Monthly Archives: December 2020

Bertone, Fiat, Gandini

1980 Fiat X1/9

We've ventured back into the Volkswagen 8V engine world recently. Making good power for cheap is very possible - if you're willing to sacrifice originality. Making good power on original style equipment is also possible - if you're willing to sacrifice unreasonable wads of cash.

The X1/9 and its 8V engine present a similar problem: do you keep it original and patiently tolerate the crossover SUVs tailgating you from very stoplight? Do you resort to an expensive, peaky engine build? What about a cheaper force-induction build? When you're done with either, you should be able to keep up with the 1.0L Ford fiestas at least. This isn't to say that a stock X1/9 wouldn't be enjoyable, but the environment on roads today does really require some urgent acceleration.

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Bertone, Fiat

1967 Fiat Dino Coupe

The Titanic ship wreck lies 2.5 miles below the sea some 370 miles off the coast of Newfoundland. Even with modern ship recovery equipment, it strikes us as highly improbable that any party would find the financial justification to recover that rusty hunk of iron from the ocean floor.

Some of us are ok with the ship's current location; for those who yearn to see it restored and on display, might we suggest this 1967 Fiat Dino? The body appears presentable at first glance, but once your eyes make their way along the rockers and the base of the windshield, the extensive rust lurking beneath the panels becomes apparent. It will take an optimist to make a financial case for this Dino Coupe.

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Forbidden Fruit Fridays, I.DE.A Institute, Lancia

1995 Lancia Dedra Station Wagon

Forbidden Fruit Fridays

We're kicking off a new recurring post here at CICFS: Forbidden Fruit Fridays. These shorter posts will feature cars unavailable in the United States - especially those that would make Europeans shake their head in disapproval. The grass is not always greener on the other side, after all. To kick off this feature, we've selected a Lancia Dedra Station wagon. These are nothing to lust after in their native Italy, but the novelty of a manual station wagon Lancia is too strong for an American website such as CICFS to ignore!

The Dedra sits on the Fiat Type Three platform shared with the Alfa Romeo 155 and Fiat Tempra. From the looks of the cam covers, the 16V version's 102hp 16V engine is an evolution of the classic Fiat Lampredi twin cam engine. And, unlike in the BMW e30 wagon, lifting the rear hatch gains you access to the entire load floor - no taillights in the way here.

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