Restomod Fiat X1/9 Quick Review // $30,000 Of Joy
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
- Come join us in a 1970s homemade restomod. This time, it's the Fiat X1/9. It has 180ish horsepower, weighs sub 2000 lbs and has the engine behind the driver. But how does it drive? And does driving bliss lie this way? Thomas and James are excited to find out! We hope you enjoy the episode. SUBSCRIBE!
Huge thank you to Michael for letting us feature his pride and joy!
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Editor: Daniel Mason
Sound: Harrison Dickson and Daniel Mason
Music from Epidemicsound.com and Artlist.io
#Fiat #X19 #Restomod
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I bought this car in Rancho Cucamonga California and drove it home to Missouri. After the long drive home I knew it needed more power. I toyed with K24 swapping it but decided I wanted to keep it Italian and sohc. I started making acquaintances overseas in Croatia and Greece as well as England and Brazil as well. I sourced the head from Croatia, the block and crank from England and forged pistons and rods from a German vendor. ZRP Rods are from Greece and Iapel forge pistons are from South America . The specially manufactured to order 123 ignition came from Germany and is programmable through a phone app. On the rolling road dyno before adding the dcnf 44 carbs it made 136whp but I then ordered new old stock Lamborghini 44 DCNFs from a collector in Portugal so now the horse power should be closer to 145or more at the wheel. This would be close to 190 at the crankshaft bringing this engi e close to the 100hp/litre rule. Then addition of the koni struts all round and after I sold it it got a 5 speed. I tested this car on the open road at 127.8 mph with speedometer and tach pegged and could've squeezed a bit more out of it. It was tested with GPS and recorded for the naysayers. After I achieved this successful 1.9 build I sort of lost interest and sold her. Very nice to see her get some of the recognition she's deserved and all X1/9s should've come equipped with a 1.9 as the standard. It's like driving a small block 60s vintage camaro or such based on the hp/lb. Thank you! The original dyno link is below. Enjoy
ruclips.net/video/2_1_M5hp7NE/видео.htmlsi=R9FhPpmbTgTeMmSu
What do you do for a job, if you don't mind me asking
I always lusted after the X1.9 as a small boy, and have loved them ever since. They dropped off my radar until I recently saw one on the road. Beautifully kept, bright yellow. I fell in love again. And now you go and show me this absolute gem. Great job, an object of desire. I'd have this over an Alfa Junior or GTV.
Great build! I always intended to mod my 82 back in the day. My idea was to interchange the whole engine and transmission from a Lancia Beta which had a 2 liter engine instead of my 1.5. Then would have gone Dallara wide body. Unfortunately I flipped the car (upside down) after 5 years of stewardship and life got in the way so none ever happened. Still always on my radar though.
Heck of a story. Thank you for sharing.
Is there a forum or something where this process is more documented? Would love to piggy back on your design work.
These guys always hit the ball out of the park.
They do enjoy ball sports of all sorts.
As an MR2 owner I really appreciate these as OG affordable mid-engine things
The MR2 is probably better value for money
I love seeing you guys enjoying the amazing Fiat X1/9!!! I’ve been enjoying my 1978 RestoMod Fiat X1/9 since 1999 in Atlanta, GA. Never gets old!
My dream car when I was 18. It still is 50 years later. Still on my bucket list.
Along with VW Passat, Buick GNX and Ginetta G4.
I had a '76. Absolutely loved it. Handled like a slot car and rode well to boot! Most fun car I ever owned.
That is a brilliant little resto mod. I enjoyed the drive by watching it.
Beautiful car! 😮❤ Bertone and Pininfarina were killing it back in those days.
Thanks guy’s, you have put such a smile on my face.
First introduced to one of these down here in New Zealand back in 1989.
Such a fun ride.
Just bought a 2001 Toyota MR2. When I was younger I thought they were too slow. Now it feels just about right. I have about 150 HP in mine, and it weighs 2,195 pounds. Lots of fun.
My best friend in high school owned one in that same color. Driving on autumn nights with the top off, the windows up and the heat cranking was an absolute dream.
This is truly a great video! You dont need hundreds of hp to have fun in a car. The first one I drove was the 2000 GTV from my father. Brilliant design, motor and driving experience. I still remember (50 years later) all the emotions and the seaside road. I friend of mine had a VW-Porsche 914 and I remember the front zig zag at high speeds on the highway ;)
How can you not love a restomod? You take a car that you love and make it better in every way without making it into something else. We called them sleepers back in the day - totally stock in appearance (with maybe a nicer paintjob and interior, nicer wheels and tires and improved brakes and suspension) but at the redlight will stand up and disappear and be impossible to catch. What's not to like? I've always loved these cars from the very beginning but they were begging for more power, better brakes and a chassis to keep it all together. This one is drool worthy for sure - absolutely gorgeous!
