New and Nearly New 131's in Service

[Rob 131]

Following recent Forum Posts it would be interesting if people could share their experiences regarding 131's they bought New or Under 3 Years Old. I.E What they were like in daily service. It is interesting discussing 131's now that are in the main either much treasured vehicles or projects; however it would be great to hear what they were like as modern cars. We know from recent posts that Theo had 2 131's within this category.

The points that would be interesting by way of suggestion are:

1) What other cars were considered at the time.

2) What were the reasons for purchasing a 131.

3) Positive and Negative parts of the ownership experience.

4) What car did they own after the 131 and why.

[simon131]

The first 131 I had, a black 1981 Sport, NPF 962 W, was actually five years old when I bought it, and the late-1982 2000TC Super that replaced it was also five years old, so it doesn't quite fit your spec Rob, but I hope it's close enough.

I passed my test in my Mum's red 128 3P in April 1985, aged 17, and the first car I actually owned was a 1978, S-reg, metallic blue 128 1300CL 4-door, as I couldn't find a 3P worth buying at the time.

So, to answer your questions in a slightly different order -

2) I was actually looking for a 1500 X1/9 and had narrowly missed a nice one when I stumbled across the black Sport in Auto Trader, which was more than I had budgetted (these things usually are aren't they! ) but was a superb car. I totally loved it and paid ?2,000 for it, which was a fortune at the time.

1) I can't say I considered any other car at the time as I was a devout Ford hater and only ever wanted to drive Fiat - which was the only make of car I had until I purchase my first non-Fiat in 1999, as Fiat didn't make a 7-seater that I could afford at the time.

3) It was a fabulous ownership experience made better because my soon-to-be-wife ran the parts and service department of a local Fiat dealer!

4) The car I owned after my 131 Sport was another 131, the blue 2000TC Super, XPE 613 Y, which was my love and chariot for the next 4 years. Which itself was replaced by a 2 year old 1.6 DGT SX Tipo Basically, the Super was literally worn out and was almost half as fuel efficient as the Tipo

[Rob 131]

Simon

It appears that you discovered 131's relatively late i.e 1986. You didn't appear to keep your original Sport for very long before changing to a S3 Super. Any particular reasons for this and was the Super better and more practical for everyday useage.

On the basis of discovering 131's at this late stage, why the interest in S1's where you have 3 in the stable.

[simon131]

1986 may have been relatively late in 131 terms but I was only 19!

It was my intention to keep the first Sport 'forever' but I lost it in a fire (hot Fiat electrics and plastic fuel lines don't mix) and having to make an insurance claim cost me the ability to replace the car I lost (didn't pay out enough and cost me my no Claims Discount, such that it was) - although I looked for a decent Sport for months before I found the blue 2000TC Super (XPE) which eventually replaced it.

The Super was very practicle and extemely comfortable, but I always hankered after another black Sport (and still do come to that ).

I don't know why I love S1s as much as I seem to - I just do I love all 131s but the Series 1 is the car I always seem to be drawn to, although I'd love to have another Sport and 2000TC Series 3 Super in the fleet - but these will just have to wait.

I suppose that I believe the Series 1 to be the 'purist' 131 - 'as Fiat intended' -  no plastic bumpers or unnecessary 'add-ons'. They are extemely simple to work on and I just love the styling touches like the rear light units.

[TOAD]

Toad.

  Toad would only have been a few years old when I bought from a scrap yard, I spotted it in the body shop of a garage I was working at in the eighties. When I first sore it, toad had been hit in the front, pushed the front in, rocked the engine back, broken the rear gearbox mount. We bought Toad from the scrappy for ?300 I think it was and set about rebuilding it. The front was replaced, new bonnet, panel, and the wings were push back and refitted, they were only small dents on the very front edge of each side. The front end was resprayed and I think matched very well considering it was metallic bronze. We used Toad to commute from Rochester to London every day for several years. During this time, the 1600tc finally let go. I carried on the work, picked up a 2Ltr on the way, finished work and then set about changing over to the 2lt before leaving for Rochester at about 10.30 in the evening. Job Done. Later on it crossed my mind that since both engines would have been standard so would the bores. Again after work one night we stripped the 2Ltr down and retrieving the pistons from the 1600 we'd taken out before. In they went 1.30 back down to Rochester. I think the ratio was supposed to be around 10.3;1ish =misfire, it turned out to be nothing more than the plugs needed closing up a few thou.  This is free power, no re-jetting required.
  
