In a recent Pick of the Day, we featured a classic Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider and touched on how Italian coachbuilders often would take pedestrian vehicles and use their creativity to create something new and interesting. This 1969 Fiat 124 “Eveline” Coupé is one of those special vehicles, which is why it is our Pick of the Day. It is listed on ClassicCars.com by a dealer in Italy. (Click the link to view the listing)
The Fiat 124 was the company’s bread-and-butter for half of the 1960s and 1970s. The sedan is famous for its ubiquity, as well as being the core vehicle for several Iron Curtain and third world countries. There also was a Pininfarina-designed Sport Spider that was quite popular in the U.S., as well as a Sport Coupé (styled in-house by Boano) that features a junior Ferrari look. However, that didn’t stop coachbuilders like Vignale from creating its own 124 Coupé, which it christened “Eveline.” It debuted at the 1967 Turin Motor Show.
Interestingly, the 1967-69 Eveline used the sedan’s OHV inline-four (both in 1,197cc and 1,438cc variants) and not the DOHC 1.4-liter that was used by both the Sport Spider and Sport Coupé. As equipped, the Eveline featured 59 or 69 horsepower from its OHV fours instead of the 79 horses offered by the DOHC 1.4. Nonetheless, the Eveline sports styling quite different from the first-generation 124 Sport Coupé, though the Eveline’s front end styling seems to hint at what Fiat would produce with the 1969 124 Sport Coupé facelift.
This 1969 Fiat 124 “Eveline” Coupé features the OHV 1.2 four backed by a four-speed manual. Inside is where the excitement really starts due to the four-place seating with armrests, central ashtrays, power front windows. “Good condition of mechanics and bodywork,” says the seller, with the “front grille, bumpers, trim, and moldings in good condition.” Inside, the black seats and door panels have been recently restored, but the “original instrumentation [is] in fair condition and [the] dashboard [has] visible imperfections.” Under the hood, the “engine [has been] subjected to periodic maintenance.”
This custom-bodied Italian, estimated to be one of 200 produced, can be yours for €25,000, which is roughly $27,250. A custom-bodied Ferrari from the same era goes for gazillions more, so think of this as your easy ticket to coach-built pedigree with a supply of maintenance at your disposal. The cognoscenti will approve!
To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.
Source: www.classiccars.com