In EU this is illegal
@@Haffschlappe a lot of things in EU are illegal
I really enjoyed that. I bought a 77 in 1977 when I was 17. When everything was sorted, I loved driving it. I did my own brake pads. I put in a Clarion 8 track system with an EQ Booster and had the top off blasting Van Halen's first album in the school parking lot and driving around town. I had Clarion Component speakers that had both a woofer and a tweeter. I drove it to California when I graduated in April 1978. That was a great experience.
This hits all the right notes. Thank you so much for sharing - it continues to be fun to live vicariously through your videos.
Raced one, SCCA Solo II. Car won second place at the national championship.
One good mod is to source out the Fiat Uno Turbo manifolds and set up.
That engine was used by Fiat for 20+ years. And rev to 8K RPM with no issues.
I had a '75 in '80, cut and sold firewood in high school to buy it. Never ran more than 15 minutes, but man, what a good looking car for the era.
Ouch! At least you had a great looking car. Somewhat similar experience: I bought a ‘72 Spitfire back in ‘79 (my first car). I worked in the local grocery store to earn the money for it. British sports cars were about as rare as things got in rural Illinois - never saw a X1/9. But while the Spitfire was far from perfect, at least it usually ran.
@@VirtualGuth I considered a Spitfire in 1974, but bought an X 1/9 instead. The little Fiat was worlds ahead of the British cars at the time.
Cars like this need to be on the main channel. also, would like to see a video on the GT Junior when it's complete.
That gumball paint reminded me of when my dad was restoring his 1951 Bristol 401 back in the late eighties it had about half an inch of different paint before he got back to alloy. He sold it many years ago it's in a museum here in Aotearoa new zealand
These are the pure fun videos I just love as an enthusiast. The joy you guys had emanated through the screen.
what a cool little car, didnt know the existed!. would love to see more of these.
well done to the owner!
I've been watching Hill Climbs featuring one of these X1/9's and they took the engine out worked the frame and suspension to make it even stiffer then dropped a Hyabusa from the motor bike into it. Watching it do the climb with extra cones placed around the course to make it much more difficult to navigate and for handling prowess it's INSANE!! It was either the constant winner or very close to winning all the time. (I just can't remember for sure off the top of my head). Go and have a look at some of the videos on it. Seriously AMAZING! It's like a whipping go cart with all the power PLUS PLUS!
The first car I ever owned was a '78 X1/9 (when I was 17) which I begged an old man, who shopped at the grocery store where I worked, to sell it to me. I LOVED that car, but it was such a bucket of bolts. I had to have the clutch replaced eventually and the Italian mechanic told me afterword that he would never do that repair again because it was so difficult. After I sold it, the next car I purchased was an MR2, for obvious reliability reasons. Great memories.
As a teen in the late 80s, my first choice of poster car was the 288GTO... my second one was the X1/9... seriously! Cheers!
I had a choice to make back in the day. My parents gave me a budget to buy a car and I was torn between the X19 and a TR8. I chose the TR8. It died after 2 years of ownership and 30,000 miles. 😂
What made u choose the TR8
@@TheBasher-_- I was 16 at the time and was 6 feet tall. I was really cramped in the X19 and the TR8 had a V8.
@DJL78 oh ok makes sense.
Sorry to hear the TR8 crapped out. But I highly doubt the X1/9 could be counted on to be any more reliable.
In 1978 I was in high school and working at a car dealership that sold Fiat among other brands. I came into work one afternoon and the lot was full of new Fiats including X1/9 and Spyders. Until then the dealership had only had used models.
I drove a new Spyder into the workshop to do the PDI. I braked hard like a typical teenager and hit my head on the windshield.
I got out and asked the mechanic when Spyders got power brakes. He replied they all had power brakes. I retorted that none of the ones I had driven had power brakes. He said, “they only have power brakes when they’re brand new They stop working within a year.”
Many of the new Fiats already had surface rust on them. They had to be repaired and painted before being sold.
@@morstyrannis1951 I bought a first-year X 1/9 (1974) and put 50k miles on it. Interesting car. The small steel bumpers starting rusting after the first year and the car wouldn't start if left outside overnight during a rainstorm (I had to dry the inside of the distributor cap). On the other hand, the suspension felt as good as new after 50k and the car was a blast to drive. The steering was so sensitive you could feel any gravel on the inside of turns. We bought a new 1979 as well, which had more power, a 5-speed, electronic ignition and large aluminum bumpers.
