Club126UK
Welcome to the CLUB126UK Forum => Introduce Yourself => Topic started by: Captain Tracteur on August 10, 2013, 07:17:28 PM
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Hi everyone,
I'm Pete from Skegness, LINCS, and I've been driving 126s for more than a decade now. I've owned four of them:
The very first one in my teenage years was an olive green '86 aircooled 650E, which I inherited from my mom, when she stopped using it.(Ok, frankly, I nicked it, or let's call it long-term leasing, whatever. ;D) I've done nearly every crime what a young lad can do to his car including: Recaro seats, BMW wheels, stereo, and flashy paint job (yellow combined with platinum silver metallic), and all the low-cost DIY "tuning" you can think of. However, the results weren't that bad what you'd expect from a penniless young petrolhead. After a few years of pure fun a frontal collision with an Opel Astra ended this relationship. :(
The second one was cheap junk, which I broke for spares. It had no reg, it must've been a late '85 model with massively rotten bodyshell and at least 4 layers of the ugliest DIY paintjobs of the northern hemisphere. It was a good runner, anyway. Most of its parts are still in use.
The third one was a '87 FL version, with a light greenish grey colour (factory name: Grigio Oslo), and only 54k kilometers in the clock. Its first owner - an old bloke - was our neighbour. Because of the very rare and original paintwork, I intended to keep it in its original shape, making only reversable modifications. I fitted a BIS gearbox (with longer diff ratio), the refurbished Recaro seats, clear indicators all around, white powder coated Seicento wheels, cast alloy valve cover, a Zara Z29 exhaust, and I replaced the dynamo with an alternator from the late models. Most of the work I done was not modification, but refurb. She was an absolutely reliable daily user without any hassle, I even drove her on motorways on a regular basis without issues. A few years ago I decided to quit using her on a daily basis, and don't play hardball with her, so I bought an '89 Alfa 75 for the role of the runaround. Apparently it was the worst idea ever. My Alfa became a pampered hobby-car also. I know I should buy a much younger car with front wheel drive and all the 3-letter extras, and without character, but I just can't do it. :-
The fourth one is not particularly mine, but I'm the one who's responsible for her maintenance. She's also a '87 FL version, in white colour, and definitely a junkyard fugitive. I've bought her for my mom as a present for her retirement. The car looked really awful, the window on the drivers side was smashed, but was an excellent runner, and even had a few months MOT for a ridiculously low price. (It was somewhere around 100 quid.) When the MOT expired I decided to give her some tlc, and it ended up as a semi-restoration project. (I will upload some pics later.)
I've been an active member of Club126 (Hungary) ever since and for me Fiat 126 was always more than just a car. It was a lifestyle. Now, after moving to the UK I just won't give it up. So I'm looking forward to the events here in the UK.
Peace!
Pete
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Welcome. ;D
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Skeggy?! I can see your beach from here!
Welcome to the club, tis truly a nice community. Get some pictures up, we like pictures :D
Marc
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Cheers guys!
Yeah, Norfolk shores are quite clearly visible for us too, depending on the weather. 8)
I've got plenty of pictures, but can I upload them without resizing?
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If you open a Flickr account you will be able to link your pictures.