  Toad carried on over the years getting faster and faster, with several suspension set ups until most everything on a country road was a waste of fuel, but still a laugh. The 131 tail happy rear was cured and it was the most stable 131 we've had to date.   remember Deb saying to me turn left of the motorway while i was beside another car in the slip road, (on our way to Lydden to watch) Well it was soooo wet,  many white lines, and the slip road when very tightly round 90Deg, with an armco in the middle.  Well at about 75 after braking past the slowing car beside me into the slip road,  so I'm confronted by this 90 left at 75 ish, well I had Toad drifting very nicely with its tail just of the armco, the drifts would have been proud of to, but, BIG But, not being a drifter, that angel isn't my way of driving, I got all the way round but didn't put the tail in nicely enough. So now I'm going backwards, in control but backwards, I see there's nothing coming the other way so I flip Toad round the end of the armco onto the other side of the road to stop nicely in line.  Other car stops to ask if everything's Ok just as I slip Toad into gear and of we go again.  

  I just remembered, I caught one of the local boy racers out in his RS1600 Mk2 Escort at one of my old stomping grounds, He was driving very nicely but I think he new it was a done deal when I put Toads nose up his inside when he drifted to far out on a 90mph left hander.  

 Ahh the old days, know its front wheel drive rubbish, Oh well    
 

 I was continually told I should put Toad on the track, so after a quite a while I think my Wife got feed up with me having to much fun in the country, so Toad went though a major redesign around its suspension and there it won its class,   HaHo  Class B Champion.      Next......  see rebuild for now2010-11

  
YOUNGER DRIVER;
    Yes my licence did have the scares, but to younger drivers reading this, I can tell you never drink drive drug drive or Dangers drive, there's a time and place even on the road, but not with those No No's and some times when you find an old silver haired gitt driving, GIVE IT UP, before you get lead into some that's bigger than your experience can handle.  I've seen two cars and one motor bike go off trying to follow me,  

 SO BE SAFE AND THINK AHEAD,   THINK IF I MET HIM COMING THE OTHER WAY, WOULD I BE SAFE TO PASS HERE.


 
  Regards little ones

           Roger..............

P.S  sorry about the tires, been having to much fun
All those eight lights have 100w bulbs, thats 800watts there, with big alternator and battery, perfect for high speed night country roads when we lived at the coast.
  

Thoughts....
131 was an upgrade from 124 's I already dove
Wanted 131 because of technical layout, if 131 was Trebant, I would be driving a Trebant.
Other cars considered; Lada its a Baby 131
First 131 owned 131s 1600ohv  changed to 1400 ohv Modified engine
Thoughts; 131 is size of Cortina, but is agile like an Mk1/2 escort just not as forgiving.
Ford drivers I worked with continually took the p... for years, needed to prove the point, DID.


 

[mirafioriman]

Looks nice in the copper colour. Rare for a 131.

My father had one which would have been about 3 years old when he bought it. I was about 11. It was a very different car than what we had had before. Before this we had a VW Derby, before that a VW Polo. Both clean well looked after but basic!

The 131 was a 1600 T/C Supermirafiori, twin cam engine, velour seats, sports wheels, low profile tyres, sunroof, tinted glass, metallic paint etc. A completely different class of car and I loved it!

He sold it when he changed jobs and got a company car (Vauxhall Astra 1300L) back to basic cars!

When we sold it it had already started to rust and had had one rear arch repaired due to the dreaded tin worm. GSD 925V was it's number. I had one photo of it but annoyingly I can't find it! If it turns up I will post it here.

[kev131]

Roger?s contribution is a hard act to follow ? a very enjoyable read indeed. I?ll have a go.

