1972 fiat 850t resto, Engine running at last!!!

[blackridge]

Hello, I bought my little fiat 850t last summer and have been busy grinding, cutting, and welding trying to turn my little van into something unique.
Got to admit that this van was abit of an impulse buy, I was on the look out for a project after finishing my vw t25 and saw this and thought that it would fit the bill.
Here are some pictures the day I got it home, it was last on the road in 2010 and didnt look too bad on first inspection.









Once I started to look a little closer it started to look far worse than I first though.



















Matters only got worse once it removed the pop top.









And as a result of the various holes in the roof this is what was lurking on the inside!









All scary stuff I'm sure you would agree! to make thing even more interesting at this point my welding skills were non existant!
So for anyone that is interested in is rare little van and want to see how I am getting on I will post some more pictures of my progress in a couple of days. Thank for looking

[blackridge]

And here is my inspiration

[Deleted]

Smart looking little thing!! also Realy liking the last pic you posted there!, Realy subtle looking one with the lowered front end...


Look forward to seeing progress on yours, Looks like its a good project.

Seen panda selectas 900 pandora? camper in the for sale forum?

[luckygti]

Love these vans, that does look very very rusty though can you get repair panels or is it all scratch made?

[blackridge]

The only place that i could find panels was on italian ebay, not cheap with the postage but thats the price you pay for restoring a very rare van. And yes it was VERY rusty... as you will see though the body work is almost finished!!!!

[willemm]

I'll like the thread,will follow this,I have also NO welding skills......so like to see how you are doing,and learn from it !

[blackridge]

Right the first area that i set about sorting was the roof, i did have a good idea for a repair section and decided that i could use roof sections from a vw type 2!
So out with the grinder i went.
Here is the repair panel











And this was the kind of metal that was being replaced.







Then i did some more repairs to the roof.

From this



To this



And this



To this

[kingsmith]

good work, got some work ahead but looks like you know what you doing:-)

[craigdmjv]

well done and you could ask my local 500 restoration centre 'weenie fiats swindon' if they could source panels for you as they managed to get parts for my cinq for the next day worth a shout as it most likely shares similar parts to the classic 500

[jpsmit]

outstanding! great inspiration for my Multipla - please keep us updated.

[blackridge]

Rear corners next.

And this scared the curse word out of me



Nice oil filter box holding things together lol











One side done.



This side was a little more involved but got there in the end.

[blackridge]

As soon as the rear corners were done i thought i would change the rear lower panel at the back, i thought it would be an easy job as it is only bolted to the rear chassis legs, it also involved supporting the engine so i could undo the engine mount... easy or was it?

Old panel was full of filler and too far gone to be worth spending any time on it. Here it is with my new panel again bought from italian ebay.



But there was a problem! the engine mount was in the wrong place! So there was only one option...







Worked a treat ;D



Then the rear engine lid/hatch was bolted on.



I then gave the rear a quick rub down and some primer was sprayed on.

[blackridge]

n/s Front lower panel and wheel arch.













Then before i could do the other roof section i needed to fix the area above the rear door where the wat had made quite a mess and really took hold...









Box section was used to give strengh.





don't worry those wires were not there when i was welding





That was the most rusty part of the whole van and i am so glad i managed to fix it.

[georgeb]

Bookmarked, a cracking little(ish) project!

[79cord]

Wow, looking great & very encouraging. Especially when it's shown straight away almost half done -even if it has taken a while to get that far!

[blackridge]

Next up was the rear arches, they were in a right old state so thought the best thing to do would be to completly cut them out find some arch repair panels from another car that had a similar profile!

Here is what the arches looked like after a good going over with a flap disc.







Let cutting commence.









Thats right ford capri mk2 arches work very well , added bonus that they are a little wider so bit more scope for wheels

















These were taken before the rear arches were done, but it gives you a good idea just how small these little vans are (my wife is only 5'6'')

[blackridge]

Mar 12, 2013 12:19:43 GMT 79cord said:

Wow, looking great & very encouraging. Especially when it's shown straight away almost half done -even if it has taken a while to get that far!

Thanks, the photos so far takes it up to around chistmas time, as it stand ATM its almost ready for the final prep and the paint.

[willemm]

WOW what a great progress...........and with little weldingskills.............PPFFF GREAT

[prab]

Hey dude, this van is awesome but how much for the swift gti in the background, been after another one for ages!

[darrenh]

quality work so far

and bonus points for the astra gte leather edition wheels