What an insanely cool car!! And that sound!!
It's so refreshing to know that there are other human beings who know how to use an intersection. ❤
I remember going from Aberdeen to the far north of Scotland in an X1/9 for Hogmanay back in the mid 80s. Not great for a 200 mile winter drive up to 25 miles south of the Pentland Firth.
I had one of these (stock) in the UK in the mid 80’s. Woefully underpowered, a rust box with steel the thickness of a human hair but a lot of fun to drive. To your point about the strength of the chassis I managed to run mine into the front of a truck coming the other way (a story which involved me answering the question ‘Can I get around this corner in 3rd without braking’). Any other car of the time I might not be here typing this - it was a write off but I walked away without a scratch!
before watching this video, I've noticed one rotting in someone's yard, abandonned and forgotten. I only noticed it from the glimmer of the rear taillights, and it did get me thinking... "maybe I can offer something and restore it".
...and now that I watched this video, I might stop by his house today and ask about it.
thanks TH.
my mother owned this car for like a month or two, it looked really cool...
This was the car I wanted as a 12 year old in 1980.
Well done, boys! Good work as always!
Wow the sound of this thing is absolutely incredible! It's now up there with my other two favorite's, Jay Leno's 1928 Bugatti Type 37A and the 1952 Ferrari Barchetta he featured
Expected a little more talk about the handling. My first car was a 74 X1/9. Still one of best handling cars I've ever owned.
Still one of my favorite cars…even with all of its issues
This thing is amazing. Now, I really wanna see the boys in a stock X1/9 for comparison.
Brilliant. My neighbor had one when I was driving an Alfasud QV.
By the way, I‘d say the Triumph TR7 was made after the x1/9.
Cheers from Switzerland 🇨🇭
Awesome video! You guys also need to check out the restomod V8 Celica that Sarah-n-Tuned is doing!
Please keep making videos like this!
What a great car project - awesome engine sound! Good to see the 'Burlington Air Park Test Track' in use!
I know a guy who has one of those, widebody with built K24 engine. Its absurd but cool.
I believe this started as competition from Fiat vs VW and their VolksPorsche, sold in Canada as the Porsche 914. Would love to see you take out a mint condition 914 and compare it to this, and to the first generation Boxster.
Reminder, these share the engine with the Yugo. Actually one of the best Italian engines ever made, designed by Aurelio Lampredi, an ex-Ferrari race engine engineer. His dream was building a fun engine for the masses, and that included the Fiat SOHC. It is designed to be revved out on every drive, was relatively fuel efficient for the time, and sounds quintessentially Italian. I have the 1.3 and the 5 speed in my Yugo GVX and it is just a fun little car to drive.
This car is just awesome ❤❤❤❤.
Great video
When are you guys going to do one proper resto mod, Throttle House build series 🤟🤟💪🤩
I always wanted one of these.
Fabulous little Italian designer sports car for the masses.....it's a little masterpiece!
wow very cool, its like a mini ferrari. i remember when these came out, i knew someone who got one as a graduation gift...rich parents, it was such a good looking car but here in the states with all the regulations it probably had 50 hp. the thing couldnt get out of its own way, especially with 2 people in it
Nice looking, Fun driving JUNKS. My workbench was covered in bent valves, adjustment shims, and old t-belts. I felt sorry for the people who bought them.
What a fun little car.
I sat in one once in 1982 in a showroom, I’m 6’2” & couldn’t get out of it.
Would be interesting to see someone do a restoration like this on a Lancia Monte Carlo - basically this car with Fiat's 2-liter twin cam. In US form at the time, that engine was choked down to no power, but that could be fixed now.
Love this! Keep this kind of stuff coming !
It might have a small engine but it is light. It must be fun to drive.
That plate needs to come off ASAP. I never ran with one when I lived in TO
People use to make fun of this car when I was a kid. They were dirt cheap in the 80s. Surprising how al these cars are now popular.
I'm kinda surprised you guys weren't impressed by it's handling. That's what they were always praised for. Some X's are getting Honda Type R VTECs and really rev...
I had a 1979 X19 in high school about 1986. Biggest piece of crap I've encountered before or since but was fun to drive when it worked.
The only places I still see these at are the Autocross course or Craigslist.
In fact, if this car was from here in California, it might be the specific one I would see Autocrossing lol
Would you 2 just hold hands and have coming out party already!! Perfect timing its June... HAHAHAHA...
