From the same guy who perfected front-wheel drive in compact cars, and that other guy who built several of Ferrari’s F1 V12 engines, came the Fiat 128. Dante Giacosa and Aurelio Lampredi conspired to upstage BMC’s Mini with a new family-oriented compact. Development kicked off in the mid-1960s, and the result was launched in 1969 as a two- or four-door sedan. An estate followed, then the coupé in 1972. More than 3 million 128s were made all over the world, until the last of its kind rolled out of a Serbian factory in 2010. Here on craigslist is this 1977 Fiat 128, in what the seller terms “excellent” condition. The price is $17,995, and the car is located in Wilmington, Delaware. Thanks to Tony Primo for the great tip!
The Lampredi-designed 1290 cc inline four is mounted transversely forward of the front axle; the four-speed manual sits right beside it and drives the front wheels. This arrangement gave Fiat bragging rights: its ads stated that only 20% of the car’s space was absorbed by its mechanical bits, while 80% was left for occupants and luggage. The little engine generated at least 70 hp, with more to be had by changing carburetors. Top speed hovered around 98 mph. The seller notes that this Fiat’s fuel pump, lines, and tank have been replaced. As an asterisk to the claim of “excellent condition”, I’d want to know what the fluff is in the lower left of this photo. I’ve seen an awful lot of rodent nests that look suspiciously similar.
The interior photos show nearly every inch of the interior – except a full view of the driver’s seat. Clever! Meanwhile, what we do see could be dramatically improved by a thorough cleaning. The passenger’s side inside door handle is damaged, and finding a replacement could be tricky: while 128 performance parts are plentiful, trim bits are rare. Speaking of parts, this Fiat comes with a few boxes of extras.
The paint is decent, the views we are given show a straight body, and the color combination is attractive. But Fiats started rusting on their way off the factory floor, and I think I see corrosion along the lower edge of the passenger’s side rocker. Then there’s the matter of price, which is “holy cow” high. This beautiful coupé – sans mouse nest – sold just a couple of months ago for $5900. As much as I like downmarket Italian cars (X1/9, 124, all 850s), and this car’s rarity is in its favor, I’d find it hard to justify a trip to check on the rocker rust, if I couldn’t first negotiate a lower price. What do you think?
When I was a kid visiting family in Italy most summers, these adorable little cars were everywhere. They were considered a more serious daily driver than the cartoonishly cute Fiat 500 that looked like a toy. They were fairly quick and fun to drive for short money back then..so sad to see then disappearing
Back in the 70s my Cousin she had a blue one. A where she lived in Mt. Kisco NY there were some serious back roads. That 128 would make a Mini Cooper cry!! 😂. She would be shifting those gears going around turns that read 20 mph we were doing 50 plus. That little Fiat kick butt on those roads. I was really impressed how well it handled without tipping over. But with all Fiats back then the tin worm ate it!! We should of undercoat the little guy. Maybe it would of lasted longer. This is in great shape and is fun to drive. Best thing is great on gas. You can get 100hp if you know what to do. That would be plenty in this 128. I remember when I was young these were in Ralley races. The price may seem a little high. But if you know ,about Fiats its worth it. Good luck to the next owner. 🇺🇸🐻
My Dad stopped daily driving his 1974 Buick Electra 225 in 1975 for one of these in olive (avocado??) green. His was a two door hatchback, and he loved it’s peppiness. He wasn’t a small man, and yet there was plenty of room inside for him (although he looked a lot like Mr. Incredible driving his little commuter car – stuffed inside of it. The mpg was all the reason in the world to drive it instead of that big 455ci. Sacrificed ride for better mileage was the mantra in those days!
Ridiculous price for an econo-squat box. The reason that they’re so rare today is that they dissolve with rust. Funnily enough, I still have the box of shims and 2 different tools to swap them for the 128s and 124s.
They just did not last long on Toronto roads back in the day in the winter,they got eaten fast and few if any survived.A car designed for a milder Europe stood no chance in a harsh Canada.My mother had a 124 Spider and it lasted only 2 years before it started to rot away.Salt is not an Italian cars friend..lol
Another little foreign car that I thought was cool when I was growing up. Wonder if I could keep the pedals straight with my 15Es? Ah, fun to try.
My girlfriend at the time bought a brand new turquoise 1977 Fiat 128 . Fun car to drive . Fairly quick for such a tiny engine. Small gas tank , great gas mileage compared to my V8 powered Buick. It spent many days at the Fiat dealer waiting for warranty repairs . Clutch died before it reached 6000 miles.
They gave her a loaner car , another Fiat 128 while waiting for parts. She went off the road and totaled that car. They gave her a Fiat 124 loaner car. That car started making funny noises . The dealer used a brand new car off the lot for parts to fix hers. They were so sorry to have sold her a Fiat 128. Fun times.
