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Tonight, Fiat’s Little Mid-Engine Wonder! It’s …

The Fiat X 1/9: 1972-1982

The X1/9 was a 2-seat mid-engine sportscar produced by Fiat starting in 1972. It came out two years before the similarly-styled mid-engine Triumph TR7. The Lamborghini Miura and Ferrari Dino had blazed the trail for money-no-object mid-engine sportscars, but no carmaker had managed to build one that regular people could actually afford to buy until the X1/9‘s introduction. The Porsche 914 that debuted two years earlier was less expensive than the Lamborghini or Ferrari, but still much more expensive than the X1/9.

First Generation 1972-1982

In 1969 the wedge-shaped Autobianchi A112 Runabout concept came about, styled by Italian design firm Bertone and powered by a version of the new Fiat 128 SOHC engine. The concept car took many styling cues from 1960s power-boat design with a tiny, boat-like windshield. That and the C-pillar mounted headlights never made it into the production X1/9, but many aesthetic features of the concept did make their way into the eventual car like the long, flat hood with a central indentation, the prominent C-pillar roll-over hoop, the indented waterline running the length of the car and the overall wedge shape which had not been seen in automotive design up until that time and gave the car a highly distinctive ‘70s appearance. Triumph later marketed their wedge-design TR7 as “The Shape Of Things To Come.”

The X1/9 was slated to debut at the November 1972 Turin Motor Show, but that was delayed to avoid upstaging the new Fiat 126 city car. Press test drives were conducted on the roads of the Italian Targa Florio road race, and journalists gave it high praise, raving about the car’s handling and rev-happy engine. UK automotive magazine Autocar‘s Peter Windsor summed up his first 12,000 miles in the car in just three words: “A baby Ferrari.” Automotive journalist Karl Ludvigsen wrote of the car at its debut:

“When I drove the X1/9 at its 1972 launch on the Targa Florio circuit in Sicily, its many corners usually demanded second gear, in which I let the engine rev as high as I needed to go fast. Glancing down, I found the tach needle around 7500 RPM and climbing, more than 1000 RPM above the limit. The short-stroke four reveled in it, though, even touching 8000 RPM a few times with no signs of stress or shortness of breath. Noise came from various directions: wind hissing around the window frames; a resonant booming in the body at 85 MPH; a gentle but persistent whir emerging from the engine bay.”

It was intended to replace the 850 Spider, another Bertone design that had been a huge sales success in the American market, not the larger and more expensive 124 Sport Spider that would continue to be produced until nearly the end of the X1/9’s life. It also kept its prototype code into production rather than using Fiat‘s numerical system that denoted a car’s relative position in the model range, (e.g.127, 128, 124, 131), because that’s how automotive journalists referred to it as it hadn’t been officially named yet. Fiat‘s prototype coding used X0 for engines, X1 for passenger vehicles and X2 for commercial vehicles, thus the X1/9 was the 9th passenger car developed using this nomenclature.

The car was designed around the 128 AS engine and transmission from the front-wheel-drive Fiat 128 Coupe 1300, moving it to the rear of the car just in front of the rear axle for a mid-engine design that improved handling. It was also installed at an angle of 11 degrees to improve the design of the body, a request by Bertone. The engine was designed by Aurelio Lampredi, who was one of Ferrari‘s top engine designers before moving to Ferrari‘s parent company Fiat. The fuel tank and spare tire were mounted ahead of the engine, behind the driver and passenger seats, optimizing the weight within the wheelbase and minimizing unsprung weight. The 1,290cc (79 cu. in.) single overhead cam inline-four featured a cast aluminum cylinder head and a cast aluminum oil sump. A single twin-choke Weber 32 DTMR carb and an 8.9:1 compression ratio gave the little Fiat engine 74 HP and 72 .lb. ft. of torque, enough to propel the 2,028-lb. car to over 106 MPH, 6 MPH faster than the lighter Fiat 128. Power was delivered through the all-synchronized 4-speed transmission from the same 128, but had a taller 4th gear ratio to capitalize on the X1/9‘s aerodynamics.

