By Classic Yorkshire contributor Tony Lofthouse
A keen classic car collector from Bradford is enjoying his latest buy, a rare 1978 Fiat 124 Spider.
British Airways worker Shahid snapped up the 1800cc left-hand-drive soft-top at a Surrey auction and paid just £7,000 (its lower sale estimate).
It ended his long search to find another ‘Spider’ having previously owned a 1988-registered Alfa Romeo Spider.
“I missed driving a Spider and when I saw this one for sale it seemed right – all the jigsaw pieces came together,” said Shahid.
Finished in a stunning deep burgundy with piped cream leather upholstery, the car spent its first 35 years in the USA.
It came to the UK in 2013 and has been lightly driven.
Its previous owner had rebuilt the engine, fitted a new exhaust and carried out other mechanical repairs, but the Fiat was largely as it left the showroom back in the seventies. The car has also retained its original US spec bumpers.
Shahid explains why he enjoys his Spider: “There is a real earthy and honest feel to the car. It has a basic engine, a light body and classic features I like, including winding windows and dashboard buttons.
“It’s a joy to drive and just runs and runs. The only issue I found when I bought it was smoke coming from the exhaust manifold.
“I got this quickly fixed by Jaggers Garage of Halifax Road, Bradford who I regularly use. Experts like Jaggers do a terrific job and are few and far between for classic car repairs as well as modern everyday cars for MOTs and servicing,” said Shahid.
As well as his Fiat Spider, Shahid owns a 1972 Mercedes-Benz 450 SL and a Volvo P1800 from the sixties. He also previously owned a 1982 Porsche 911, before selling it to a collector in Switzerland.
The iconic Fiat 124 Spider was designed by Pininfarina and was built from 1966 to 1985. The early models came with a 1438cc engine, before progressing to 1608cc (from 1970), 1756cc (in 1974) and 1995cc from 1979.
Almost 200,000 Spiders were made with three-quarters going to the US market.
A modern ‘re-boot’ of the Fiat Spider briefly went into production for four years to 2019, fitted with a 1.4 litre turbo unit. It was developed in collaboration with Mazda and assembled in Japan.
Lovely car.
I don’t live in Bradford any more but in the early 80’s used to get repairs done by Jaggers Garage and was really pleased to see they are still going.