'53 Studebaker truck, '68 Fiat 850 Spider

I have a 1953 Studebaker truck that literally sat in a barn for about 30 years. It was my great-grandad's. Rust is surface only, except for the low curved corner sections on the driver and passenger's side of the cab (behind the seat) where apparently water and rat droppings collected and rust ate all the way through.

Anyway, I have totally disassembled it and the body parts are in my father-in-law's workshop -- he's semi retired and now builds street rods -- and am ready to start working on it. The frame w/ wheels and suspension still attached is sitting outside in the back. I have a lot of questions, and hopefully someone here has had experience with this particular model.

I also have a 1968 Fiat 850 Spider. It was my Dad's. I bought it in 1984 and drove it through college and a few years after, until I blew up the engine and couldn't afford to fix it.

The Spider is completely disassembled and the body panels (we cut them off the car), interior pieces, etc. are sitting up in the rafters of my father-in-law's shop.

I'd like to get this car running again and looking more or less original. Found that I can order a replacement engine from Italy, but it's about $5K and only provides a 20 HP improvement over the original. I'd prefer to upgrade the engine, transmission and electrical equipment if possible. A friend of mine said he fit a Mazda RX-7 rotary engine in his, but I have no experience with rotary engines. Another friend said you can fit a Pontiac V6. It seems that if I am going to use a different engine, I'll have to find a reverse-rotation camshaft -- the car is rear-engine, rear wheel drive. Again, if anyone has any ideas, pleae let me know.

Thanks in advance for any ideas, suggestions, observations, etc.

What about a Fiat X19 engine??? my boss has one behind the shop that's really rusty, but ran last year.

MadGrinder,

The X-19s handle like a mini-Ferrari and had more HP than an 850.
If I recall, they're mid-engine rear-wheel drive cars. Please ask your boss (1) if he or she knows of anyone who made this engine swap, and (2) how much he wants for the car. Also, where are you located? I'm close to Houston, TX.

Thanks for the reply.

Thanks,
David

He has a couple of 850's, the X19, and two 124 Spyders.

He wants $1,500 for BOTH Spyders together. The white one was running and needs a starter and a good bath. The brown one was bought as a parts car a few years ago, but looked too nice to part out.

Both are dual-cam, fuel injected... I think the brown one has AC. The white one has Panasport rims.

I will ask about the X19 and his 850's on Monday.

I am in Pensacola... just a cruise down the coast from Houston...**)