I married an Opponaut

"ImmoralMinority" (araimondo) 03/03/2019 at 14:54 • Filed to: None

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She wants to sell her Cressida and buy this.

This is her idea of the perfect weekend grocery-getter the seller is the second owner, and has had the car for about a year. The original owner is a family friend, and t he seller has the original title from 1980. I drove it and giggled like an idiot.

I am having it towed to my mechanic Monday to get a thorough inspection, and to see if it can pass smog. If so, my wife will have a Fiat.

Captain of the Enterprise > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:07

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Very cool!

Bman76 (hates WS6 hoods, is on his phone and has 4 burners now) > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:07

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That is the worst idea I’ve ever heard...

but I expect nothing less of Oppo.

shop-teacher > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:07

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Awesome!

I hope it goes well. I am excited for endless “ Fix It Again Tony” j okes :)

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:11

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What could go wrong! My wife likes some classics but they are all either extremely unsafe or a very old manual only vehicle that she would have a lot of trouble with. It would help if my wife could drive in this country too. She did the basics in Japan and then took public transit her whole life. So it's a challenge....

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:15

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I dunno. With your family’s luck recently, maybe this vintage Fiat is a safer idea?

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:17

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X1/9s are so cool. You can Fit one my car right? 

I’m currently trying to convince mine that we need his and her’s mopeds. These off sale in Minneapolis. Neither run, but my brother has fixed up a few Tomos and the parts are really cheap.

Future Heap Owner > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:17

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Good on her , she wants to provide us plenty of “IM fixes the Fiat again” content.

In seriousness, that thing looks like a hoot. How does it handle? I hope the inspection bodes well.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:20

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marry her!!

oh wait...

Svend > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:28

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I knew it would be the Cressida.

You say you married an opponaut, I’m thing closer to an enabler. Lol.

Nice Fiat, but you know what they say about Fiat!? Fix It Again Tomorrow.

Like Fords, Fixed Or Repaired Daily.

Congrats though. Do you have to keep the U.S. spec bumpers or can they be, erm, ‘de-introduced’ in someway!? 

E90M3 > Bman76 (hates WS6 hoods, is on his phone and has 4 burners now) 03/03/2019 at 15:44

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Wait, did you forget about J ake?

LongbowMkII > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 15:47

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If only you knew a community who’d be interested in a 30 year old Japanese sedan... if only...

Bman76 (hates WS6 hoods, is on his phone and has 4 burners now) > E90M3 03/03/2019 at 16:02

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How can I forget? I get front row seats to his ideas.

(Okay, maybe this is the second worst)

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 16:05

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They are tough enough to ram a hedge.

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > Bman76 (hates WS6 hoods, is on his phone and has 4 burners now) 03/03/2019 at 16:39

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Such a bad idea that it almost hurts . I’d keep the Cressida and leave the X1/ 9 for the weekends or whenever it starts.

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 16:42

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Yup, they’ re more fun than a fun thing. The absolute epitome of slow car fa st.

I didn’t get a chance to respond to your prev ious post on the subject, but ( ha ving owned a beater one and lear n ed the hard way) rust is the big thi ng on these. They’re i nc redibly strong cars, havi ng been designed to pass propo sed US DOT 80mph impact and 50mph rollo ver tests which never eventuated - this makes it one o f the safest 1970s cars you can buy, BTW . But that streng th was achieved by making a lot of the structure triple-skinned. The centre skin isn’t well rust protected, so it rusts first and invisi bly. S o by the time there’s visible structural rust you’ve got a very expensive clusterfuck underneath. This one looks pretty good from the photos (assu mi ng tha t’s original paint), but...

G et the guy doing the i ns pection to look ve ry carefully at sills, F&R strut towers, base of the fro nt and rear trunk (all of these f ro m both above and below and with linings li fted ) , F&R A- arm mounts , the lower crossmember between the engine bay and luggage bay, and windscreen/rollhoop (particularly the base of the screen and the lower side of t he top of the hoop). D on’t just look for visible rust, look for bulging which might suggest a rotting internal skin is pushing the surface skin outwards. If any of these look suspici ous, walk away.

Practically anywhere e ls e can rot too ( some is visi ble on you r photos) , but other areas are less critical as they’re e ither non-structural or easy to patch. .

Electricals are dodgy but that’s fixable, and the cooli ng system ditto. The engine’s bombproof as long as the cambelt’s been do ne , which it may no t   ha ve a s it’s a shit of a job. Synchros can also be weak, but you’d probably have already noti c ed that on a te st d rive if it was cold initially. Most of the mecha n ical bits are cheap and available as they’re generic Fiat parts-bin.

LimitedTimeOnly @ opposite-lock.com > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 16:43

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I was too late with that photo.

SPAMBot - Horse Doctor > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 17:07

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Italian cars are the best. Do it. Just get ready for the influx of “fix it again, Tony” jokes lol 

gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 17:30

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https://www.kijiji.ca/v-classic-cars/calgary/1980-fiat-spider-2000/1418294609

RacinBob > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 18:20

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I dunno, as the owner of a ‘74 Alfa, my experience is that 40 year old rubber that is exposed to brake fuid, oil or gas just disintegrates.  

I think you will find rebuilt brakes, clutch hydraulics, and replacement fuel pump in your future.   How much fun are you wanting?

If that is what she wants, how about a MR2? 10 years newer and more modern materials would make a big difference. The challenge is finding one that is well cared for.....

https://fresno.craigslist.org/cto/d/fresno-1988-toyota-mr-obo/6817366617.html

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 18:37

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This is good Oppo! Would be a hilarious little grocery getter!

Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks > ImmoralMinority 03/03/2019 at 19:41

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Okay, but not that one. And DEFINITELY not at that price.

That is WAY too much rust visible, which means it’s ten times worse where it’s invisible. These things have nil for rustproofing. The electrical also hasn’t been touched, so it will break. Constantly.

pip bip - choose Corrour > ImmoralMinority 03/04/2019 at 04:27

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i approve.

Stef Schrader > ImmoralMinority 03/04/2019 at 13:18

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Yessssssss, the car is good.

CaptDale - is secretly British > ImmoralMinority 03/04/2019 at 13:36

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I obviously fully approve of this 

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > ImmoralMinority 03/04/2019 at 16:40

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But... But... THE PANEL GAPS!!!

RacinBob > ImmoralMinority 03/04/2019 at 18:00

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If you want a lot less grief, c heck this out before buying a Fiat . A car fixed by dad that th e daughter doesn’t want.....

https://fresno.craigslist.org/cto/d/bakersfield-honda-del-sol/6818768373.html

RacinBob > RacinBob 03/04/2019 at 18:01

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PS< I used to race one, if she wants a grocery getter, the Del Sol trunk is huge.

NojustNo > RacinBob 03/05/2019 at 14:43

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Holy holy crap I don’t think I’ve seen one of those in stock form in f orever. That guy's daughter is going to regret it someday

NojustNo > ImmoralMinority 03/05/2019 at 14:46

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If th at falls through  see if you can get her into a 1st Gen MR2 with t tops. Just look at it!

RacinBob > NojustNo 03/05/2019 at 16:01

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Plus it looks like dad rebuilt the clutch, engine and axles for you too. Sure it probably has 200,000 miles but for a rust free Cali car its n ot bad for $2500.

RacinBob > ImmoralMinority 03/06/2019 at 16:13

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Or if you would like a new Del Sol...

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1995-honda-del-sol-6/