hcaulfield57
New Member
Hi all,
For a while I've been interested in X1/9 ownership. I've not had room until recently for another car. I had a few questions, which I hope have not been answered ad nausem, but they're sort of individual questions, so who knows.
1. Are there any particular years to avoid? I've heard the carbureted 1500s (79'-80') are problematic and the fuel-injected variants are better. My understanding is earlier cars are lighter, and I'd like a lighter car with less mechanical complexity, but I understand there aren't a ton of these around.
2. Are the cars too heavy and slow to have fun with? Through google, I've heard very little negatives about the X1/9 that aren't rust-related - but I thought I'd ask if only to spark conversation. Different people have different thoughts on what's considered "slow" or "fast". My first "fun" car was a 91' Nissan 300ZX Twin-Turbo with every bolt-on imaginable. That car was fast, but too fast to honestly have fun with in my opinion. I currently own an 83' RX-7 (100 hp / ~2400 lbs) and a 93' Civic (102 / ~2200 lbs). I like small tossable cars and I feel both have more horsepower than I can safely use on the street to be honest.
3. Has the handling aged well? Online everyone seems to go on and on about how good the handling is, but I don't know if that's rose-tinted glasses. My RX-7 for instance was remembered as a good handling car, but the steering is so vague it's scary to drive.
4. What do people do with regards to tires? I personally don't like the look of 15" wheels on these cars from pictures I've seen (looks too gangsta/ballerish in my eyes), but as all owners of vintage cars know there are pretty much zero performance oriented 13"/14" tires out there. Can good handling be achieved on what 13" tires are available today?
I would probably just want the car as something to work on, go on an occasional mountain drive or autocross with. Thanks!
For a while I've been interested in X1/9 ownership. I've not had room until recently for another car. I had a few questions, which I hope have not been answered ad nausem, but they're sort of individual questions, so who knows.
1. Are there any particular years to avoid? I've heard the carbureted 1500s (79'-80') are problematic and the fuel-injected variants are better. My understanding is earlier cars are lighter, and I'd like a lighter car with less mechanical complexity, but I understand there aren't a ton of these around.
2. Are the cars too heavy and slow to have fun with? Through google, I've heard very little negatives about the X1/9 that aren't rust-related - but I thought I'd ask if only to spark conversation. Different people have different thoughts on what's considered "slow" or "fast". My first "fun" car was a 91' Nissan 300ZX Twin-Turbo with every bolt-on imaginable. That car was fast, but too fast to honestly have fun with in my opinion. I currently own an 83' RX-7 (100 hp / ~2400 lbs) and a 93' Civic (102 / ~2200 lbs). I like small tossable cars and I feel both have more horsepower than I can safely use on the street to be honest.
3. Has the handling aged well? Online everyone seems to go on and on about how good the handling is, but I don't know if that's rose-tinted glasses. My RX-7 for instance was remembered as a good handling car, but the steering is so vague it's scary to drive.
4. What do people do with regards to tires? I personally don't like the look of 15" wheels on these cars from pictures I've seen (looks too gangsta/ballerish in my eyes), but as all owners of vintage cars know there are pretty much zero performance oriented 13"/14" tires out there. Can good handling be achieved on what 13" tires are available today?
I would probably just want the car as something to work on, go on an occasional mountain drive or autocross with. Thanks!