I had lined up to buy one of these new. And then I found out I could not fit as I am six-two. Some one here in Australia cut one of these in two and welded in an extra 5 inches so he could fit. We had a few of these in the club all with 2 Litre engines.
Ah the famous Lampredi SOHC, fiat's own chevy small block. That engine was used pretty much in every fiat car that didn't have the bigger twin cam from 1969 all the way to 2005 in some form or another. From the 128 all the way to the tipo and the tempra and the 1st gen punto.
The bumpers look like it is a 1974. I had three X/19s. Awesome cars.
Looks like he has retro-fitted the original euro-bumpers
Good god that engine sounds intoxicating
"Baby Ferrari"
Just make sure the roof is not under the car before driving away😂😂
I believe there was some sort of deal with Toyota and these were sold in Japan as first gen mr2
ty
This video helped us all learn that James has more prominent outer-ear hair than Thomas.
2:11 one of them had its roof destroyed by Richard Hammond in Scotland
With Matt Monro singing On Days Like These on the radio... 7:15
Very nice little X1 9. I'm busy installing a 13b rotary into mine
It was meant to be a Group 4 rally car but when it started beating the Lancia Stratos Fiat canclled it as a rally car due to internal politics. I still have my 1981 Fiat X19 and it has 78000 miles on it and it has not rusted away.
Get that man some pasta!
Would love to have one of those. Unfortunately I'm 6'4" so no.
Thomas: it wasn't on my radar. I'd like to see how many more people searched these after this videos release, I know it was a least +1 😉
My brother was a Fiat salesman and had a nice blue one for a demo car.
tyres, at least in right side, are reverse mounted :)
This has the same engine as the Yugo, but obviously heavily modified.
I always wanted an X19. But being adult height, 6'4", I can't fit in it. I literally couldn't get my legs under the steering wheel.
Comparison video with a 914?
My best friend and I each had x1/9s in high school. I loved mine, but man were they unreliable.
4:12 fun fact: sharks have a duocoque
355 review was done at the same time huh 😂
All dad's sound like football hooligans in a bar when they get excited about a car.... it's a fact. Did you bring your 8 track tapes to drive this? Maybe Deep Purple made in Japan?
Giving you a like for monocoque
Mono-cock*
There are some people born with a...duocoque. It's called "diphallia." Maybe don't Google it though
Why? I believe the X19 is a unibody, not a monocoque.
@@jeffhildreth9244for the joke
@@jeffhildreth9244Thunderbird was also a monocoque i suppose.
Wow, kudos to the owner. What a cool car
The car also looks as nice as Mitsubishi 3000GT.
"It's a monocoque" "I hope so, it would be in the Guinness World Record if you've got two of them"
This should have been the outro...
Mono-cock*
Those would be the ones in the car.
Bloody hilarious
Actually, no... not a world record at all. As hilarious as the joke was, it's not really a laughing matter.
"Diphallia" is a known condition. Affects about 1 in 6 million men. Only 100 cases on actual record over the past 400 years though.
But I saw a medical oddities documentary that included a chap who had two coques, and he described quite bluntly how each performed. Both worked normally, although one was far "lazier" than the other.
Guys you should be named "italy's ambassador in the world" for bringing piece of our car culture in the world
Have you seen most of their Ferarri reviews though?
Ok, an Italian said. It's official Boyz, this is getting done!
@@PasleyAviationPhotography yes but they're right about the quirky infotainment, even italian reviewers are complaining about that
@@Bck648 as an Italian, my main complaints are the names. we don't call our own normal stuff with such ridiculous sounding names... (looking at you, Ferrari)
@@MuhaamadAreebthe X1.9 after restomod has about 371bhp.
I LOVE Fiat X-1/9's ! In the 1979 Castrol National Championship Slalom race, I placed my 1979 X-1/9 1500 5 speed into 2nd place in C Class Improved. That X-i/9 was the best handling car I had ever owned. I was selling high performance parts at Sports Tune in Calgary at the time. I replaced all the suspension bushes with nylon ones, added sway bars front and rear, a full Anza headers and exhaust, koni shocks, upgraded brake pads and my secret weapon was a set of slightly staggered Compomotive 3 piece race wheels mounting shaved Pirelli CN36 tires. With a Personal Fittipaldi E3 steering wheel. The local Corvette club banned me from their slalom events because they couldn't ever beat me. I even enjoyed getting FTD at our weekly races, especially when I was beating a millionaire in a 427 Cobra (a real one) on race tires.
I had a 1981 1.5 Bosch fuel injected X-1/9 which I used to win the Quebec region Autocross D-Stock championship in 1989 and 1990 then the Canadian D-Stock championship in 1990 !
