131mirafiori forum

Hi, I own a 1978 fiat 131 1300cc 2 door with 29,000 Genuine miles - I'm only the second owner from new.

Just wondering how many 1300cc 2 door 131's are left in the UK, i know that sports are rare, but alot of the 2door 1300's have been used to restore/reshell sports, so i was thinking would an original 2door 1300cc possibly be more rare than a sport??

Reason I ask, is that I bought the above car with the intention of building it into a sport as the shell is perfect, 99% rust free. But having cleaned the car and seen how clean it is underneath, and the fact that it's totally original, i think it would be a shame. Especially if its as rare as I think?

So should I stick with my original idea and build it into a sport or leave it original as it is??

Any help or advice is much appreciated

its a personal choice,do you have a rotten sport to re shell or are you just gone build a bitsa?.....i would go for it if there is a sport there in need of a shell......but i wouldnt just builed a replica from parts and destroy a nice car in the process,it will never be a sport.

this is purely my personal opinion of course and ultimately you will have to make the decision  ;D

O I love questions like this...! ;)

I remember seeing the car for sale Chris and can vouch for it's condition, at least from photographs ( I have some if you would like them posted) - A very rare find indeed and I would suggest at this stage that it is much rarer than the Sport/Racing model. Certainly they come up for sale on about a ratio of 1 to 25 if you look at Europe as a whole.

Does that mean that it is more desirable as a result? - Highly unlikely in my view as 4 door CLs are worth buttons in good condition, why would a 2 door be worth any more unless the intention was to make a Sport out of it?

Now does the Connolly family need another 131 Sport in the family??!? ;) Thats the real question..!? ;D

If you had no Sport I would definitely convert as long as you could be sure of doing an authentic job - How many rust free RHD Sports come up for sale..? ;)

Hello Chris,

I am very sure that the situation in Holland is quite the same as in the UK. I know of maybe 2 2door survivors so that model is exceptional scarce but the horrible truth is also that nobody takes care. Isn't it horrible that even a mint 4 door CL is almost impossible to sell? Yes, you could make the perfect Sport out of it, but I should keep it original as it is so good as you describe. I am also myself not the biggest fan of the Abarthising some people do, but that is everybodies choice.
Do your best and keep it original please, is my personal suggestion!

If it really is that good and original, I would say leave it as it is. Such a rare car deserves to survive, not end up as a sport copy. Please post lots of pictures of it!

I'd have to agree with the majority here too :)

Whatever you do with the car it will never be as valuable as a genuine 131 Sport, because even if it looks like one, it won't actually be one.

Like Bellamacchina, I'm definitely against making a car look like something it's not. My opinion - and I know how others disagree with me, but I've often wondered why people turn their Sports into Abarth replicas, or their Stradales into Group 4 replicas. Seems an awful lot of trouble to go to to get something that will only fool the uninformed - which to my mind isn't the point. For what it's worth, I'd rather have a lovely low mileage 1300 2 door than a Sport replica with untraceable history.

If the 1300 is really that good, I'd keep it in it's original form. Who knows, perhaps one day, someone will want a 2 door 1300 and not a 131 Sport

Thanks for the help/advice guys think you've helped me make my mind up. It will stay original - just as it left the factory.  ;D

Yeah think your ratio might be about right kev, as I never seen another one for sale.

And, No don't think the connolly's have room for anymore sports, so my little 1300 will stay as it is.

Pictures!

Well i agree if you have a 131 whatever model which is in good condition should be left orginal as possible.
HOWEVER moving this subject on a bit why shouldnt you modify or turn your car into a replica if its your passion your dream something you've worked bloody hard for, whats the problem of having something that gives so much pleasure to you and others,i dont see it as trying to fool people just expanding the 131 family to the unknowing .

Also would you put a modified car in the same catagory as a replica :-\

Eugene here to say,keep the car original.A genuine car will never loose it's value.

Hi Andy,

I assume you're referring to my comments. As I have said, this is my opinion and you have the right to disagree with me. This is what makes the World go round, but rest assured, I'm not going to fall out with anyone over it either way.

As anyone who knows me will tell you, and as I've told you face to face before, I am a fan of originality, and would probably never convert a car into something that it wasn't - whether it was a Fiat 131 or a Skoda Favorit, but if people want to spend their hard earned on cash on such cars/projects, then that's up to the individual.

One may well have saved a 131, but at what cost?

Do you know the comment that upsets me the most as an owner of a genuine Abarth Stradale? "Is that original?", meaning "Is that a genuine Abarth?" in the case of my red 131. Why do you think people ask that? Possibly because the number of replicas now far out weighs the number of genuine Abarths - but to an owner of a genuine Stradale it somewhat dilutes the car's attraction, don't you think?

Do you not think that Abarth owners (or owners of any other car they have pride in for that matter) have worked 'bloody hard' to get what they have?

