Hey!

[WhatIdo]

Hey Guys -

Great site! This site has already been such an amazing resource to me and I don't even have the car yet.

I have wanted a Spider ever since I was a kid. Over the past few years, my wife has been been no less than 100% completely against it. Every time I would bring up the subject, she would shoot it down with 15 reasons why owning a Spider would be impractical, and quite simply, a horrible idea. When I showed her some pictures on Saturday of this Spider I wanted to look into, she went off into the same routine but even managed to bring some of my friends onto her side this time. I called and made an appointment to see it on Sunday anyway. I did not tell her. On Sunday morning, my wife asked me to head down to the Jersey Shore area to visit one of her friends with her. I agreed...as long as I got to go somewhere first. After taking the monster of all detours, we pulled in front of a house with a red 1981 Spider in the driveway. My wife was not pleased. Nevertheless, I got out of the car and she followed. I inspected the car and took my wife on a test drive. By the end of it, she was begging me to buy it. Oh how I love when a plan comes together...

Now I'm just hoping it makes the 100 mile drive back home on Sunday. I figure the purchase price was manageable enough to satisfy a childhood dream (even if it does wind up in flames on the side of the NJ Turnpike...though i completely hope that does not become the case). I am far from a mechanic but would love to learn and work on the car as much as realistically possible. At this point, I am just expecting the worst and hoping for the best. It's all upside from here...

[kilrwail]

Congratulations! You've proven that you're clever. Now you must demonstrate persistence as you come to grips with the joys of Fiat ownership. Good luck!

[mbouse]

i echo Peter's comments and wish to add resourcefulness. You've demonstrated some of that by joining a forum. there will be other resources you will need along the way...tools, friends, other documents from other sources...

but, on the right track you are! gotta have a car. it is all better after that.

when can we see pictures?

[rlux4]

Hello, welcome to the group. Congratulations on you excellent plan. The next thing you need to do is get at least a couple of manuals for your car. They're all a little different, and each is better in some areas than others, so more than one is a good idea. The good news is that these cars are not difficult to work on, and you'll get plenty of help here when you need it.
Ron

[htchevyii]

Welcome to the forum. If you have any issues this forum is a great source of help. Most common problems have simple solutions and most likely someone has an answer for you. I have found cars easy to work on an relatively inexpensive to maintain.
One more tip, when my Dad wanted to buy a sports car and my Mom wouldn't let him, he started threatening to buy a Harley Davidson. Suddenly the sports car seem like a good idea.

[Tappy]

congrats Seems like you handeled that wery well. Now the trick is to let her only drive on special occasions like her birthday wedding anneversary etc in no time she is goin to want one of her own

[Europa]

Welcome to the forum. This site has been invaluable for me.

One more tip, when my Dad wanted to buy a sports car and my Mom wouldn't let him, he started threatening to buy a Harley Davidson. Suddenly the sports car seem like a good idea.

Trey, your tip is similar to my story. Except in my case, I was looking at a Victory or a Royal Enfield bike!

[WhatIdo]

Thanks for the warm welcome guys. I know I will be filling this board with some ridiculous questions for a while...but hopefully I will be able to pay back all the assistance in time. Thanks again.

Can't wait to pick up the car. I don't want to jinx myself...but it's set to be in the mid-80's and sunny all weekend. Thinking whether my first stop should be a local mechanic for a simple oil change/tune up just to be safe.

[WhatIdo]

Oh...and I'll definitely take some pictures once I get it home to post on the site. Thx.

[sonosml]

Have a great drive home this weekend!

[mdrburchette]

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your purchase! Make sure you ask the PO about any previous maintenance. You may be lucky enough to not have to replace the timing belt any time soon.

[speedracer]

Enjoy the drive home! You've got the best day of the year to do it, so maybe the Fiat gods are smiling upon you already!

May your trip be safe and the Turnpike empty! (well, man can dream, can't he? )

Where is home anyway?

[WhatIdo]

WOW!! Had the most fun in years this weekend. The weather was so perfect that I was too busy driving to remember to take a picture. The previous owner put on only 300 miles over the past 3 years and my wife and I basically put on that much this weekend alone. It is amazing how many people love these cars and nobody is short on compliments. Ahh...so nice to finally own one.

[rlux4]

Let the fun begin!
Congratulations.
Ron

[azygoustoyou]

congrats and welcome! Now let the child out don't look back. Pretty soon she'll be looking in the want adds to find her own.