Hi all,
The story of this car started all the way back in October of 2019. While searching for a roll cage for my seicento track car. Through word of mouth I was told of this car that was half prepped for the cento challenge in Ireland but had been abandoned. It had a roll cage fitted which is all I needed. When I went to view the car it turned out to be a very original Abarth but unfortunately it had started to rot in the usual places.
Unsure of what to do with the car I took it regardless as I needed the cage and it was a good deal. Now months later I am trying to decide what to do with the car. There are pictures below of the cars current state. While it looks a mess it is a complete car most parts on the car are in very good condition such as interior parts and externals like the sunroof. The car has 100,000 miles and complete service history right up till the point it was imported to Ireland in 2014 where it has been off the road since. The car runs and drives fine and never seems to have been messed with.
The bad points. The car is suffering badly from rust. The passenger side rear wheel arch both inner and outer has completely rotted away. The driver side is not as bad but still in a sorry state. The passenger side rear sill has started to rot away. The car has also been in a small rear end collision around 2010. The boot door has been replaced and is missing the spoiler. There is also a small buckle in the rear quarter panel as a result of this. In reality it would have been a very small incident. Otherwise the car is very solid and really the main rust problems are contained at the rear. Mechanically the car is very good, runs and stops as it should. Suspension in very good nick and it did have brand new brakes fitted (obviously could do with a refresh now.) Interior wise there has been 4 box section supports welded in to support the roll cage. These can been very easily cutout. Otherwise the interior is in good condition and is fully complete even the seats are in good condition just needs a clean. The paint has also faded but would buff up fine. Bodywork is also very straight with not many signs of dings and dents.
I am trying to decide if I should save this car or part it out. The car is very rare especially in Ireland and I know it has the potential to clean up and be a nice classic for the road. Apart from the rust on the car there isn't a huge amount of work to get it back to original and re-install the interior. If I was to save the car I would be planning on buying another shell that is being scrapped to use for cutouts. Let me know your opinions.
The story of this car started all the way back in October of 2019. While searching for a roll cage for my seicento track car. Through word of mouth I was told of this car that was half prepped for the cento challenge in Ireland but had been abandoned. It had a roll cage fitted which is all I needed. When I went to view the car it turned out to be a very original Abarth but unfortunately it had started to rot in the usual places.
Unsure of what to do with the car I took it regardless as I needed the cage and it was a good deal. Now months later I am trying to decide what to do with the car. There are pictures below of the cars current state. While it looks a mess it is a complete car most parts on the car are in very good condition such as interior parts and externals like the sunroof. The car has 100,000 miles and complete service history right up till the point it was imported to Ireland in 2014 where it has been off the road since. The car runs and drives fine and never seems to have been messed with.
The bad points. The car is suffering badly from rust. The passenger side rear wheel arch both inner and outer has completely rotted away. The driver side is not as bad but still in a sorry state. The passenger side rear sill has started to rot away. The car has also been in a small rear end collision around 2010. The boot door has been replaced and is missing the spoiler. There is also a small buckle in the rear quarter panel as a result of this. In reality it would have been a very small incident. Otherwise the car is very solid and really the main rust problems are contained at the rear. Mechanically the car is very good, runs and stops as it should. Suspension in very good nick and it did have brand new brakes fitted (obviously could do with a refresh now.) Interior wise there has been 4 box section supports welded in to support the roll cage. These can been very easily cutout. Otherwise the interior is in good condition and is fully complete even the seats are in good condition just needs a clean. The paint has also faded but would buff up fine. Bodywork is also very straight with not many signs of dings and dents.
I am trying to decide if I should save this car or part it out. The car is very rare especially in Ireland and I know it has the potential to clean up and be a nice classic for the road. Apart from the rust on the car there isn't a huge amount of work to get it back to original and re-install the interior. If I was to save the car I would be planning on buying another shell that is being scrapped to use for cutouts. Let me know your opinions.
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