Our new X - a 1978 Series 1

Andrew Coles

Andrew Coles

Say no to rice
My dad has been looking around for an X for a while now, and this one came up on ebay the other day. We were told about it at about 830pm at a Fiat club meeting, and by 1030pm we had shot home and bought it! Dad had been looking for an X that was in good condition and ready to drive, but this one seemed too good to pass up for the price. Bidding was at $650 when we found it, but we jumped in and got it for the 'buy it now' price of just $800 (thats about $670 USD).

Its a 12/1978 Series 1 and is totally complete. It must be an early car as it doesnt have the cutout from the boot to the engine bay which intrigued me as I previously thought that all the Aussie cars had the cutout. From the quick poke around we've had it doesnt seem to have very much rust - a slight patch around the base of the windscreen and a little in the right rear fender. None of this rust has broken through however, although I suspect the rust at the windscreen is worse than it looks and I have a sneaking suspicion that the sills might contain some hidden supprises. However its very good for an X, espicially one costing as little as this one!

All the trim bits are there, the dash has a few minor cracks but is very good. The body has been repainted at some stage and it is a little bit dodgy but its liveable for the time being. We'll clean it up and give it a polish tomorow and see how it comes up - although in a few small areas the new paint has lifted showing the original metallic maroon/brown/red underneath.

For some reason the exhaust system, rear grille, intake manifold, carbie and water pump are all off the car and sitting in the boot. Everything is there to put it back together so we'll just do that and crank her over and hope for the best. Apparently it has a freshly (under 1000km) rebuilt head however I can still see an engine rebuild for the 1300 4 speed in the near future though - the guy we bought it off seemed a little slip shod and we dont really trust his mechanical skills!

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The trip down to pick it up was good fun. The car was located on a dairy farm in the country near Mount Gambier, about a 900km round trip from our place and it was an enjoyable, if a little slow trip. As we dont own a tow car I borrowed my friends ute that is used as service vehicle for gravel rallies - a Toyota Hilux 2.8 diseasel. The trip wasnt fast (cruising at 45-110kmh depending on incline) but it gave me a chance to see some of the Coorong which I havnt seen before. We stopped at a servo where an actual attendant filled the tank, we dined on tasty Coorong Mullet for lunch (caught just behind the cafe), we took photos of the car in front of a giant lobster and we witnessed possibly the most amazing sunset Ive ever seen, over the sand dunes and wetlands of the world heritage listen Coorong area. Its great to get out of the city sometimes, espicially when collecting a crusty old Italian sports car is the motivating factor!

Ive got enough spares at home from my own X19 project to fix everything that needs fixing on this car. So the first move is to put my old exhaust system on it, and my old twin choke 34mm carbie which was only rebuilt the other year. We'll put my old 14x6 mags that I had on my car before I started the restoration or maybe the 13x6 minilights that I bought for my car until I want them back in a few months, and we might even swap over my old lowered springs and Koni's that I dont need anymore. We'll change over a few of the trim and body bits and probably leave it like it is. Once my restoration project is finished we'll do the rust, repaint it and rebuild the engine - but all in good time. I think Dad just wants to drive it around and enjoy it for the time being (and so do I when he's at work hehe)

So, the Coles' will hopefully be bringing two X19's to the nationals in January... fingers crossed :)
 
Nice find...

Nice giant lobster!

A lot of folks call that a "rolling resto". Drive it for now, fix as you go. Keeps one interested.
 
Great buy!

I LIKE IT!
Looks like a super great find. Hope you enjoy it!
I especially like the picture with the giant Shrimp!

The interior looks like it needs a lot of love, but how are the seats?
They look like they are of a strange colour to be in a brown car?
 
Nice Color

Looks like the same as my 80 that I recently picked up.

Funny thing about the rust around the windscreen. It seems to be a common thing and I'm not certain I can figure out why. Obviously there must be a drainage/puddling issue, but I've known it to be around for quite a while. Mine too has the problem. Maybe water buildup and chafing against the molding?
 
Congrats Andrew

Looks to be a nice X. I am sure your will Dad get a lot of enjoyment out of it!! :)
 
Always enjoy reading your posts. You write well.

It wouldn't surprise me if the car has a blown head gasket, or if at least some previous *thought* it had a blown head gasket. I'd suggest checking the spark plugs and oil for signs of a head gasket failure, and even going so far as doing a compression test.

Frankly, if it was my car I'd just go ahead and replace the head gasket, checking the head for straightness and cracks and performing a valve job at the same time. Most of the disassembly work is already done so I'd much rather be safe than have to pull the whole thing apart again. Presumably you're going to change the cam belt anyway so the only expense would the gasket set and machine work.

Just a thought....

Enjoy,

///Mike
 
Hi Andrew

Looks like Mike won't be interested in my 78 now:) I'm glad that you went ahead and bought it straight away, I don't think it would have lasted another day on ebay at that price:wink2: Thanks for posting the pics and I'm glad you got it home ok. Can't wait to see it in the flesh, Cheers, Terry
 
Yes Kingston SE

Back when I was 18 or so I was driving back from Mt Gambier on a typical road trip. It was about 5am I was so, so tired as I had been up all night. Now, do you think that stupid Crayfish screwed with my senses. All I could see in the early morning light was its silhouette in the distance.:shock2: I was almost delirious with fear and this compounded by my sleep deprivation.
Probably one of the big wtf's in my life.
I didn't wake my mate until we arrived at Kingston I told him what happened and that it was his turn to drive.:):)

Funny now I look back. I wonder how many others had the byjingos scared out of them?
 
Excellent!
But, yeah... steering wheel is on the wrong side...

Great find, hope I can find something like that in the States in a year!
 
That's one clean 1300 ....

The GF wheels make her look more recent but the clockwise rev counter is the big giveaway.
It's the first early car I've seen without ladder stripes alond the side panels - must be an Aussie market feature. How much better the euro-spec bumpers are though, they really balance up the car well.
I agree with my fellow exxer, though. Bright blue seats and brown exterior is strange - even by italian standards!


Flexing of the windscreen when the side windows are down, practically no anti-rust measures inside the closed box sections and jumping into the car using the screen surround as a lever means that, when the flexing busts the small welds at the base of the screen, water creeps up the box section and rust gains a hold. UK cars were particularly prone to this damage in our damp climate. I've had three cars repaired in the following way:
  • Carefully remove the screen
  • Cut the surround from the frame
  • Clean the recess of all sealant
  • Trim removed, pour into the box section a suitable rust-converter compound - wait to dry
  • Warm Finnegans Waxoyle into the box section
  • Inject expanding closed cell foam into the box section (this technique works well on the sills section too - rocker panels US - and has the added benefit of quietening the car.)
  • When refitting make sure there's enough of a gap between the base of the surround and the foam so that the foam doesn't catch alight when the frame is being welded back in place.
  • More Finningans via a bore hole and supplied spray adaptor
  • Foam again
This work is laborious but efficient. Of the three cars none has shown any reoccurance of rust damage.
Great car.
 
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