Wahey! Passed its MOT first time!

Had a very restless night last night, worrying about what unknown horrors the MOT man would find this morning.

But, joy of joys, the little beauty sailed through the test with no faults found.

So - having put aside a few quid for the MOT, just in case, I'm tempted to blow it on sorting out some of those bits & bobs that have been irritating me.

So, what to do first?

New hood and seals? Not a priority. The original red hood has faded a bit and has a few small splits in the usual places, but she never goes out in the rain!

New head-unit, speakers and subwoofer to replace the standard-fit? Very tempting, but as I usually drive her with the roof down, and love listening to the sound of the engine & exhaust at full chat, again it's not a priority!

Uprated springs and shocks? Also very tempting. It would be great to stiffen up the suspension so that she's less skittish in the twisty bits - but the existing shocks were declared AOK (they were replaced 3 years ago) so there's no need to replace them yet. Mr Sensible says: "wait until they're worn before upgrading them"

Strut-brace and anti-roll bar upgrade? Could be the way to go. Searching through the posts here, I see that some of you recommend the ARB upgrade before tackling the springs/shocks anyway...

Any other suggestions? (she's a '98 LE, so I've already got a beautiful red leather interior and alloys )

Congratulations. Mind took a couple of months top get through as I needed a lot of paperwork to prove that the springs and shocks were OK (they don't like you modding cars in Belgium).

Anyway, for my money I'd go for the Eibach springs (I did the shocks too but mine had gone at the back anyway). The handeling is very precise and not too harsh.

I think Lee would agree, but the Doc's got Konis and has done the ARB.

Keep it for a rainy day, sounds like the B is spot on so why change it

Take a tour of Europe with the Barchetta, then you get to enjoy the car and enjoy a holiday!

Good idea will be a much better memory than oil & dirt ingrained hands...

I see that I'm not the only Mr Sensible on this forum!

Funnily enough, I'm off to Finland in 3 weeks - but on Ryanair, not in the B!

It's a great trip by car (ferry from Harwich to Esjberg, leisurely drive across Denmark, over the stunning Oresund Bridge to Sweden, leisurely drive across Sweden, ferry from Stockholm to Turku) - but there's a snag!!

I'm taking my 2 daughters, and 3 into B won't go!

How small are they? I can lend you my rack......

18 & 16 - it'll need to be a helluva strong rack!

Well done, I always think that the MOT is worse than the anticipation that goes with a trip to the dentist!!

If you don't have a strut brace then I would recommend one, sorts out the scuttle shake in the corners - I can also recommend the Eibach springs and standard shocks, thats my setup and I am very happy with the way she handles!

Thanks Lee - strut brace and Eibach springs sounds like the way to go, especially if I can keep the standard shocks for the time being!

No problem, both are easy jobs!

Guide to changing the springs are here;

http://www.fiatforum.com/barchetta-g...placement.html

I bought my springs from an eBay shop in Germany, took about a week to come but saved quite a bit. This is the eBay shop that supplied them, they don't show any in stock at the moment but you could try sending them a mail;

http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/klapper-autoteile

Terrific guide, Lee - many thanks!

Another one like that and Alan's whisky is yours for sure!

The photos are great. I bet my rusty nuts are rustier than yours.

The DIY jobs may have to wait awhile. Without wishing to jump on the "Barchetta Owners With Dodgy Backs" bandwaggon, I slipped a disk in my neck a few months ago, and anything that involves twisting & turning my head (which all jobs on the car seem to do) are a definite no-no.

Bit of a b*gger, but every cloud has a silver lining - that ceiling in the kitchen will have to wait awhile! (I think I see at pattern here...)

The curse of the b strikes again - bad back and no inclination get on with house related DIY!!

Bad backs are undeniably a curse (nerve pain is as bad as the pain of childbirth, according to my osteopath, although try telling that to 'Er Indoors ), but after many years of DIY on my house, I'd prefer to describe my current DIY aversion as flowing from a highly developed sense of self-preservation!