[Amante]

I thought it would be interesting to know what we all drove before we got our 124's. I think we can leave the trucks, SUV's and family sedans out of the discussion. What performance cars, sports cars, hotrods have you owned in the past? Do you have other interesting cars in addition to the 124?

I recently parted with a beautiful Lexus SC400 - a '99 with only 70K miles. I had an older '93 SC400 before that. I owned a '69 124 Spider back in the early '70s, and a '73 Alfa GTV and a '66 Alfa boattail Duetto in the '80s. The only performance sedan I've owned was an '85 Peugeot 505 Turbo, which I still miss - it out-handled the Alfas by a long shot. There's also a VW Scirocco in my past - massive understeer!

I also ride motorcycles, and currently own a '15 Moto Guzzi Griso, my third Guzzi. I seem to keep coming back to Italian modes of conveyance...

The 124 is 30 inches shorter than the recently departed SC! Now I can keep the Fiat and the Guzzi on the same side of the garage! That makes my wife happy, since her MDX now gets to live in the garage too.

I'll bet there are a lot of interesting automotive histories among us...

 

[jonesthestress]

Subaru Impreza 2ltr turbo, Mazda MX-6, Jaguar XJ6, BMW 318, Ginetta G15, Sunbeam Imp Rally Car, Jaguar E Type plus a few other 'normal' cars in between.
124 is up there with best for enjoyment factor!

 

[bffmike]

Infiniti G37s, some blah blah cars, and before that a 2nd gen Mistubishi Eclipse GST

 

[PureAdrenaline]

2015 Z06 Corvette, 1998 Corvette Convertible, 1997 Trans Am WS6, 850 HP 2010 Corvette Gran Sport, 2004 Mazda RX8, 1965 GTO, 1967 Chevelle SS and too many others to list. I have had several trucks old and new. Also motorcycles...but none in the last 30 years.

 

[darrelross]

In High School, I drove a 1979 Trans Am that I replaced the original motor with a '69 428 motor to hot rod around town. Several years later I had '97 Camaro. Sports car wise, that's pretty much it. Just trucks and regular cars until I got the 124 Spider. I traded my 2013 Fiat 500 Pop for the 124 Spider.

 

[TomM]

Not really any hot rods or performance cars. My sole claim to fame in the "interesting cars" category was a 1959 Edsel that I had for about 10 years.

 

[cfig21]

97 Mazda Protege a/t, 06 WRX, 96 240sx KA-T 360whp/tq, 12 Mustang GT, 13 BRZ, 17 124 Abarth

 

[wedgewa]

My other "play" car was and continues to be a 1980 Triumph TR7 convertible that I bought new. 30th Anniversary Edition with factory fuel injection and AC. I continue to enjoy that car. It was reliable fun for decades but at 36 years old and nearly 200K miles it's become a bit needy. I'd been looking for a modern equivalent for about 10 years. Not many choices with 2 seats and a big enough trunk for real travel. Test drove Miatas but they didn't feel right (plus the trunk was too small). My reaction to the Spider was as immediate as it had been for the TR7 convertible when it first appeared. It looks and feels right and the trunk is just (though barely) big enough. (My wife took empty luggage on a test drive.) As it turns out, the Fiat length and height are nearly identical to the TR7 but the Spider is 3 inches wider. Somehow, the TR's trunk is more than double that of the Fiat so we do have to pack lighter.
One thing different for now: Triumphs have an established and vast social culture attached. The new Spider does not. Yet. Time will tell if it develops one. We put more than 4000 touring miles on ours in the first 60 days and every day was a joy.

 

[Abarth124]

2014 MX-5 Club....and still enjoying it until I'm ready to buy & build a serious Fiat.

 

[stevenvillatoro]

Several microcars. Various vintage Porsches, BMWs, and VWs. A Miata of each generation. A 500 Abarth.

Everything else was hybrid, or otherwise insipid.

 

[LongBeachJim]

2010 Corvette Grand Sport, 2004 Nissan 350Z roadster, 1996 BMW 328ic convertible

 

[Amante]

Not really any hot rods or performance cars. My sole claim to fame in the "interesting cars" category was a 1959 Edsel that I had for about 10 years.

Yeah, I guess you couldn't call the Edsel a "performance" car...

I had a friend in high school whose dad had an Edsel, Ranger trim, a '59 I think, a plain jane 4-door sedan. Everywhere the name appeared on the car, in individual chrome letters on the grille, the trunk lid, and on the dash - it was spelled wrong! EDESL. Unbelievable. Great quality control back then!

 

[Amante]

2015 Z06 Corvette, 1998 Corvette Convertible, 1997 Trans Am WS6, 850 HP 2010 Corvette Gran Sport, 2004 Mazda RX8, 1965 GTO, 1967 Chevelle SS and too many others to list. I have had several trucks old and new. Also motorcycles...but none in the last 30 years.

You have possessed some serious horsepressure in your day. How you doin' with a measly 160hp under your foot? (I had a friend with a '65 Goat. Frightening, primitive machine.)

 

[RBH58]

The 124 replaced an Alfa Romeo MiTo QV....but previous rides? See below..

 

[PureAdrenaline]

​

You have possessed some serious horsepressure in your day. How you doin' with a measly 160hp under your foot? (I had a friend with a '65 Goat. Frightening, primitive machine.)

A definite change of pace. I have tweaked it some and most likely close to 220 hp. It lacks the sheer brute force of some of my past cars...but due to the size of the car and weight it still gives the sense of acceleration. The handling is quick and precise. I truly just enjoy driving it on the mountain roads. >

 

[CAN8IAN]

I replaced a NC Miata and previous to that, a 2011 370Z...

 

[kpoling]

I traded in a BMW 128i convertible. Before that, over the years, I've had two Deloreans, 2 Alfa spiders, an MGB, two Mustangs, a Mitsubishi Spyder, a Pontiac Solstice, and a series of sedans and coups, including a VW Passat, Ford Fusion Hybrid, Nissan 240, Honda Prelude. My wife drives a BMW X1 135 and we have a 1999 Eurovan with nearly 300,000 miles.

 

[Unknownsir]

sportier cars i have owned in the past, a 65 & 67 mustang, and 65 plymouth valient cp, 86 subaru xt enjoyed each of them but can't say i appreciated any of them as much as i do the 124, maybe because it has been so long since i had one.

 

[Netcruizer99]

This is a informative thread. I currently own a 2006 Corvette. Prior to that I had a '99 Miata that super fun to drive. However I got tired of Saturns, minivans, and every other car on the road beat it from a horsepower perspective. So I got the 'vette. The very first drive I took it to my favorite twisty road and was disappointed that it was not as fun as the Miata.

In fact, to get the "driving thrill" equivalent in the 'vette, means your running in 4th or 5th and doing near triple digit speeds. I haven't bought a Fiat yet, but I'm hoping that with the turbo and the low end torque, I can have the fun I once had on the twisty road in the Miata, yet still have enough power to merge onto the hiway without getting run over by 10 year old Saturns and minivans.

 

[frankmar]

In my youth days, I started with a Fiat 128 sedan, then Fiat 3P and Fiat Brava.
Then went with a Ford Tempo, (I still have the marks of the seat springs), Then I went with
Hyundai Elantra 1.6, Elantra 1.8 and Santa Fe SUV and now 5 years driving Nissan Murano and next year as a
Summer toy, Fiat 124 Spider Abarth.