A slightly evolved version of the Fiat 128’s fully independent MacPherson strut suspension front and rear gave the car excellent handling, The front struts were much lower in relation to the hubs, and the rear struts were given much stronger, wide-based wishbones to give better control. Fiat‘s advanced design department leader Giuseppe Puleo said that the final design was aimed at neutral steering with a full fuel tank and gentle oversteer at the limit that could easily be corrected by the driver. In his words, “The aim was to make the driver king of the car, and not the car king of the driver.” The split circuit brake system used solid discs all around for better braking, and the three turns lock-to-lock rack-and-pinion steering gave great road feel and feedback to the driver. Stamped steel 13-inch wheels were standard, but cast alloy wheels could be had as an option. Fiat had to make the chassis stiff to meet new US safety regulations, and they added a roll cage mounted to the chassis to accomplish this. This resulted in an extremely stiff open-top design, but one that weighed more than the same design would with a roof.

The X1/9 featured a sharp-edged wedge design with retractable headlights, and integrated front spoiler for better aerodynamics. The two bucket seats were upholstered in leatherette and featured integrated headrests, and the four spoke steering wheel resembled the one in the Lamborghini Marzal. The engine cover and rear trunk space could be opened via lockable interior latches on the driver’s side door jamb. A removable Targa-top roof panel could be stowed in the front luggage compartment, and the rear trunk resided behind the engine compartment.

In 1974 Fiat exported the car to the US, utilizing smaller bumpers unique to the US models and emissions controls that strangled the already-low HP rating down to 66 HP. By 1975 emissions regulations tightened and US models were fitted with EGR valves, air pumps (sometimes referred to as “smog pumps”) and activated charcoal systems, dropping power further to 61 HP. They also had new larger and heavier twin-bar 5 MPH bumpers to comply with US regulations. It was also over-built to comply with US regulations, specifically being able to withstand a 50 MPH head-on collision. The X1/9 was one of two production cars to pass that test, the other being a Volvo sedan.

In 1976 a right-hand drive version was exported to the UK market, but the X 1/9 continued on in relatively unchanged form until 1978, when a larger 1500cc engine from the Fiat Strada was introduced with a 5-speed transmission, giving the car a modest power bump but significantly increasing noise from the engine. These can be distinguished from the earlier 1.3 liter cars by their wrap-around steel split bumpers with rubber impact blocks and shallower engine compartment lid, along with a raised instrument binnacle. The increased displacement gave US versions an additional 6 HP while retaining the emissions control equipment. In 1980 the engine acquired a Bosch L-Jetronic fuel injection system, replacing the older model’s single Weber carb. This restored some of the power lost vs. the Euro-spec models as well as complying with ever-increasing US emissions regulations. The second Energy Crisis in 1979, however, foreshadowed the end of Fiat‘s road for the X1/9 as sales of sportscars declined.

Second Generation 1982-1989

In 1982 Fiat ended its presence in the US, turned over complete production of the X1/9 to design house Bertone, and the car was then badged Bertone X1/9. Marketing and support was turned over to International Automobile Importers, Inc. headed by Malcolm Bricklin, to be sold through his network of dealerships. These cars featured revised footwells to enhance legroom and sitting comfort for taller drivers and passengers, along with leather seats and new wheels. In 1984 Bertone improved rust protection and modernized the electrical system. In those final few years sales declined sharply, partly because of the price; in 1975 an X1/9 sold for less than $5,000, and a decade later under Bertone the price had nearly tripled. That and the rise of the upstart Pontiac Fiero and Toyota MR2, newer mid-engine designs with smaller price tags, stole sales from the aging X1/9. As a result, 1987 was the last year that IAI imported the X1/9 to the US. From mid-1987 until the end of production in 1989, Bertone X1/9s were imported into the US by M.I.K. Automotive, Inc. in North Hollywood, CA, owned at that time by Miro Kefurt, the number one Bertone dealer in the US and one of a very few who sold X1/9s exclusively. These cars featured tacked-on rear wings, re-styled gauges and fresh wheels to spice up the 15-year-old design, but found fewer and fewer buyers. Bertone ended production in 1988, but there was enough backlog of unsold cars that you could still buy a new X1/9 in early 1990. The last four 1989 models were imported to the US in April of 1990.