I had a friend who had one that he gave to me because he got so fed up with the problems, electrical and mechanical.
His last straw was when the motor fell out going over a bump.
I gave him 500 bucks for it, beefed up the rear motor mount, cleaned all the fuses and replaced all of the relays, and it was a happy little camper after that.
If it had A/C, I would have kept it.
Everyone bemoans the tin worm eating up euro cars of the former years. I’ve (as many of you already know… ad nausium) driven smaller FIATs for better than 68 years. They used to come with a little booklet entitled, “Driving Tips.” In one of them, under care and feeding of the brake system, there was a small, innocuous statement to the effect, “When oil spraying, be sure to cover the disc brake assemblies.”
What? Seems that back then when there were frequent oil changes, in Europe, with the car on the lift, the mechanic would take equal parts drain oil and kerosene, mix ’em in a spray gun’s jug and spray the dickens out of the underside. The oil forms a moisture barrier and the kerosene creeps into any crevice carrying the oil along with it. Simple, and it turned out, effective.
I learned this trick and applied it to my cars and had them last decades in CT with its insane “bare roads at all times” salting. Having looked inside doors and rear fender cavities I could see that this stuff had crept far, far away from the pinch welds at joints and that there was no sign of rusting. Sort of a poor man’s Rusty Jones or Ziebart.
It’s decent in a way, but not $17.5k decent. They were a pretty common car BITD, and although there are not that many left in mechanically sound shape, this would be almost like asking that same price for a 1977 Chevy Vega. The owner will not get that price, maybe not even half of that – it’s just not fascinating enough to justify that price.
I have owned a lot of old Fiat, but only a few 128. They were unfortunately pretty grim econoboxes, the older 1100 were much more pleasant in my opinion. This one looks quite nice but I am not sure there is a buyer even at $5k? Just because a car is rare doesn’t make it desirable or valuable.
I remember, as a kid, seeing TV commercials of these being chased and jumped between high rise buildings!
Should be a 1756cc engine with 86 hp in ‘77. Fun little cars. Optimistically priced.
This specific car was listed a few years ago and the pictures were years old even then. Someone wants top dollar without even some current pics?
Insane price.
I had a 74 128 SC. Bought it new off the dealer floor. While the 1300 SOHC engine loved to be run through the gears, the metal used to build the car was not up to the engines standards. It did not take long for rust to appear everywhere. I enjoy the opportunity to see a nice 128, but the price is ridiculously high. Good luck to the seller as well as the buyer.
Nice write-up Michelle. That’s a mind-boggling asking price! I bought a low mileage four year old 128 two door sedan for use as a glorified shopping cart and stablemate to my Lancia and BMW. It performed very well for its intended purpose but, I couldn’t resist the basic performance goodies that Al Consentino’s FAZA catalog offered. It became a delight to drive on two lane twisties. I admit that I always kept a spare clutch cable in the trunk. I kept the 128 for six years and despite North East winters and salted roads, never had a tin worm problem. BTW, I was surprised to see that the factory side door guard beams were made of 1/8″ thick steel hat sections! I sold it to a friend for $600.-. He gave it to a young relative to commute to college. She kept it for a few years until she could afford a new car. She also kept a spare clutch cable in the trunk.
The fact that a 1977 Fiat is not a pile of brown dust should make this one a first ballot inductee into the Motor Vehicle Preservation Hall of Fame!
Nice, but a little pricey
We loved ours, same color and two door. It was great in snow and a blast driving around Chicago and the burbs. Fast, luxurious, quiet, all no but very economical and reliable. We had a marvelous mechanic Tony, and he kept this tuned to a T.
I’d love to own another and recreate a rally tribute car.
A true small family car that the Gruppo put up against its very succesful 127 but with more space, the 128 was a true 4 adults car as compared with the 127 that was 2+2. They then upgraded their 127 as a sports car with its 70HP version to compete with the Lancia Autobianchi Abarth of the same 70HP. In any case the so called ‘baby Ferrari’ X1/9 sold in Ferrari dealerships in Europe was a totally different car aiming towards the sportsman/woman, absolutely not a family car. You needed an exercised person for just to be holed in the low lying bucket seat, a strong left foot to apply the non assisted all around disk brakes, a clutch with 3 strong springs (i removed the 2nd to be more user friendly) and so on.
Rather, right foot for the brakes, although a certain racing driving technic is using the right foot for both the gas and the brakes pedals!
In the mid-70s in MA, one young couple bought a Datsun and another young couple bought one of these. It was a race to see which one would rust out the fastest. After about a year and a half, they both had huge holes over the entire body.