The Saga of an Ebay X...

[Fiatpwr]

The car arrived today. If you want to get up to speed here is the link to where it started.

This began some time ago. My wife & I have been off & on looking for an X. This one looked real good and came from a seemingly reputable shop. We through down a gamble.

After 10 days of zig zagging all over the country it showed up today. Our neighborhood is a little tight for a car hauler so I had the truck go to a trailer sales lot up to road with more room.







Husband & Wife team. Very nice people. Of course they had to remove 6 cars off to get the X off. Over 2 dozen hydraulic levers. A stressful dance for the truck driver. It was about 90 degrees as well.



This is where I noticed a back up light is out....


I slapped the plate from my 131 on and went next door for some high test.



The idle is a little low and uneven (old gas?) but it drove well and shifted well.


Just on the 1 mile drive home I could see quite a few areas that need attention. But I'm going to focus on how good it looks after a bath.


Stay tuned!

[bbrown]

You're gonna love it!
BTW, I'm in southern NH near Brattleboro, VT

[Fiatpwr]

I payed what I, and I think anyone else would consider top dollar for this car. Not to mention the cost to get it across the country.

First, it was a challenge getting the front hood open. The latch is messed up and the handle does nothing.


Missing screw, no biggie.


Cracked trim.


Brake light is on, probably because the reservoir is cracked and won't hold a sufficient amount of fluid to float the switch.


This one is personal preference. I don't care for this install. I can deal.


The interior was converted from brown to black. I like it. But some steps were skipped. Like the brown vinyl around the targa bar, brown seat belts, no cap on the drivers side and broken defrost wire.


Broken lens.

Cracked lens.
x

Missing sprayer bushing. Both sides are like this.


I will be taking the doors apart to improve the window regulator and fix all the broken door card clips.


Need a O.E. cap.


Lots of overspray to clean up and missing check straps on both sides.


Rust repair?


Glove box hinge is epoxied and the latch dosn't work.


Lenses all need to come out to replace the gaskets and assemble them properly.


The screws here are cross-threaded and loose.


The wife is happy!


I know it's a big list but thee are some bright spots. The carpet is new, the paint is mostly descent and the seats look like a million bucks. Except for the inside door edge, I can't find any visible rust. So I'm not going to look any harder for now.

Just hoping the drivetrain is in better condition.
I'll see you in parts wanted!

More later.....
Jon

[Rooster]

Hi Jon, I have an oe gas cap.

[kungfuty]

Even with all it's faults in general it looks very nice. Congratulations.

Tyrone

[rjplenter]

Looks like it has great bones! You and your wife will really enjoy it.

Welcome to the insanity...errr...I mean club

[LarryC]

Every great car I have ever acquired has been like that. Of course you can pick it to death. But the reality is, it really requires very little and they are all fun things to fix. The real value is in the sound car underneath. You didn't overpay. I think most of us would be happy to start with a used collector car with only those minor details off. Congratulations.

By the way. Do not throw that gas cap away. I have one like that permanently on mine. The key does not work either. But it still screws off. But it sure looks like business. Actually looks better than most of the OEM ones. And screws on and off a lot easier. I put the OEM one on mine a year ago. And then removed it after about a month because it is so difficult to line up the threads compared to the keyed one.

[mbusman]

You stated that it drove and shifted well. Hopefully that's a good sign that it's mechanically in good shape. If so, it looks like the rest is pretty much cosmetic "fluff".

Although I bought my first X in 1977 when I lived in Atlanta, I grew up in the Lake George region of upstate NY. When I used to visit my parents, I had the greatest time driving around the Adirondack mountains. Should be similar in VT. Enjoy the insanity. You have a lot of fellow inmates here.

Mike

[TonyK]

A few auctions on ebay will get you the parts needed to make this 100%.

Deal with the important things first then on to the cosmetics.
Enjoy the car.

Will you be at FFO 2012???

Would love to see the car there.


TonyK.

[Dan Sarandrea (Phila)]

My '86 is an eBay car. I'm in Philadelphia and the car was being sold from Chicago, so after I won the eBay auction on Sunday afternoon I flew out Tuesday morning on Southwest to pay cash in person.

