Need you opinions on an 850

JimD

JimD

Waiting for Godot...
Moderator
I saw this 850 just a few hours from home. The owner claims that it runs and drives, last registered in 1992 and shows 30,618 miles on the odometer. Reupholstered seats, new carpet and floor pans were "cleaned and sealed" with POR15. He says there is rust underneath but lots of good metal still there. I think I can see some holes in the rear fenders as well.

It looks OK, but I figured I should ask the experts.








How bad does the underside look?






These are all the pictures I have right now, but it seems the X member is there. Hard to judge exactly what area I am looking at in some photos since I don't know 850's at all.

So.... Does anything look un-fixable under there? JimM gave me lots of advice last time I was thinking about an 850. He said to ask about the oil filter service and the kingpins. If the price is right, this looks like it might be a fun car. Are they highway capable at all?
 
In addition to the X-frame under the car, look or have pics taken of where the door hinge support on the car meets the sill. Rust anywhere in the front or rear of the sill is bad news. Not impossible to fix, but bad news.

Aside from some truly horrible paint work, it looks fairly complete. Missing the battery cover and top cover front edge upholstery.

Fun cars, just not very safe. This is why I got my X, it felt like an 850 in terms of driving position and fun, but oh so much safer.
 
looks good, but X member is key

You really need a good look at it, especially where it crosses. Door hinge area is a rust area too, check for sag at minimum.

I'd look closely at the windshield as well. If that all checks out, I'd buy it :)
 
Highway car

I HAVE driven on the highways in my 850, but let me tell you it isn't a relaxing experience. When you get hemmed in my SUV's or God forbid trucks, it's a little unsettling.

The engine is revving pretty high, consistently too. That gets a little tiresome on a long trip. I think the longest I have driven is like 20-30 miles...

However the car is actually a little more fun than my X1/9 on back roads or daily driving. I honestly recommend getting one just for the smiles. Be sure to check kingpins, gas hoses (they have a bad tendency of coming loose if not tightened with radiator hose clamps :) )
and doors.

Seats look superb btw, they did a nice job. Matt at Midwest, Mr Fiat (Atanta, and pricey but has a lot of NOS stuff, nearly everything) and Chris Obert will be your new best friends.

I hope you get it and bring it to FFO :)

oh PS...Battery covers are real cheap, very common part. Just be sure the battery box doesn't have bad rust.
 
Thanks for the info guys

All that rust underneath looks a little scary. I guess I will have to take a road trip to go take a look for myself. Not that I know what the X member should look like, but I know what rust looks like. :)

I will check out all the areas mentioned. How do you check a kingpin? I think it is part of the front suspension... right?

The owner says the price is firm at $1750. Is that out of line?
 
I have no concept of the values of 850s but that seems like a good price to me. A little rust, not horrid structural nightmares (it seems), I'd be tempted to snap that up!
 
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