It has nothing to do with H1N1 and everything to do with Beta and 124

Bobb Rayner's business card lists himself as "The Fiat Freak." As co-founder of the Fiat-Lancia Unlimited (FLU) club, he's proud of the organization and its annual "Freak Out." Rightfully so. Growing from a dozen cars 26 years ago, the Freak Out, held this year in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, was most likely the largest gathering of vintage Fiats and Lancias in North America...possibly the world.

As part of their annual 4-day festival, the gathered owners bring their cars to the Lower Perkiomen Valley Park for a car show. A wide range of Fiats and Lancias along with a Ferrari, a Maserati, and a handful of Alfa Romeos spread out in the field between the trees and the creek on a hot August afternoon.

Among the more popular cars at the "Concours d'Elegance" were the Fiat X1/9s. With a production run that lasted more than 15 years without a significant change in the body, the X1/9 is probably the most recognized of all Fiat models among non-Fiat people. Louis Teresi showed of his original 1974 yellow roadster as the oldest example in attendance and one of the oldest examples in the United States. With only 5,600 miles on the clock, it is definitely a survivor.

On the other end of the production run was Kevin Staudt's 1985 Bertone X1/9. After Fiat withdrew from the US market in 1983 (coincidentally, the year Fiat-Lancia Unlimited was founded), Malcolm Bricklin's International Automobile Importers (IAI) continued to market the X1/9 under the Bertone brand.

Staudt's example has been enhanced by Midwest Bayless. In its striking metallic green paint job, the little two-seater gave up its 1.5L Fiat four-cylinder in favor of a 2.0L DOHC four-cylinder from an Acura RSX. The spectacular transplanting job accomplished by these Fiat specialists made many friends from Fiat aficionados as well as bikers and joggers passing through the park.

Matt Brannon and his wife, owners of Bayless, brought a few customer cars from Ohio to be delivered to their owners. Some X1/9 owners from as far away as Alaska come to the Columbus firm for their expertise.

But it wasn't all X1/9s. Nearly four decades of Fiat two-seaters were on display. The bookends for open Fiats ranged from Walter Keith's beautiful red 1959 1200TV to the 1996 Fiat Barchetta that Andrew Mikus drove down from Quebec. In between were rear-engined 850s and front-engined Spiders including a couple rare Turbo models and an extremely rare closed 1971 850 Racer. Parked on one side of the field were two nearly identical Fiat-powered coupes owned by Haz Newumann (1970 Lombardi Grand Prix) and Rob Maselko (1971 OTAS 820). With US examples claimed to number in the double-digits, these were very rare cars.

Rows of Lancias showcased what Americans, and most of the world, have been missing (or overlooking) for decades. While not in numbers like the Fiats, the range of models included the mid-engined Scorpion (known as the Montecarlo elsewhere in the world), a handful of Beta Zagatos with their unique half-convertible/half-targa styling, a beautiful red 1967 Fulvia Rallye HF owned by Mark Wolff, and an elegant 1956 Aurelia B24 Convertible owned by Michael Seidman Space among a few others.

The Fiat-related brands showed up as well. A lone Ferrari 330GT sat under the shade of a tree away from the rest of its less aristocratic cousins. One Maserati Coupe sat among the Alfa Romeos in the back row away from the featured Fiats and Lancias.

Collecting, restoring, and adoring these cars seems to be a family affair. As we walked into the event, we met John Alberts and his wife. When their 1979 Fiat 2000 Spider was unable to make the trip from upstate Michigan to the southeastern corner of Pennsylvania, the couple still took the two-day excursion. The Alberts' were a joy to talk to about their love of Fiats and their extensive knowledge of Italian sites and artwork.

With the light and familial aura that surrounded this whole show, hopefully the Alberts' took the time to share their passion with the younger generations, many of whom brought their own young children, seated under the trees in the park.

And sometimes the enthusiasm seems to flow out of every pore, as it did with Timothy Turner and his wife. This Vermont couple brought one of the 30 Moretti-enhanced Fiats that they have collected over the past 22 years. On display was their tiny Moretti 126, only slightly larger than Mrs Turner's motorized scooter. The existence of one 126 at this show would have been noteworthy enough, but this was one of about 1,000 vehicles to emerge from the Moretti Motor Company factory in 1974.

As we sat down for a tasty lunch of cheesesteak with peppers and a cold soda, we met Everett and Janet Bailey. They prepared their 1970 Fiat 124 Sport, lovingly nicknamed Sparky, for the trip in from Dayton just a few days earlier. After fixing the exhaust header, a maladjusted carburetor, and tending to a leaking tire, they made the trip across the southern edge of Pennsylvania in time for the Freak Out.

Janet, as well as Everett, knows how to turn a wrench on her Fiat. An earlier experience with a broken accelerator pedal left her stranded for too long. She vowed to never let any car leave her high and dry, so she learned the basics of automotive mechanics. Our conversation strayed into the finer points of Weber and Solex carbs while Everett proudly looked on.

When it comes to car clubs, there's a group for just about everyone. FLU, like so many others, builds on its strength of good people who have a love of cars bringing them together. It was these good people, and a whole bunch of small Italian cars, that made this Freak Out a success.

Bobb was asked to point out the most entertaining person at the event. He couldn't pick just one, and instead said that any FLU member would work. He was right. We didn't meet anyone who wasn't, at minimum, entertaining. It might be worth it to buy a Fiat or Lancia just to be associated with this crew. They have as good a time as any club and they've got some interesting cars on top of it.

Looking forward to next year, Bobb!

For more great Fiats and Lancias, check out the photos in the Automotive Traveler image gallery.

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Michael Louviere  - IA-Mike |08-1-2009 Thanks for a very nice, well written article. ReplyQuote 0 0

TK |08-1-2009 Very nice article! ReplyQuote 0 0

TK |08-1-2009 Chrysler was there presenting the NEW Fiat 500 for the first time to member of the public in North America and they have posted their own videohttp://blog.chryslergroupllc.com/blog.do?p=day&ds=16082009here. ReplyQuote 0 0

JG |10-1-2009 "It might be worth it to buy a Fiat or Lancia just to be associated with this crew. They have as good a time as any club and they've got some interesting cars on top of it." It's at least as much about the people as it is the cars, and Vince understood and captured the warmth and feeling of family we have within FLU. This is a great bunch of people who love getting together and driving together. And beyond that the big bonus is when we all go our separate ways we have these beautiful singing and dancing Italian cars to carry us back home. ReplyQuote 0 0

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