worth?

[biil9]

i have a friend with a 1985 2000 convertible with a rare automatic with mileage in the 50,000's. new interior excellent wheels and tires,repaint on the hood fender and trunklid. the car has never seen bad weather and it spends alot of time in vegas so the undercarriage is like new. she is thinking she may want to sell it and asked me what it is worth. i couldn't find any sources for that year and model and so i am asking the experts here what a fair price is.

thank you,
barry
north providence ri

[Nancy1340]

Photos would help.

[kmead]

The rare automatic likely detracts rather than adds to the value, at least here. On eBay it may be somewhat more valued.

[biil9]

Photos would help.

i don't have any right now but i have to detail it next week so i wll post them when ii finish it. thank you

[Nancy1340]

About 8 years ago I had a eldery friend ,74 , that was looking for a automatic in Springfield Mo. She liked mine but knew she couldn't handle a stick shift anymore. Good luck finding the right buyer.

[MNspiderman]

Dont use the word rare. It means Hard to find, expensive to fix, not many left. Good luck finding parts (sucka')
Well you can use it if you want to. Its just one of my pet peeves
What's rare is finding a two headed snake attacking a penguin in the bahamas

[TX82FIAT]

Photos are really required. Folks that know these cars will want to see the underside and cross member. If you can snap a couple picks of the suspention and engine bay that always helps as well. Why only repaint on hood fender and trunk lid? Sun fade from Vegas or other reasons. Good to disclose not original paint on 50K car.

I would imagine a lot of questions will need to be answered and car possibly inspected before a valid worth could be put on the car. Around 50K is a tricky number because many of the typical items that do and will go wrong with these cars may not have occured to date. Therefore a documented maintenance and parts replacement history would add value to a buyer. Most of these car run through items like water pumps, radiators, and many other items at relatively low miles or because of age. An 85 is still 25 years old and will require items like brake hoses to be replaced if not already done. All original parts is a collectors dream.... may indicate a strong, garaged and well cared for car.

For Example, do all electricals work. Does the car run hot or overheat. Has owner flushed radiator and changed fluids on the car at somewhat regualr intervals. If well maintained, clean car throughout, complete maintenance history and strong engine you may get anywhere from $7K to as high as $11K for it. If knowledgable buyer can not feel good about history they will need to factor potential costs into mix and the number could be south of $7k. I have even seen spiders sold for far below worth because they sold at a time when a good number of spiders are available. A great car may only sell for a couple thousand more than a car requiring a lot of work.

In short, asking what the car is worth without photos or maint history is a crap shoot at this point. posting a car that looks really good on e-bay may be a valuable option.

[james124]

I've always been insistent about the need for a manual transmission in 'small' engined cars especially when the car came equipped with a fun and reliable five speed. However, recently I came across a body shop and mechanic who had completely stripped down and were totally restoring an 81 Spider - an automatic! I said to the mechanic surely the owner is replacing the automatic for a new five speed. I was surprised to learn that the owner had specifically sought out an automatic ... for his wife. And he figured, even after a $20,000 resto, he was still better off than a German convertible. And the wife found the car unique. I guess the moral is you have to find the right buyer. JimmyG

[Nancy1340]

James, somehow I don't think "homophobic" is a accurate description for your phobia.

[james124]

James, somehow I don't think "homophobic" is a accurate description for your phobia.

WOW
Not unless one can consider a Spider to be a LGBT .
I should know better than to assume I know the meaning of a new word! Thanks, Nancy

[beachboy]

If its an automatic and you paint it PINK, you can probably get more for it.

[TX82FIAT]

Wow is right.... Paint it pink!!! I would agree that a 5 speed is better than an automatic. I think I read the automatic transmission is almost identical in every aspect to the Chevy Chevette automatic transmission on a fiat spider. No Joke!!! I think that devalues the automatic transmission theory for any informed buyer. Maybe a pink automatic would carry some value on e-bay. There is currently a stunning yellow 68 on sale on ebay. This car is truly awesome (5 speed) (rare) and it is at $11,021 with just over a day left on the bidding. We all know how these things heat up in the last hour. Suspect this car will go for a few thousand more than current bid. Again, take a look at his add via link below and see if it helps in assessing worth. Look at the pics and disclosures. In my opinion this car represents the high end of a spider and is easily worth twice as much as my well maintained, excellent running 1982 spider.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Fiat-124 ... sQ5fTrucks