72 Spider, rebumpered, carpet dyed, RUNNING!

Keeping it sharp - paint, wax, detailing, etc.
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Raze

72 Spider, rebumpered, carpet dyed, RUNNING!

Post by Raze »

Got the bumpers back on, though I still haven't put the final corner retaining bolts in yet:

Before:
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After:
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Painted the front grille flat black:

Before:
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After:
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Dyed the carpet black:

Before:
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After:
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The real excitement is getting it running, after I retimed the cams which were off 5° and 10° respectively she now lights right off and has ample power, though it's running rich and has a slight burning smell of metal, though there were no shavings in the oil when I changed it and it does seem to be a very leaky engine so it'll get fixed up this winter. Wiring will be redone as well as there are many uncovered spade connectors, electric fuel pump wired in to the ignition switch with no safety shutoff, chaffed wires, etc. The reman trans and clutch are tight! and it's a pleasure to drive. It's like no carb'd car I've ever driven, there is zero hesitation, it's very close to a FI car. I have to check timing on top of the running rich issue. I'm working on classic car insurance and if all is well she'll be tagged next week!
wikkid

Re: 72 Spider, rebumpered, carpet dyed, RUNNING!

Post by wikkid »

Absolutely beautiful!
May I ask what carpet dye you used? I have some faded brown carpeting, and it might be worth trying a dab of touch-up.
-Chris
Raze

Re: 72 Spider, rebumpered, carpet dyed, RUNNING!

Post by Raze »

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Duplicolor Vinyl and Fabric Dye. I vacuumed the carpet then cleaned the old carpet with a Bissel Green Machine using oxy clean rug doctor cleaner, took out about a pound of dirt and nastiness, turned the carpet close to original grey/black speckle. Then I just opened the garage door, flipped open the top and went to town, I only masked off some of the chrome trim inside near the door jamb, other than that it has a very defined 2° wide by 25° tall spray fan out of the can which is highly controllable. It took me one full can to do the whole interior and less than an hour. The carpet is 'rougher' than before, but since it's such coarse carpet to begin with I couldn't care, the result vs time and effort is amazing.
Raze

Re: 72 Spider, rebumpered, carpet dyed, RUNNING!

Post by Raze »

Oh I forgot to add, I got new tires Kuhmo PowerStars on clearance down at Kauffman Tire, and I got a battery box from SouthWest Speed: (hotlinked from there)
Image I had to cut off the bolt retaining brackets on both sides to get it into the stock location as my old battery tray was rusted through and bondo'd. I tore it all out, painted it up to seal it and then mounted this in it's place with large fender washers and bolts through the pass wheel fender. It's much stronger than stock. I also ended up with a smaller battery group than stock as well, but I'm happy with the result:

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meangreenspider
Posts: 134
Joined: Thu Apr 22, 2010 10:57 am
Your car is a: 1982 Fiat Spider 2000
Location: Lexington Ohio

Re: 72 Spider, rebumpered, carpet dyed, RUNNING!

Post by meangreenspider »

Nice car, I really like the black grill
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