Sixtysixdeuce
New member
and soon to be owner (sort of) of a 1979 Spider 2000. Information is kinda scarce in my searches, turning up alot of what I don't need, so I figured I'd come ask some experts. As I said, I'm a Mopar guy to the core, but the girlfriend is buying this little drop top in a couple days, and I want to figure out how to make it more usable on US highways (here in Colorado, left lane interstate speeds often exceed 90 MPH outside of town).
Gotta admit, just reading over posts here is a little alien to me. I belong to other car forums, but the members are primarily American and the vehicles have twice the weight and 3-5 times the engine displacement (Personally, except my little Dodge Daytona Shelby 2.2l turbo, my other vehicles range from 4.0 to 7.6 litres), so please bear with me as I acclimate
Having driven the car, it's not real fond of 70+ MPH speeds. It lacks the power and gearing to criuse on our interstates. So, what I want to figure out is where I need to go to get set up with fuel injection and dump that carb and, if at all available, where to find an overdrive transmission. This is currently an automatic car (General Motors trans, if I'm not mistaken), but if no 4 speed auto's are available, it may go the 5 speed manual route.
Lastly, anyone who's done a turbo conversion, your input would be greatly appreciated. The little 2.0 DOHC engine seems a good candidate for a T-3, and the vehicle could definitely use another 40 or 50 ponies.
I'm also unable to find much in the way of what kind of fuel economy to expect?
As for the car itself, I'll post pics when it gets home. 93k miles, Very good condition inside and out, zero rust. Has been painted black (was silver) and the paint isn't perfect, but looks fine from a few feet back. Only mechanical problems I found were a loose upper ball joint and badly cracked front brake hoses. Parts availability seems quite good on these little critters. And I was surprised at how roomy it was, despite it's outward appearance; At 5'11" and 180 pounds (180 cm, 82 Kg), I did not feel at all cramped. Good job, Fiat!
And of course, anything else people would like to share about the qualities and idiosyncracies of these little cars is welcome. Gotta keep this thing runnin' good for her. Me? I'll be passing everything but a gas station in my 440-powered '78 Dodge Aspen T-top coupe
Happy motoring!
Gotta admit, just reading over posts here is a little alien to me. I belong to other car forums, but the members are primarily American and the vehicles have twice the weight and 3-5 times the engine displacement (Personally, except my little Dodge Daytona Shelby 2.2l turbo, my other vehicles range from 4.0 to 7.6 litres), so please bear with me as I acclimate
Having driven the car, it's not real fond of 70+ MPH speeds. It lacks the power and gearing to criuse on our interstates. So, what I want to figure out is where I need to go to get set up with fuel injection and dump that carb and, if at all available, where to find an overdrive transmission. This is currently an automatic car (General Motors trans, if I'm not mistaken), but if no 4 speed auto's are available, it may go the 5 speed manual route.
Lastly, anyone who's done a turbo conversion, your input would be greatly appreciated. The little 2.0 DOHC engine seems a good candidate for a T-3, and the vehicle could definitely use another 40 or 50 ponies.
I'm also unable to find much in the way of what kind of fuel economy to expect?
As for the car itself, I'll post pics when it gets home. 93k miles, Very good condition inside and out, zero rust. Has been painted black (was silver) and the paint isn't perfect, but looks fine from a few feet back. Only mechanical problems I found were a loose upper ball joint and badly cracked front brake hoses. Parts availability seems quite good on these little critters. And I was surprised at how roomy it was, despite it's outward appearance; At 5'11" and 180 pounds (180 cm, 82 Kg), I did not feel at all cramped. Good job, Fiat!
And of course, anything else people would like to share about the qualities and idiosyncracies of these little cars is welcome. Gotta keep this thing runnin' good for her. Me? I'll be passing everything but a gas station in my 440-powered '78 Dodge Aspen T-top coupe
Happy motoring!
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