I was fully prepared to walk away from the deal, go back to the airport and take a flight back if the car was some P.O.S. that looked good on eBay but was crap in person. Lucky for me the car was fine: excellent body and chassis with issues that could certainly have been lived with and reasonably repaired if I were not somewhat O-C about my cars

Here's an album of what I got on eBay: http://s14.photobucket.com/albums/a3...a/My%2086%20X/

Best of luck with yours!!!

[Jeff Stich]

Originally Posted by Fiatpwr

First, it was a challenge getting the front hood open. The latch is messed up and the handle does nothing.

Is it just a latch (mis)adjustment? Or a broken cable itself?

Originally Posted by Fiatpwr

Missing screw, no biggie.
The interior was converted from brown to black. I like it. But some steps were skipped. Like the brown vinyl around the targa bar, brown seat belts, no cap on the drivers side and broken defrost wire.
Broken lens.
Cracked lens.
Missing sprayer bushing. Both sides are like this.
...broken door card clips.
Need a O.E. cap.
missing check straps on both sides.
Glove box hinge is epoxied and the latch doesn't work.
Lenses all need to come out to replace the gaskets and assemble them properly.
The screws here are cross-threaded and loose.

There's an X1/9 in a local junkyard near me that could probably take care of all/most of these items for you, if desired.

[ng_randolph]

Originally Posted by Fiatpwr

Missing screw, no biggie.

The factory used stainless for these, McMaster-Carr has black oxide stainless screws that fit and look stock, part number 90356A26. The matching washer is part number 98269A440.

Originally Posted by Fiatpwr

Need a O.E. cap.

The stock cap in not lockable, so if the lock works I'd just use the the one that's on the car.

[Fiatpwr]

Originally Posted by TonyK

Will you be at FFO 2012???

Would love to see the car there.
TonyK.

Not this year. I contemplated the 800 mile drive in the 131, but after last years 1200 mile hot drive to Nashville the wife wasn't up for it. Not sure I am either. Next two years are in NY. See you then!

[Fiatpwr]

Originally Posted by Jeff Stich

Is it just a latch (mis)adjustment? Or a broken cable itself?

The cable still moves. The latch dosn't catch, probably an adjustment.

There's an X1/9 in a local junkyard near me that could probably take care of all/most of these items for you, if desired.

I will take you up on that. Give me a week to digest the situation. Hang onto the engine shield. I will collect it in a 'bulk' order.

[Fiatpwr]

Originally Posted by ng_randolph

The stock cap in not lockable, so if the lock works I'd just use the the one that's on the car.

The cap does lock. I've never had a gas thief, but I suppose there is a first time for everything.

[Fiatpwr]

for all the kind words of encouragement. I do believe it is ultimately a good car. Just needs more work than I was expecting.

It's all just collecting parts. Btw, I'm still waiting on the paper work......

[kmead]

It does look very nice indeed. I'll say this, having owned three X's during my time in Vermont, there are few cars that are as enjoyable as this one on the roads that are here. Driving over Lincoln Gap or one of the myriad roads of the state these cars are a joy. They ride well, don't beat you up and give a rewarding drive that is far beyond their price with few peers (MR2, Miata). They deal with poor road surfaces very well since they don't rely on anti roll bars to deliver excellent handling.

I know the issues with the car are frustrating but I have never bought a used car that met my expectations on all of the details. There is always something to be done.

I didn't realize that you and Bob were not acquainted given your relative proximity. We are really happy to have you on the Xweb.

Karl

[Kevin B (Asheville, NC)]

Originally Posted by Fiatpwr

Next two years are in NY. See you then!

The BOD has only approved FFO 2013 to be in NY (Long Island)

No proposal for 2014, yet...

[BrettM]

I hope that you are able to overlook the minor faults and enjoy the car. I used to get really picky about the small details, then I realized I enjoyed driving my car more than worrying. Have fun with the new ride, love the color too.

[jjay911]

Every Time there was a Ferrari local for sale here in Socal Folks used to contact me and actually pay me money to go and look them over and drive them before they negotiated or payed for one. Just a thought....

I could have gone to look at this car it was only 9 miles from my place..