My own memories of 131s in every day use have been posted here before in bits and apologies if they bore anyone but I?ll put them down again.

My very very first memory of a 131 was a Series 1 just after launch. I was walking home from school and this brand new shiny and chromed Fiat saloon drove by slowly in a queue of traffic. It must have 1975 (dad was driving his third Fiat at the time ? 124 Special T) and I had never seen a 131 before. I just somehow ?knew? that it was a new Fiat model. I still remember walking on with my head looking over my shoulder and admiring the T shaped rear lights. I think it was that lovely green colour ? Same as Heini?s.



The next significant memory was the launch of the 131 Sport. At this stage I was more aware of car launches and saw a Fiat dealer article on the upcoming launch of the 127 & 131 Sports. I instantly fell in love with the 131 and thought that this was THE car to have. Our family car at the time was an orange Fiat 132 2000 and I could see no way that it would be traded for a Sport when the time came to change. On an school exchange trip to France in 1979 and walking around the centre of Paris I walked into a Fiat showrom to see one of these cars. Coming home to Ireland via Dublin I secretly hoped that as a surprise the car had been swapped for a Sport ? Dad had a habit of arriving home in new cars without telling anyone. I can still remember my totally unreasonable disappointment of seeing the 132 in the car park. However life has a funny way of giving you what you want sometimes.

In late Nov 1979 I came home from school at lunch time to find Dad at home sitting in his easy chair but no car in the driveway. Noone else drove & the car was always with him so something was wrong. A cut on his forehead and a quick explanation revealed that the 132 had been lost on an icy road and Dad just survived a potentially fatal crash. Once the reassurances that all was well were made the thoughts of transport arose. A new car was needed urgently ? Dad travelled a lot for work. A call to the local Fiat dealer was made and a discovery that although no 132s were available a shiny black 131 Sport demo was there and ready for test drives. The sales manager offered to drive to our house to facilitate a test drive. A quick call was made to my school for me to be found and to come home immediately for urgent family business. I had no idea what that was until I got home and to this day I alternately bless and curse that phone call as it was then that my 131 Sport ?disease? was born.

The car had c300 miles on it from other demos, etc and four of us (Mum & I in the back seats feeling like royalty sitting on velour seats and rear headrests, centre armrest and the new car smell) headed off for what quite a short test drive. Dad took it up to 80mph on a local dual carriage way and returned to the garage forecourt. The sales guy left us alone while we walked around and studied the car from all angles. I could see dad liked it but was having doubts about the combination of 2 doors and 4 kids. Passionate pleading from junior to ?buy it? won the day and a cash deal was haggled over ? List price around ?6400 down to ?5600. Delivery two days later with rear mud flaps and black/white number plates (in those days you had a choice of colours). I was over the moon ? Our first car with a spoiler, with alloy wheels, rear head rests, sports mirrors, a radio cassette player, etc. The loss of power steering and electric windows meant nothing to me but Dad did later regret the PS.



After that I used to accompany dad on many of his business trips during the school holidays and he became something of a road warrior when it was just the two of us in the car. Reps in Mk 4 Cortinas and the car that was fast making them yesterday?s car, the Datsun Bluebird 180B were easy meat for the 2 litre twin cam but the real fun was had on two days I?ll never forget. One was a dice with a UK registered Volvo 245 GLE (2.1 fi). The Volvo was driving quite aggressively overtaking long lines of cars down the white line and we decided to take off after him. It was duck and dive for a while until a long enough straight and we outdragged him and lost him. Relaxing for a few mins behind a truck he caught up and we had to do the whole thing again. Great fun and we all waved when our roads diverged. The second was when a Dolomite Sprint comprehensively out accelerated us up to a speedo read-out of 115mph and then blew by as if we were stopped. While disappointed to lose out to what we thought was a rusty old Triumph I was thrilled to have seen such a high speed. We met up at the petrol station shortly after where we had a chat & discovered what was special about the other car. I remember dad saying something about the 131 being better on the bends which I think was a bit of wounded pride. The other driver gracioulsy did not argue.

