Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Rare Racer: 1971 Fiat Bertone 850 Racer Sport

Unlike its plentiful cousin the Fiat 850 Spider, very few Fiat 850 Racers were ever produced. These specially bodied hardtop coupes were made by one of Italy's greatest design studios, Bertone, and produced by that company's manufacturing division. This one out of Oceanside, California looks very complete and original, and shows just the right amount of patina.


Interested parties should do their homework. Many clone 850 Racers are running around, utilizing fiberglass hardtops that were period accessories for the more plentiful Spiders. Important but small details like the "Racer" badges should be in place along with other trim details to authenticate this car as a true Racer.


The opening bid of $12,850 for this car is probably a fair price...however at this point there has been no bids. Perhaps the seller might consider a close offer.


Despite it's "racy" name, these cars are really rather slow and fragile..much like many Fiats of that era. However the unique look provided by the fixed hardtop provide some collector cachet, and if you must go faster there is 40+ years of development available for the motor through many marque specialists.

5 comments:

  1. Hey Barnfinder. No posts for a while?

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  2. Hey Steen, thanks for keeping us honest! The truth is that we have been so busy chasing cars in real time that we haven't been able to blog about the virtual finds. Remember, you only see the cars that Barnfinder! passes on and not the ones we get.
    However I promise we will find something of interest to pass on to the readership. Thanks for looking in on us!

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  3. They made the bertone only one year....1970/....?

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  4. Thats odd I woned a 1971 850 racer (baratone) Boy am I confused now - came off the show room floor to boot.

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  5. This used to be my car. I saw it for the first time as a child in my elderly neighbors driveway. For years I exclaimed that I wanted it when I 'grew up' as I watched the retired aircraft engineer tinker away. He would drive it occasionally, usually just around our block to keep the seals fresh and I loved it when he let me ride along. Years after my family had moved away, I drove through the neighborhood to see the car still under the carport, this time covered with a thick layer of dust. The now very elderly couple, about ready to retire from life, could no longer drive and sold it to me for a few hundred dollars knowing it had always been my childhood dream. I was now about 20 years old and living in an apartment, so I convinced my parents to let me keep it at their home. Shortly thereafter, I had to sell the car quickly. My family was moving and I had no place to keep the car. My younger sister was involved in a terrible accident while attending college out of state, things were moving fast. I listed it on craigslist and in the local recycler and sold to to someone a few days later for about $1,000. I didn't know what I had, and nobody knew anything about it, some said the car didn't exist. With limited resources of the time, both financial and informational, I regrettably had to sell the token of my childhood dream. If anybody knows who owns the car now or the person who listed it on eBay, I would love to get in contact. Thank you! - Bret

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