Fiata for sale

The garage is full, the calendar is full, and the bank account is ..... well.....

It’s time to throw in the towel on a project and this is the one. 

$500 gets you the car as it sits. Needs wiring, driveshaft, drive axels, clutch hydraulic line, and exhaust from the header ends.  It also needs a lot of fab finishing and little finishing bits but the extent of that depends on what you decide to do to make it yours.

What the heck is a fiata you say? Well it’s what happens when you combine the outer body of a 1979 fiat spider, the floor pan and suspension of a 1997 Mazda Miata, and the engine/ trans of a 1990 ford ranger. It was originally Intended to be a challenge project but I can’t get it under the $2k limit in any competitive way with how I have to expense it and my teammates no longer live in the same part of the country to help with labor.

i am hoping if I sell it for this price someone her with better facilities, better fab skills, more helping hands, and better parts procurement skills can get it to the challenge.

there was a build thread going but photoberkit and imagur both gave up the hosting for pics so imagination is required. I’d be happy to send you all the work photos I have.

bill of sale only. Will be sold as a 1979 fiat since that is the only vin left after the grafting. Though I really doubt this would ever be titleable or insurable.

You need to hook up Travis (maschinenbau). He's in Atlanta too

This thread needs pics! If the Ranger engine is a Lima, a jy turbo swap could get this combination into serious levels of ridiculousness

Not Lima..... cologne.

Honestly the engine trans combo is now my least favorite part of the build. It was conceived in 2009 and older pick ups seemed to mace the most rwd manual options for a price we thought we could work with. A decade has passed and there are better options in the price range.... especially for those with the time, space,  and google foo to find them.

The two pictures above are of the project. First one is roughly current state... except the hole in the hood is patched. Second photo is the engine transmission combo and the donor Miata chassis beyond.

Bump for 2020.... and to say that the receipt can be tailored to the buyers needs.

Because I don't speak ford, what engine am I looking at?

4.0 v6

I was expecting a Lima as well.  

Wondered where this had got to since it was going full steam ahead, until it was not.

I think it really needed a V8 to be worth the going. Lot of stuff there for the asking price and I can easily see this as a challenge car with a 302/T5 . LS would be hard to get in there for the budget.

In reply to NOHOME :

That's funny, because I think LS/4l60-65-80 are much easier to find in budget than 302/t5s...

In reply to Robbie :

If you can stick with the auto you have a chance. The 4l60 has been described as a hand-grenade and the L80 as a lot of $$$. But getting rid of the cylinder cut-out hardware, getting it programed  and finding the intake and accessory bit for the front now ads up to $$$ because all the cool kids are doing it. But, having said that, the Challenge is first and foremost a contest in finding cheap parts to build a contraption.

Pete

Kind of want, but also, too many projects right now.

Wonder what it weighs?

I don’t disagree that the motor/ trans in the project now is the weak point. Size wise it works well but the low redline doesn’t work that well with the Miata diff ratios.  It is essentially a Miata chassis so any v8 that could work in a Miata will work here with some modification to the hood. But I think the sweet spot would be a turbo inline 4 or 6 as it would drastically improve the intake/ exhaust limitations of a ‘v” motor. 

Honestly I don’t know the current weight. But it seems pretty light when I move it around. Biggest weight change is likely moving the center a little further back as the fiat has a shorter hood line and longer trunk line.

anyway. I’m realizing that it may be difficult to assess what the $500 gets you since this is no where near stock and admittedly isn’t done. Probably limiting this somewhat to someone local enough to lay their own eyes on it. 

There are now three weeks until my rent is due on the storage space. I would love to avoid paying that fee......

PM'd you because I'm dumb

Can I tow dolly it? Can I put a miata engine/trans back in it? 

In reply to accordionfolder :

Honestly that was my thought too. Re-bodied Miata with vintage looks and not-Fiat reliability

I'd say the only limitation on reinstalling the miata running gear is the nose length. The radiator is probably 5" closer to the diver now than it was originally. However, you could reinstall the miata running gear back slightly from its original location since the firewall was moved back for the V6 and just rework mounts and driveshaft length. And I cant promise the hood would close as the cowl of the miata chassis was about an inch and a half taller than the fiat one. But my chassis didn't have a miata motor in it when I bought it so I cant verify that at all.

In reply to accordionfolder :

I dont see why you couldnt tow dolly it. It currently has no driveshaft so the rear wheels should roll freely. But I should qualify that I have never actaully rolled the car at speed since I bought it as a stripped chassis and trailered it home. Fastest it ever went on wheels with me as a witness was rolling down the sellers driveway to my trailer. 

Im pretty surprised i havent gotten more interest. It occurs to me that "fiata" isn't a mass produced commodity so maybe more pics would help? If so the following were taken today at the storage unit. It is sitting on my trailer (which is NOT for sale) so you will need to use your imagination where the trailer wheel covers hide the rockers. 

engine bay....