There were other dices with Ford Granadas, Renault Fuegos, Escort 1.6S, etc that I can remember and despite this car being kept longer than any other we had (3 years) I was dreading the day it would go. I knew that this was a once off experience because the S3 had been launched by now and unbelievably without an updated Sport in the range. I pushed the S3 Super 2000 as a viable replacement but dad has his eyes on an Argenta. The AR Giulietta range has also just been revised and a 2000 130bhp model included at the top of the range. We took one on test drive but it didnt appeal to Dad unfortunately. Our days of putting manners on Fords were nearing their end. The 131 was finally swapped for a gold Argenta and partly because of the handling of the car and partly because of getting older I suppose Dad lost his appetite for entertaining junior on the roads.  Looking back I dont think any of the incidents were particularly dangerous ? The speed was mostly on wide open roads in good weather but I?m glad we never needed ABS, air bags, ESP, etc. The 131 was worth ?5000 on a trade in but could have been bought for cash for ?3500. I can remember thinking that if only I could raise that sort of money I could keep the car till I was older ? Fat chance. It left the family and I can remember feeling a sort of bereavement for long time after. Mechanically it had performed faultlessly but serious rust issues were arising on the leading edge of the bonnet and the bottoms of both doors. I dont think the car would have lived for very long. The car needed a new rear seat cover replacement under warranty ? The original split along the seams and a new grill was needed after an early morning colision with a slow moving crow. I miss this car to this day.



The next 131 experience was the foolish purchase of a Panorama 1600CL in Cornwall around 1989. Long tax and MOT and a shiny new piant job all for ?400 ? How could I go wrong? It was bought for Jacquie to learn to drive in but it was an awfully tired car full of filler. It also had that horrible old Fiat interior smell. I moved it on after 6 months for ?285.



Next up was the 131 Sport with a full MOT bought in London for ?450. I drove it home and kept it for 3 years. Another tired car but absolutely original with no bits missing. I had an offer of a free paint job from a local car repairer in return for referrals from my car insurance business ? I had some panels replaced while I was at it. Although the paint work was excellent the car was not really worth the investment. The floor was a patchwork of welding and probably had some serious rust in hard to see places. I sold it for ?1000 to an enthusiast ? It was for sale for ages!!







Another 10 years passed before my next 131 and current car ? My orange 131 Sport. My least favourite colour but one of the best and original cars I?ve seen. I?ve done quite a lot to this car and my objective is to have it as close to new looking condition as possible, while still using it.



The last instalment was the white 131 Super bought on Ebay in 2008.  Now sold to a new owner who will keep it in the same fine condition it was bought in.



That?s my 131 history. Unless circumstances dictate I can?t see myself being without one again. The car has been responsible for many happy memories and for helping me make many friends and to meet many new people.

[mirafioriman]

Nice write up Kev. I wish I had photos of my father's cars that he had during my youth but unfortunately I don't appear to have any 

[Rob 131]

In the looks department IMO the Argenta was definitely a step back from the S3 132  The range of colours for the S3 132 was also better 

[mirafioriman]

I like both the 132 series 3 and the Argenta. I don't think the Argenta's looks were popular with many people, but I tend to like oddball stuff

[Rob 131]

The major problem with the Argenta IMO was those big Rectangular Front Head Lamps were too large and just added to the 'sqareness' of the vehicle  . The competition Sporty Cavaliers and Sierra's primarily were a great deal more modern. The thing appeared to sit too high on the road and the standard wheels were dull.

The attractive exteriors colours (many of which were lost) / interior combinations of the 132 were lost. Most Argenta's seem to be in light metallic blue or siliver and looked a bit dreary compared to the S3 132. The wonderful metalic green of the 132 was gone  There were many in a metalic brown colour IMO not nice; wheras the S3 132 in Bronze looked great.

I think Fiat were losing there way around this time and the Regatta was just around the corner Apologies in advance to any Regatta Owners it is just IMO it was a step back and dived into the world of blandness. 

[mirafioriman]

Same headlamps on the series 1 Argenta as on the 131 series 2 and 3!