My 131 comming along

[parrish]

Hers a few of the latest pictures of my 131 curently waiting for wheels and MOT (should be done by now).
Im currently working here in Qatar so wont get to see or drive her for another 3 weeks.



Note that the car is not pretending to be an Abarth replica (other than the badge) more of a 'what i would like the car to look like' hence the blended in body lines and smoother front corners and rear panel.
Engine is needing a bit of work but thats ongoing.
Good luck with the www
Steve

[Thotos]

Nice looking 131 Steve?

[parrish]

Thanks for the comment,
Next time you see it she (all cars are She's) should be 40mm lower all round, have 9 x 15 wheels and 225 50 tyres and a pair of 45's fitted.
Steve

[andyc]

nice looking car hope to post pics of mine soon and compare notes
Andy 

[Thotos]

Looking forward to seeing your pictures andyc!

[parrish]

MOT'd today, not fully ready for the road though as the wide alloy wheels i have wont fit over the callipers on the front (Uno vented discs and calipers) im currently searching for some long (55mm) bolts with flat heads so i can put some spacers on.

[hicky131]

It looks a bit different since it was parked next to your car a few years ago Theo!

[Thotos]

I remember the day that photo was taken. In fact I was thinking when I saw photos of Steve's car "I've seen those wheels before" but I never realised it was the same car!

[jseabolt]

Where can I get one of those rear trunk/boot spoilers? Any chance those fender/wing flares will work on a four door?

[parrish]

Rear rubberised spoiler is standard Fiat 131 mirafiori sport equipment.
Ask on this and other web sites im sure someone will have one for sale.
Try My mate Wayne (see profile) he keeps a lot of spares.
As for the arches, i suppose you could fit them to any car, however modifications required for a four door would be drastic, i have heard somewhere that rear quarters of a two door can be welded to the rear of a four door!
Steve

[Thotos]

The rear rubber spoilers were not standard on the 131 Sport but were fitted as optional extras by most owners. I thought long and hard if I wanted one on the back of my current 131 Sport and eventually decided I preferred the "cleaner" line as Fiat intended and didn't fit one. They are quite easy to get hold of in Europe as a lot of cars had them fitted and being rubber they don't rust so they have out-survived the cars they were fitted to. I have two of them (somewhere...) but from what I remember neither of them are perfect.

The plastic wheel arch extensions will fit a four door car for sure as I've seen a few four door cars with them fitted.  The front ones have the spoiler end-plates at the bottom which connect to the spoiler at the bottom of the bumper so they should be fitted complete with front bumper and spoiler. And if you are going to do that you might as well replace the rear bumper to match. There was a complete set for sale on UK eBay recently. I can't remember if it sold so if it hasn't it might be back soon. Keep looking on www.ebay.co.uk.

The doors on a 2 door car are much longer than the front doors on a four door car so I doubt the rear quarters are interchangeable between two door and four door cars.

[parrish]

I bow to your knowledge on the originality of the rear spoiler, however i beg to disagree with regards fitting 2 door rear quarters to a 4 door car, if you fit the doors from a 2 door car as well as a pair of rear quarters im sure everything would line up! 'B'' post would have to be moved, a lot of work i would agree but it is possible.
The standard sport trim would fit a 4 door i again agree, i answered the question thinking James had asked about the fibreglass group 4 arches as fitted to my car.
Just as an aside, Im sure ive seen a 4 door rally car somewhere? I think it was a works one as well, ill have to search the www.
Steve

[Thotos]

I agree that a 4 door car can be converted to 2 door but as you say it's not just a case of replacing the rear quarters. The front doors will need to be replaced, the B-posts moved or even better replaced (different on the 2 door cars) and the sills are different so better replace those while moving/replacing the B-posts. Not a job worth doing, I'd say... 

I saw photographs of a 4 door car that had the rear doors welded shut and the gaps filled to make it into a 2 door car. It looked extremely strange! 

I believe there were 4 door Volumetrico Abarths as rally cars as well as a 4 door Diesel works rally car (recently offered for sale on eBay). I'll look for some photos... 

[simon131]

Seems to me you are actually agreeing with one another chaps, but talking at slightly cross purposes.

James, the plastic wheel arch kit and front spoiler arrangement as used on the 131 Sport/Racing WILL fit the four door car without modification. Just screws on. However, the extended wheel arch kit as used on the Abarth and Steve's car will NOT fit the four door without serious modification to the rear arches.

The rear boot spoiler, as Theo says, was definitely not a standard fitment for the Sport, but was available as a aftermarket option from FIAT. Back in the 80s I fitted a rubber Richard Grant rear spoiler to my 2000TC Super. It looked great.

The 131 diesel works rally cars were Series 1 cars used on the London to Sydney Rally in 1977. They were white two door cars, three of them from memory, and one was recently for sale at Guy Moerenhout's place in Belgium. Looked very much like the series 1 131 S externally but they had wide arches and were strengthened. Strangely enough they had neither an Abarth body (diesels were 2-door body type 131 A1) nor independant rear suspension.?

Not ever seen 4 door Group 4 or WRC type 131's though. There were four door Group 2 cars, but they didn't look the same as a Abarth/Volumex. I'd be interested to see pics of a 4-door Rally 131.

Incidentally, there was a guy called Roger, from Kent, who used to race a four door 131 which had the rear doors welded shut. The last time I saw it though it had a 'Flintstone' floor!!

[Thotos]

As I've said in another post "When Simon speaks about Fiat and especially the 131, us mere mortals should shut-up and listen... "