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1975 124 Spider door lock interchange with 79?

Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2021 11:24 pm
by stevexs29
Hello,
New to this forum and I just acquired a 1975 Fiat 124 Spider. Arizona Car. I am looking for a matching lock set (Trunk and doors) I can find sets for 79-85, but not 66-78. Has any one tried using the 79-85 locks on a pre 79 Spider?

Re: 1975 124 Spider door lock interchange with 79?

Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2021 10:11 am
by 18Fiatsandcounting
The door handle changed between 1978 and 1979 from the "pull handle" style to the "lever tab" style, but I think they are entirely different and thus not interchangeable without a fair amount of effort.

Do you have door handles, and just need the lock sets for these and the trunk? If so, the door handle locksets for the early years can be found at:
https://autoricambi.us/outer-door-handl ... t-1966-78/

A decent locksmith should be able to rekey your trunk latch to match these keys. I have done it myself as the trunk locks are notoriously "sloppy", and with a handful of trunk keys, I've been able to open many trunks as I can usually find one key that is close enough to work. To get the latch correct for a new key, remove the four "tumblers" inside and move them around to match the new key, perhaps with some gentle filing here and there. Don't lose the springs; they are tiny!

You can do the same with the glovebox lock if you so desire.

-Bryan

Re: 1975 124 Spider door lock interchange with 79?

Posted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 12:39 am
by stevexs29
Bryan,
Thanks for the info. I will try that.