Thinking of selling my 850 Spider

[Jim McKenzie]

Been years since I've been here on the site, nice to be back.

I have a yellow 1971 850 Spider that's been in my possession for over 14 years now. I have not driven it in at least 6, maybe 8. It sincerely "ran when parked" but has been kept outside over the last 3-4 years now.

I drove it a great deal when I lived in Florida and loved it , but a lot of the projects I was going to do to her to make here my "retirement car" have never come to pass, so things like a new convertible top, and the tonneau cover, were both purchased, but never installed. The new interior has the Racer console and new seats installed but not the real mahogany wood dash panels, the new steering wheel or the new short shifter and knob. With all the sitting the gas tank needs to be drained and recleaned, a new battery, and engine timing, etc.

My health has declined a bit over the years, and I'd like to sell her. What's the going rate for the 850's today? Should I clean her up first, then post pictures here?

 

[johnph]

Been years since I've been here on the site, nice to be back.

I have a yellow 1971 850 Spider that's been in my possession for over 14 years now. I have not driven it in at least 6, maybe 8. It sincerely "ran when parked" but has been kept outside over the last 3-4 years now.

I drove it a great deal when I lived in Florida and loved it , but a lot of the projects I was going to do to her to make here my "retirement car" have never come to pass, so things like a new convertible top, and the tonneau cover, were both purchased, but never installed. The new interior has the Racer console and new seats installed but not the real mahogany wood dash panels, the new steering wheel or the new short shifter and knob. With all the sitting the gas tank needs to be drained and recleaned, a new battery, and engine timing, etc.

My health has declined a bit over the years, and I'd like to sell her. What's the going rate for the 850's today? Should I clean her up first, then post pictures here?

Welcome back Jim:
Sitting outside in MA has probably not been good for her. To remove the tank on an 850, I heard that you have to drop the engine and trans to get to it. If you do not have the energy for that, just let it go as is. No, don't 'clean it up first'. Take some pictures as it sits, uncover it, take more pics, give it a bath and take more pics. Any rust in the floors or other places? Post the series of pics here and our 850 experts can give you an idea where the market is. Take care of yourself and leave the car to a 30 something.

 

[NM850]

https://bringatrailer.com/fiat/850/?q=fiat+850 This might give you an idea. Unfortunately there is not much of market in the USA. I’d say a running, driving, rust free car is in the $5-6k range. A project is anyone’s guess. I just sold a completely disassembled rust free (relative term, but as far as Fiat’s go) desert southwest 67 for $700.

 

[Dave Bassett]

While there is not much of a market, it seems to me that there might be some modest steps you could take to enhance the possibility of selling it. These include waiting until the weather warms up and giving it a good cleaning and wash. If it ran when parked there is a chance that it will run now with only modest effort and expense, which might reassure a potential buyer. A non-running car is sort of a big gamble. ANYTHING could be wrong with it.
Recently there was one for sale in a nearby city. It had low miles, supposedly, and looked it. It was pretty much spotless and had nice wheels, top, etc.... It was listed at arount $6500 and didn't sell for a few days. Then the price came down to $4500 andit still didn't sell. Then the price was reduced to $2500 and the ad explained that for unknown reasons it would no longer run. The ad disappeared after a day. I think that its low miles and excellent appearance got someone to take a chance on it.
Good luck but remember that each negative will count against it, as is always the case.

 

[Jim McKenzie]

Thank you very much guys, appreciate the depressing link on bring a trailer, it certainly gives me a much more realistic price to aim at. Dave I think your feedback is excellent, I will wait until at least mod spring to sell it. As far as getting it running again, I know it needs a new battery, to address the old gas issue properly, and to reinstall the steering wheel and dash boards. That's likely just a couple of weekend's work and I can certainly do it, even in my advanced age

Thanks again, you guys always are a huge help!

 

[kmead]

Thank you very much guys, appreciate the depressing link on bring a trailer, it certainly gives me a much more realistic price to aim at. Dave I think your feedback is excellent, I will wait until at least mod spring to sell it. As far as getting it running again, I know it needs a new battery, to address the old gas issue properly, and to reinstall the steering wheel and dash boards. That's likely just a couple of weekend's work and I can certainly do it, even in my advanced age

Thanks again, you guys always are a huge help!

Nice to see you here.

Sorry you need to part with it, I recall your intent with the 850 after you sold your X.

Like all things automotive, a running car is worth much more than one that doesn’t. It will be worth your while to having it complete and running, if not perfect.