BFO 800V

[sporty darren]

I owed this Fiat 131 Sport for 2 years or so, rebuilt by my friends and me, anyone seen it about.
will post photo's soon as only just registered.

[gerafiori]

welcome sporty darren,  what colour was it  and where abouts you located?
gerry

[sporty darren]

nice to meet you gerry ,it was gun metal grey but we sprayed it silver in the end,lookedgreat am located in plymouth , devon               

[pjp]

Hello sporty darren,

I have also owned this car and here?s my story about it?

I had a friend with a 131 Mirafiori Sport ? gun metal grey with grey velour upholstery ? that I had been a willing passenger in for around 6 months of flat-out driving.  These cars were like nothing I had been in before and I just had to have one.

After looking for a few weeks, I found BFO 800V in 1986 with the same colour combination and after a quick drive and merely a casual look around, I said I would buy it and gave a deposit.  This was a real purchase of the heart!

The owner offered to meet me half-way from his home, at a motorway service station on the M5 for the final payment, so I got my Dad to drive my girlfriend and I up there with a bag of money (can?t remember how much it was).  After the exchange, we followed my Dad for a couple of miles back down the M5 and then floored it!  The car was an absolute rocket ship (remember, it was 1986!) and I thought I had just purchased the perfect car.

It didn?t take me long to find out that BFO 800V had not aged well or been the recipient of regular maintenance.  Rust had taken hold in a way the defied its 5 year age and various areas had incredibly bodged repairs (such as a ?? hole in a rear tyre had been ?repaired? by a huge blob of glue on the inside).

Although the condition of the car was poor, the driving experience was thrilling.  The suspension was stiff, the Pirelli P6s gave huge grip, the engine was strong, the steering direct, and the close-ratio, short throw 5-speed gearbox was superb.

I drove this car hard for the entire time I owned it (around 3 years) and it only occasionally left me stranded.  Having said that, I was always doing some sort of preventative maintenance to the car, trying to ensure that I could keep it running a little longer.

My last fast drive was on the M5, returning to Somerset from my job in London, when the engine blew a piston.  I drove the last 20 miles home at about 30 mph on 3 cylinders, making the loudest din imaginable.  I eventually turned onto my street, switched the engine off and coasted to a stop on the gravel driveway, with plumes of smoke coming out of the bonnet.  

I had had enough of the car at that stage as far as the maintenance and repair costs were concerned, and sold it for a song to a guy who seemed keen to rebuild it.  I don?t know how he managed it, but he got the RAC to tow BFO 800V all the way back to his home (I think it was over 50 miles!).

I am also interested to hear what happened to BFO 800V.  I cannot imagine for one second that it is still being driven.  I am keen to buy the registration for old times sake, so if anybody does know its whereabouts, please leave a post!

[mirafioriman]

The enquiry is complete 

 The vehicle details for BFO 800V are: 

Date of Liability  01 12 1989 
Date of First Registration  05 03 1980 
Year of Manufacture  1980 
Cylinder Capacity (cc)  1995CC 
CO2 Emissions  Not Available 
Fuel Type  Petrol 
Export Marker  Not Applicable 
Vehicle Status  Unlicensed 
Vehicle Colour  GREY 
Vehicle Type Approval  null 
The information contained on this page is correct at the time of enquiry. 
Vehicle Excise Duty Rate for vehicle     
6 Months Rate  ?104.50 
12 Months Rate  ?190.00 

Unlicensed since 1989 so either deceased or sitting in a garage or quiet place somewhere.......

[sporty darren]

hi pjp, did you live in illminster? Because i think i am the one that bought her of you . because you added a door in the deal . it took about four months to do her up , lots of welding  :-\I kept her for about two years then sold her for 1000 pounds.Last i seen she had been in a minor smash and then appeared in auto trader a year later as spares or repair.this was in 1989 about i have posted pictures of her on the forum when we were doing her up should be on intraductions. alast i think she is no more but you never know

[pjp]

Hi sporty Darren,

Yes, I did live in Ilminster.  So you were the brave one who purchased it!  I am sure it was a huge job to restore the body and repair the engine?  I?ll take a look at the photos that you have posted.

That was an interesting post from mirafioriman showing the vehicle status.  I would like to think that it is in a barn somewhere, just rusting away peacefully?

[sporty darren]

sorry pjp its in general disscusion page 5 the silver sport is bfo 800V 

[sporty darren]

unfortunatly she was in a garage in plymouth , stoke area i think ,i never seen her again , i still have the original auto trader advert .The photos are in general disscusion page 5 .that was a interesting bit of news from mirafiori man ,but not good news

[pjp]

So is the top photo BFO 800V in this link?  http://131mirafiori.com/smf/index.php?topic=2070.0

[sporty darren]

yes and the others showing us doing her up, i had more photos but carnt seem to locate them as yet . we fitted the vinil foof because when we took the roof spoiler off there was a few holes ,we welded them up and fitted the roof. thats what made me change coulour,    Must sign off now time for bed if i find those other photos i will post them

[pjp]

Great.  I would like to see any other photos that you have.  Cheers.

[sid131]

Electric windows & manual choke? she looks nice mine had the pippin red seats though & the grey 628 colour, its in we seek them & there FIB 1588 sadly long deceased i think.

[kev131]

Great postings and I'm sure memories for you guys - Keep up the stories and photos please!

We love to hear about other people's experiences with these great cars! 

[131 Devon Dave]

Bought back the memories looking at this and the things we used to get up to. Darren bought the car and at the time did not really have a clue how we were going to get it home. So we called out the AA and told them the engine just blew up that night.So they towed it home. Then we spent months getting rid of the rust.