The last production models from 1989 and 1990 were named Gran Finale and were dealer modifications with the addition of a rear spoiler and “gran finale” badging.

Racing X1/9s

The Filipinetti X1/9 of Scuderia Filipinetti was presented at the Geneva Motor Show as the first Fiat X1/9 racecar, built by technician and racer Mike Parkes in cooperation with Fiat. Parkes later developed and built the Lancia Stratos. Mechanical Lucas fuel injection was added to the engine along with other tweaks giving it over double the HP and allowing a top speed of 130 MPH.

Fiat‘s high-performance subsidiary Abarth developed the Abarth X1/9 Prototipo to replace the 124 Spider Abarth as Fiat‘s main rally car in 1973. It utilized a 1600cc 124-derived engine bored out to 1840cc with a custom 16-valve head and was fed by twin 44mm Weber IDF carbs. The car had flared wheel arches, a small “duck tail” spoiler and an F1-style air intake above the roof to feed colder air to the carbs. The car was entered in several World Rally Championship races in 1973, but retired from most of them with mechanical trouble. 1974 was better, with Ferrari F1 driver Clay Regazzoni handling driving duties, and the Prototypo notched three wins. Fiat ultimately decided to go rallying with the 131 Abarth project that was being designed in parallel with the X1/9 Prototype and the Stratus from Fiat subsidiary Lancia with its Ferrari Dino 246 GT-derived V6, whom they felt were better suited to rally races.

In 1975 the X1/9 was chosen by then automotive engineer (now racecar chassis builder) Gian Paolo Dallara to enter the world Championship for Makes in the Group 5 Special Production class. The Dallara Icsunonove (Italian pronunciation of X1/9) featured a modified X1/9 engine with a custom 16-valve head and a significantly re-engineered suspension, drivetrain, chassis and body. The most obvious of these changes was the massively flared wheel arches and large, over-sized rear spoiler. Dallara only built a single car, but licensed the design to several privateer racing teams, resulting in 30 cars built between 1975 and 1978. Fiat Group took notice and subsequently hired Dallara to develop several Lancia racecars.

The X1/9 was a fun car to drive and solved a difficult engineering problem with great style, but it was not without its faults. It was as prone to rust as other Bertone-designed cars, and the belt-driven camshaft could produce an unpleasant (and expensive) surprise if it broke. The sun visors didn’t completely fold out of the way, the seats were hard to adjust, the dash wasn’t very legible in daylight, the front spoiler didn’t look great but was essential for high-speed stability, and not a lot of fresh air made it into the cabin. But, as automotive journalist Karl Ludvigsen wrote in 1972: “There’s nothing on the market near its price that’s as enjoyable and as able as the X1/9. It is an engineering, styling and marketing coup of the first magnitude.” Over 100,000 of the approximately 160,000 X1/9s produced by Fiat and Bertone came to North America. In 2018, 1,034 were legally registered with plates in the US and an additional 115 were registered in Canada.

A shipmate of mine purchased a used Fiat X1/9 in the early ‘80s, and I was able to take the wheel a few times. It was an absolute blast to drive despite the under-powered US-spec engine, and handled like nothing I had ever driven up to that time. The car put a smile on my face every time he let me drive it, something few cars have done. It handled better than my Datsun 280ZX, and that’s saying something: I LOVED my Z and how it handled. ✪

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