A friend lent me his to do an SCCA drivers test at Pocono in the mid-90s. The thing handled like it was on rails but was severely underpowered on the straights. Would’ve loved to have gotten one later on and modded it for more power - seriously fun car!!
A friend called it “The Italian Doorstop”!
I know logistics probably didn't allow it and that's why this video is on ETH, but MAN this car really deserved a main channel video.
Love to see these guys enjoy a car. I love it when people get that gleem in their eye when experiencing a fun car
YES! This is what we need. Review all sorts of cars. Old and new. If people will lend you even slightly interesting cars then go ahead, drive it and give it a quick review 👍🏼
Dosen't have to be anything more, two car guys driving interesting cars 😀
Fun fact, the stock engine in this is shared with our Yugo GVX (the sporty Yugo: the 1.3 and the 5 speed versus the 1.1 and 4 speed in the regular GV). The components of the Yugo engines are actually more sought after than the Fiat ones; the Zastava castings and machining was better (makes sense given their gun manufacturing background).
Damn good comment
I heard the Yugo was a No-go.😄😄
Yes, this true, my mother had a Yougo and it was a good car, and modern as it was one of the first hatchbacks. But the engine was pretty similar with the 128
Guys, I’m gonna watch this later but I just had to tell you how special this was to me. The Fiat X/19 was one of my Dad’s favorite cars and one he actually let me drive a few times which was special since I’m technically not able to drive as I am legally blind #ScentOfAWoman. He passed away about 2.5 years ago and for this to come out Father’s Day weekend means a lot to me!! ❤
Love you brother thanks for sending this to me, so cool
What a fantastic Father you have , We are Eternal souls and you are a Loving and Mindful Son God Bless you both ♥️
When I was a teenager in the 80s, in Florida, the 70s years of these were so cheap. They weren't common, but they weren't rare either and they stayed cheap and available into the 90s. I wish I'd fully understood at the time how lucky I was to ride in so many little 60s and 70s roadsters and import sports cars. I knew so many people who had Triumphs, MGs, and Datsun 240z and 260Z cars.
Out of the ones that I rode in a lot, I probably drove half of them.
I had a 1973 Datsun 240Z as my first car in 1983. My best friend had this same Fiat. Back when cars were fun…….
Fiat once made cool cars
So did Mitsubishi. 😢
Abarth 595 competition is still cool
Still do, Abarth is still around
@@dewitnow1765 yes and a no,the new 595 is electric tho. But Fiat as a brand now doesn't have any cool cars,exept the 124
@@TheStigsSimcousin no, the 595 still has a 1.4 liter 4 cylinder you can buy. You're talking about the Abarth 500E, that's the electric one.
These guys always hit the ball out of the park. A breath of fresh air. We should get them to do a video on the main channel.
One of few channels trying cool old cars
I will never forget a
road trip from Toronto
to Ottawa back in '74
(with my big brother)
when I was 15 years
old. 8track tapes blaring
War, Barry White, Led
Zeppelin, Yes, and
Herbie Hancock...
...T top off, smoking
3 finger spliffs of
Colombian gold...
...taking the side
roads so he could
demonstrate the
advantages of a
mid engine layout
on the curves.
I'm 65 years old
as I write this today.
(with a big dumb
smile on my face
as I remember 😊)
Back in the 80s I sold cars at a small Volvo, Saab, Fiat dealership in Ogden, UT. I loved the X1/9 and would take one of two we had (we had them for a very long time) on spirited "test" drives regularly. It was the most fun I think I've ever had driving a car. One day I got a call from a guy in Salt Lake City asking if I had a gold X1/9. I did and told him so, whereupon he said he would leave SLC then to come buy it. Yeah, right. Less than an hour later a car pulls onto the lot and two 20 something guys step out and walk in the showroom asking for me. He said he had just test driven a gold X1/9 in SLC and loved it. It begged the question, "Why didn't you buy it?", I asked. He explained, returning from the test drive and within a block of the dealership it burst into flames and burned to the ground before the fire department showed up to pour water onto the blackened lump of metal. I drew up the paperwork, he signed everything, paid and drove away as happy a customer as I ever had. And that was the last time I saw or heard from him. I assume it was a happy ending.
That night I tuned into the local newscast and watched the news story of the flaming Fiat with film of the molten heap.
Loved your video, it brought back great memories of flogging those X1/9s around town so many years ago.
That camera on the back glass was a great shot. It's like you're sitting on the hump in the back of the car with the boys(even if this doesn't have a backseat).