A few questions (backfiring, gauges, brakes)

[RJ80]

Hello all,

I just bought a '79 Spider that is in very good general mechanical and cosmetic condition, but has a few problems that need to be attended to sooner rather than later. First is that I seem to get a backfire inbetween most upshifts. I'll shift, let off the gas to grab the next gear, and the car will backfire before the next gear is engaged and I'm back on the gas. Second problem is the temperature, fuel gauges seem to work well (although the fuel needle doesn't go quite all the way to full when the tank is refilled), but the tachometer and speedometer seem to be getting intermittent readings. They both seem to move quickly at times and other times with hesitation -- leading to a "jumpy", innacuate appearance. The tach also seems to not want to read much above 4,500 rpm though the engine is clearly building more rpms. Last problem is the brakes. The car pulls heavily to the right side under strong braking right now... so much so that I would like to fix the issue before continuing to drive it. I have ordered the following: new hoses all around (and rear center hose), new front calipers, new pads/rotors all around, new booster hose. I imagine that these will likely fix the problem as the car always pulls to one side (never pulls to the left, just the right) and tracks straight just going down the road under throttle. Should I try just some of these items before installing all of them? Perhaps just a brake hose issue and I can save the rest of the parts for when they actually need replacing?

Thanks for any insight! Glad to be a Fiat owner again, it's been years since I sold my '76 X1/9 1300.

[So Cal Mark]

backfiring is most likely an air injection issue or extremely rich condition
If you want "like new" braking, I'd install all of the parts you ordered. Unless you like to repeatedly bleed brakes.
Speedo is not electric, the only connection to the tach is the instrument lights. A jumpy speedo is cable related or the angle adapter in the tranny.

[kristoj]

Welcome back to the Fiat fold! I agree with Mark that you should replace all the parts you mentioned. I would also check the front end (tie rods and center link). Even though it tracks straight driving, front end problems often get much more pronounced under braking. Incidentally, all four tie rods and center link can all be purchased for a total sum of around $100.