79 California Spider

[ohanasurf]

I have a 79 2000 cc Spider. Picked up as donated vehicle off Craigslist for 3K. I believe this vehicle sat in a garage somewhere for a long time, the paint and body are in really great condition. It run's smooth and I have had it up to 85 mph on the freeway with no problem. I live in San Juan Capistrano six miles off the Ortega hwy on a gated private road. It's a climb from 500 ft to 2500 ft on a windy mountain road, the car has plenty of torque, My question is shouldn't this motor be capable of getting up to higher speed ? I would appreciate any suggestions on maintenance, performance parts to bring this vehicle up to it's potential while keeping it California legal ( emission control systems must remain installed). I have learned so much from reading all the post on this site and from all the guys at Alisson's

[narfire]

From what I understand is the 79 and 80 carb'd were the lowest rated horsepower of the entire Fiat 124 run. I believe the 1438 had a higher HP rating.
Many have improved the performance by bolting on a 1800 head , single plane intake and a better carb. One thing though, I have no idea what it would do when you go to the CA testing station...probably fail I guess.
Allison's would be the go-to place to get a better idea what can be done.

[So Cal Mark]

the simple upgrade is a 32/36 carb, keeping your 2L intake. It can be disguised to look like a stock setup for smog checks. We've done lots of them and it adds gobs of power

[fiat218]

I have a 79 2000 cc Spider. Picked up as donated vehicle off Craigslist for 3K. I believe this vehicle sat in a garage somewhere for a long time, the paint and body are in really great condition. It run's smooth and I have had it up to 85 mph on the freeway with no problem. I live in San Juan Capistrano six miles off the Ortega hwy on a gated private road. It's a climb from 500 ft to 2500 ft on a windy mountain road, the car has plenty of torque, My question is shouldn't this motor be capable of getting up to higher speed ? I would appreciate any suggestions on maintenance, performance parts to bring this vehicle up to it's potential while keeping it California legal ( emission control systems must remain installed). I have learned so much from reading all the post on this site and from all the guys at Alisson's

my 72 has a 2 liter, top speed is 105, i was like geee, THAT IT lol. i have a 69 1438, not sure what top speed is

[Daniel]

almost all 70s era 4 cylinder cars ( toyota datsun mg ford chevy fiat) in stock form would be lucky to break 100 mph