Page 135 - Wayne Carini's Guide to Affordable Classics

THE BACKSTORY
The 124 Spider was preceded by the 1200, 1500 and 1500 Cabriolets, which were adequate entries at a time when there was far less global competition and export volumes were modest. As these models ran their course in the early 1960s, however, something fresher was needed, especially given the increasing local competition from Alfa Romeo as well as the growing global reach of French, German and British sports cars. Enter the Sport Spider.
The Start: 1438 cc
As was often the case for mass-market Italian sports cars of this era, the Spider’s existence relied on a high-volume donor, the all- new 1966 124 sedan. Boxy and functional, the 124 featured coil springs and disc brakes all around and bested the impressive BMW 1600 for 1967 European Car of the Year honors. Its Spider derivative utilized a 5.5-inch shorter wheelbase than the sedan, but otherwise carried over the basic mechanicals, including double wishbones and coil springs up front, with a solid rear axle located by trailing arms and a lateral Panhard rod. Its 1438 cc engine, developed by ex-Ferrari engine designer Aurelio Lampredi, was based on the sedan’s block, but was upgraded with belt-driven dual overhead cams (the first application of belt drive with twin cams) and a crossflow aluminum cylinder head. Output of the very first edition was just under 100 horsepower with a weight of around 2,000 pounds, which put it right in the hunt with its successful British competitors. In addition to its disc brakes, the icing on the cake was its five-speed transmission, a relative rarity at the time.
What really set the 124 apart from its European competitors was its styling, attributed to American Tom Tjaarda, whose father had been an influential automotive designer in his own right. Moving from Ghia to Fiat at the start of his design career, one of Tjaarda’s first projects was a GM-commissioned proposal for the C2 Corvette called the Rondine that heavily influenced the 124 Spider, especially the rear fenders that canted inward toward the trunk. At the front, the 124 followed the Rondine’s thin body section and capped it with a simple, single-headlamp arrangement surrounding a simple grille, not at all dissimilar from the slightly earlier Ferrari 275 GTB.
While no one would call the 124, or any Italian sports car of this period, roomy, its 66-inch width was over six inches wider than the contemporary MGB and TR4 and nearly as wide as the Mercedes 230 SL. Its simple horizontal dashboard was finished in wood veneer and was cleverly designed so that the instrument cluster could be swapped for the glove compartment for RHD markets. What really separated the 124 from its competitors was its marvelous convertible top, which, with its integrated rear quarter windows, could be erected quickly by an outreached right hand from the driver’s seat and offered excellent weather protection.
1608 cc/1592 cc/1756 cc
At its launch in 1966, the 124 Sport Spider was advanced for its day, with 4-wheel disc brakes, a five-speed transmission and a secure folding top.
Fiat 124 Sport Spider
The 1970s-era Spiders have a dizzying array of displacements and
outputs as Fiat struggled to deal with new emissions regulations, as
well as the especially stringent requirements for California-bound just a single carburetor and an emissions-constrained output of
Assembled for Fiat by Pininfarina, approximately 75 percent of Spiders were exported to the US.
cars. The 124’s initial shortfall in performance was addressed in 1971 with a displacement increase to 1608 cc. European-market cars sported dual Weber IDF carburetors and developed 110 horsepower, but their US counterparts had to make do with
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