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Junkyard Gem: 1978 Fiat X1/9

Fiat did pretty well selling cars in the United States during the 1970s, especially after the 1973 Oil Crisis made fuel economy a very persuasive selling point. While sales of the larger 131/Brava and weird-looking Strada never amounted to much here, 128s, 124 Sport Spiders and X1/9s were all over American roads during the Malaise Era. Today's Junkyard Gem is one of those X1/9s, found in a boneyard near Pikes Peak in Colorado. The design of the X1/9 was inspired by the 1969 Autobianchi A112 Bertone concept car, and it featured the engine/transaxle assembly and front suspension from the Fiat 128 mounted just behind the seats. A bit more than a decade later, GM copied that idea by using Chevrolet Citation running gear and front suspension in the back of the Pontiac Fiero. The result was a lightweight, nimble mid-engined targa convertible that achieved excellent fuel economy and looked far quicker than it actually was. The X1/9 was available in the United States from the 1973 through 1987 model years. Because Fiat fled the United States in 1982, the 1983-1987 X1/9s were imported by Malcolm Bricklin (yes, at the same time he was the Yugo King) and sold with Bertone badging. The Bricklin-imported 124 Sport Spider was available here during that period as the Pininfarina Azurra. The MSRP for the '78 X1/9 was $5,445, or about $26,804 in 2023 dollars. Meanwhile, the 124 Sport Spider listed at $6,495 ($31,973 after inflation), though it had quite a bit more horsepower (90 versus the X1/9's 67). The next-cheapest mid-engined Italian two-seater Americans could buy that year was the Ferrari 308, which started at an eye-watering $28,580 ($140,692 today); the '78 Maserati Bora cost $29,800 ($146,698 now). A year earlier, there would have been a bit of competition with the Lancia Scorpion, but the last model year here for that somewhat cheap machine was 1977. The U.S.-market X1/9 was underpowered, no getting around that, but it managed to be fun to drive. Install a quad-cam Alfa Romeo V6 from a 164 in one, though, and you get a terrifyingly fast track machine. I used X1/9 side scoops on the hood of my 1965 Impala sedan project, back in the 1990s. The little access hatch to the distributor, located behind the passenger seat, is a thoughtful touch by Fiat. Its final parking space has a good view of Pikes Peak (the snow-covered mountain behind the Xterra), at least.

Chrysler's Woodward Dream Cruise festivities include Ram concept truck debut

The streets will be crowded next weekend along Woodward Avenue in Royal Oak, Michigan for the 19th Annual Woodward Dream Cruise. As part of the run-up to the festivities, Chrysler has announced that all of its brands - Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Fiat, SRT and Mopar - will bring along their latest vehicles. Also included will be a collection of classic American cars and various activities for attendees at the official Chrysler location on the corner of Woodward and 13 Mile Road.
Special to this year, Ram brand director Bob Hegbloom and head of design John Dehner will unveil a Ram concept truck on Saturday. Chrysler will also bring Ryan Friedlinghaus of West Coast Customs fame along to show off a few custom Chrysler-made vehicles of his own. Fans of the brand on Facebook will get the chance to virtually customize a vehicle from the automaker's portfolio, with the winner getting their dream car built for them by Chrysler. Pretty cool stuff, no?
As in past years, Ford and General Motors will have an official presence at the event as well, and you can expect to see plenty of cars of all makes and models from all parts of the globe. The madness starts this Friday, August 16, from 4:30 PM to 10 PM, with the main event taking place on Saturday, from 9 AM to 9 PM. For more details on the show, including events and their times, check out the press release below.

FCA and UAW deal could mean huge production shakeups

The big labor contract between Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the United Auto Workers is likely to lead to some very serious production shakeups across the company's North American manufacturing operations. That's according to a new report from Automotive News, which details the sweeping changes at no fewer than five production facilities in Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Mexico, and Poland. So without further ado, here's what's going where, presented in easy to digest bullet form. Ram 1500 production would move from Warren, MI to Sterling Heights, MI Warren, MI would be retooled for unibody production and would handle the Jeep Grand Wagoneer and could potentially build Grand Cherokees to ease the strain on Detroit's Jefferson North factory Chrysler 200 production would move from Sterling Heights, MI to Toluca, Mexico Dodge Dart production would move from Belvidere, IL to Toluca, Mexic Fiat 500 production, which is currently handled by Toluca, would be concentrated in Poland, where the Euro-spec Cinquecento is built Jeep Cherokee production would move from Toledo, OH to Belvidere, IL to make room for Wrangler and Wrangler Pickup production Like we said, those are some big changes. But, as FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne said in an earlier interview with Automotive News, this kind of shakeup would make a lot of sense. In that August interview the exec said that automakers moved truck production to Mexico because they were "threatened" by the UAW. "The only thing [the UAW] want is to move the truck back. Which is right. If you move the truck back here, which is [the UAW's] domain, [and move] all the cars that we get killed on somewhere else, we could actually make sense of this bloody industry and actually increase the number of people employed in this country and really share wealth because we are making money," Marchionne told AN. News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Bill Pugliano / Getty Images Plants/Manufacturing UAW/Unions Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep RAM Sergio Marchionne FCA toluca warren sterling heights