this optimized picture up on photobucket. It works every single time like a charm.

[tartan18]

Welcome. I second the advice to take things slowly and learn as you go. When I got my car (a 1975 124) two years ago I decided on a plan for restoration tackling first safety issues such as the braking system then began chasing fluid leaks. I had never even replaced disk brake pads before I got my mar. Then I moved on to replacing all seals and gaskets in the engine while replacing the timing belt, water pump and tensioner. Along the way I researched parts availability and prices from the various Fiat parts vendors. There are also a lot of used parts that are very serviceable that can be found on this Forum from other great folks doing the same thing on their cars. Because of the age of our cars and the absence of local mechanics who are willing to work on them I've learned how to be my own mechanic and my wrench turning skills have improved over time. While I am now just an "advanced novice" my confidence level is slowly increasing. So .... make a plan, take it easy and enjoy the challenges that come along. A neat side benefit is that I am now on a first name basis with my UPS driver

[74ausfiat]

Thanks for the welcome everyone!
I am pretty excited about the project, I was really lucky in that a lot of the mechanical stuffs was already taken care of. Heck the engine was even rebuilt 6k miles ago!!!

So a lot of the work will be making it pretty. Which is super satisfying.

I'll post some pics, but I made this post at 4 am so cool those jets guys!

Haha I kid I kid.

[ga.spyder]

Welcome to the forum.So...if you live in Austin can we all stay at your house for the U.S. Grand Prix?? We will be glad to work on your car for you!!

[dmwhiteoak]

I will second that one Craig. I can even bring a few parts. 

[74ausfiat]

Welcome to the forum.So...if you live in Austin can we all stay at your house for the U.S. Grand Prix?? We will be glad to work on your car for you!!

actually.. sure! I've got a spare bedroom if someone really is interested. i don't live super close to the action but austin really isn't that big. maybe 20 minutes away? with traffic?


honestly the best part about austin.. i live close enough that i get one day shipping from auto ricambi!

score!!!!

[74ausfiat]

here you go

[ga.spyder]

Very nice,solid looking car.Congrats and good luck!!

[mdrburchette]

Nice looking car, Sam!
Hey, don't worry about your restoration taking years. I've been working on mine for 15 years and there are still things that need to be done. Many of us are blue collar workers that can only spare a little here and there and learn to work on our cars to save money. You're in good company no matter what income bracket you're from!
Try posting some of your needs in the parts wanted section. You'd be suprised at what people have stashed that are willing to sell cheap.

Good luck and Welcome!

[ga.spyder]

Ditto what Denise said.Most of us own these cars because they are such a bargain in the sports car market.I am sure there are some wealthy owners here,but I would venture to say that most of us scrimp and save to keep these cars in running order.The fact that they are pretty easy to work on helps...

[74ausfiat]

thanks for the warm welcome guys!
I've changed my mindset from "ok i need to get x, w, z done."
to
" huh i wonder what this will do" or "i wonder what this will look like"

so i had a great time doing this!

(slow going but, hey. learning curv )




need to figure out how to make the leather around the toggle switch look "finished" ideas are more than welcome (also posted in the restoration forum )

again, thanks everybody!