"Also would you put a modified car in the same catagory as a replica?". Depends on what you call 'modified'. Chopping the springs to lower the suspension can never be the best engineering solution can it? But dropping in a 'fast road' Guy Croft engine could very well be.

Andy, (and everyone else who owns a replica/modified 131), this is my opinion only and is not meant to stir anything up. I was merely commenting (as requested) on Chris131's 1300 2 door dilema and in the process you have got the wrong end of the stick. Your's, Wayne's Racer and Steve P's cars look great, as I'm sure Mick's will, but I wouldn't buy one - that's all.

 hello chris, i think you should probably keep your car in  its current condition, as stated earlier,its rare in any case,but in such good condition,this makes the car a rare find indeed , and you will see that it will be a long time before one will come to the light of day(this forum of course) again.................On the other hand, a good conversion to either sport or abarth is a worthy project.From my experience of going to shows or vintage runs,the amount of people that can tell the difference between a cl,TC,sport or special are few and far between, so dont worry too much about changing the car to whatever you like..........good luck mate and keep us posted :D :D :D

Hi simon, I think the reasons why people build replica's is:

1. That genuine abarths are not readily available, and any that are available are too expensive.

And,

2. The abarth kit can now be bought quitel cheaply - around ?600, and used to restore a sport that probably was to far gone to restore back into a sport. I.E trying to find new rear quarter panels, boot lids, bonnets and front wings etc, is not easy and its easier, cheaper and quicker to just buy the fiberglass kit.

3. And its not that we're trying to fool people, but it gives those people that can't afford a genuine abarth, a car that looks like one, for a fraction of the cost.

Well, that's why I'm building one anyway, ?hope to have it finished for the summer. ?;D

However I still do agree to keeping a good genuine car original, so I'll keep my 2dr 1300 original, and save it from the choper. I hope someone will correct me if I'm wrong for saying this, but: its the only 2dr 1300 that I've seen in the UK in a long time.

There  is one in the wild west of Ireland!..................not uk of course....near river shannon...largest river in british isles :D

Hi Chris,

From a cost perspective you may have a point, and I'm all for preserving the model - why else, with the assistance of two other great friends and 131 fans, would I have been instrumental in the setting up this very website and forum? ;D

Modified cars and replicas will always have their place, and I respect that, but personally I'd rather pour my money into restoring a 131 back to 'standard' - or at least, as close as possible.

As I have said above, it is not my intention to offend or upset ANYONE, but like everyone else, I'm entitled to my opinion, however unwittingly contraversial it always appears to be ::)

 Simon,

In this case I agree with you for the full 100 percent. Of course it can be great to convert a car into something different but basically that is not my thing. I think the basic point here is that there are only a very limited number of restorable and good 131s on the road still and our wish is to keep them this way. For me it is almost horror when people use a very good car and turn it with the best intentions into a replica. When you do that with a full restorationproject or with a broken restoration, go on and make the best you can BUT I hope really that the few original CL,s and Sports around stay this way or will be restored to the original specification! A replica will never be an original!!

Of course this is my personal idea, everybody should do his own thing of course!!

Of course were not going to fall out over this we are all proud owners and i understand when you
say about getting asked if your abarth real or not as im always getting asked the same question and i always tell the truth.
if i had the money i would have genuine.

So just for discusion sake can you over modify a 131

You ever saw that 4 door  in a strange kind of gold colour with the doors opening like a Lambo?

Hi Andy,

For the sake of discussion, yes, I believe that all cars can be over modified, but I'm not against certain modifications - especially if it enhances road safety. Why not make the most of the latest technologies (eg tyres and brake compounds) to make your car safer? ;D

For arguements sake, lets take Theo's beautiful, and much coveted Sport. There are many people who would believe his car to be standard, but in actual fact it has many performance and handling enhancing mods. He has a wonderful Guy Croft twin carb engine up front, but has sensibly uprated brakes with larger than standard front discs and pads and rear disc brakes too. I believe the car also has uprated suspension. Whilst these are 'modifications', they are subtle and help the car to be safer, especially useful as Theo has been known to use his Sport as his daily driver. ;)

The other end of the spectrum is certain of the 'Hounslowed cars' I used to regular see around West London in my youth (late 1980's). Car's sprayed pearlescent pink or green, with chopped springs (literally :o) and riding about an inch off the road. Cars with super wide wheels that rubbed on the arches when the steering was turned or that audibly hit the road when they had a driver and passenger in.

The other thing to consider as well is parts availability. Classic example - my Abarth has never had a good interior (sun affected cloth) so I fitted one from a Sport. This has now decided to throw in the towel and the ratchet has stripped on the drivers seat, so now I'm considering the purchase of 'rally style' seats. The truth is that if I could find a good, reasonably priced genuine Stradale interior, I'd buy it in a flash, but there aren't any, so I'll have to make do with what I can find.

IMHO certain mods are essential (tyres), certain are desirable (a GC engine) and certain are most definitely over the top (Lambo style doors and oversized chrome wheels :o).