Final Parking Space: 1980 Fiat Brava
Fiat departed the United States after 1982, not to return until the retro-styled 500 showed up as a 2012 model. Right now, Americans can buy just two new Fiat models, but the storied Italian company once offered a full line of cars here. That included an assortment of stylish sedans, and we’ve got one of those cars that showed up in a Northern California car graveyard last year.
I spent much of my childhood in a pair of Fiat 128 sedans, a yellow two-door and a green three-door, purchased after a short-notice move from Minnesota to California during which the family Chevy Sportvan Beauville wiped out on black ice in Nevada. My parents needed commuter machines in a hurry and the Fiat 128 was the cheapest new motor vehicle they could find right now. Many other American families were tempted by the great deals on 128s during the decade.
However, those wealthier American car shoppers who wished to drive sedans boasting rear-wheel-drive and Italian passion had some tempting Fiat choices during the 1970s. The 124 sedan was available here through 1975, which was the same model year in which the bigger and plusher 131 showed up on our shores.
The 131 is best-known in enthusiast circles today in its Abarth Rally form, but plenty of ordinary 131 two- and four-door sedans snarled out of American Fiat showrooms. The name for the North American version was changed from 131 to Brava for the 1978 model year, and sales continued here through 1981.
Fiat sold plenty of bread-and-butter 131s to European buyers, who were able to experience this sort of thing firsthand and wanted a taste of it for themselves.
The 131/Brava was well-priced to compete for sales against other sporty imported sedans of its era. The MSRP for a 1980 Brava two-door with fuel-injected engine was $7653, or about $31,015 in 2024 dollars.
Meanwhile, the list price of a new 1980 BMW 320i was $11,810, which comes to $47,863 after inflation. The smaller Audi 4000 two-door started at $7495 ($30,375 today), the Datsun 810 Maxima cost $8129 ($32,945 now), and the very courageous could stride into a Lancia showroom and depart with a new Beta sedan for $8,551 ($34,655 in today’s money).
You had to be brave to purchase a Brava in 1980, of course, because the 131 had become well-known for its iffy reliability when subjected to indifferent American-style maintenance and punitive American road and climate conditions. What you got with your Brava was a sonorous 2.0-liter Fiat Twin Cam engine, rated at 86 horsepower and 100 pound-feet, plus a taut suspension and stylish interior.
The original purchaser of this car likely wasn’t interested in spirited driving, since they opted for the $390 automatic transmission ($1581 today). Check out that cool-looking gearshift rig!
Would you have trusted Fiat air conditioning in 1980? This car’s first owner did, at a cost of $549 ($2225 now).
All the instruments and controls in this car are masterpieces of beautiful design. Sure, the 320i was quicker and held together better, but it was all tedious business inside compared to the Brava.
This car sat outdoors and immobile for many, many years, if we are to judge from the roasted interior, upper-body rust, and heavy vegetation buildup under the hood.
A Pick-n-Pull shopper removed the passenger door and then decided against buying it.
I spent many years not seeing discarded Fiats other than 850 Spiders and 124 Sport Spiders, with the occasional 128 thrown in every few years, but then a Fiat repair shop in Denver shut its doors five years ago and auctioned off close to 100 cars. Since that time, quite a few 131s and Bravas have appeared in the local boneyards. It was exciting to find a junked Brava that wasn’t from that batch.
Two years after this car was sold, the final-year American Fiat lineup consisted of three cars: the 124 Sport Spider, the X1/9, and the Strada. Malcolm Bricklin imported the first two for a few more years, with Pininfarina Azzurra and Bertone X1/9 badges; after that, we didn’t hear much about Fiat here until its merger with Chrysler in 2009. And we heard from Bricklin in 1985, when he began importing the Yugo.
If you’ve never considered a Fiat before… maybe it’s time.
It was such a terrible car reliability/wise that that’s why left enhance the slogan “fix it again Tony”. The article conveniently failed to mention the myriad of mechanical and quality control problems with the cars.
I meant that’s why left the US because of those crappy cars and hence the slogan.
Had 2 of these a 1980 4 door 5speed with the more powerful fuel injected engine that I drove to Alberta for my job back then and a 1978 2 door automatic that my dad drove and took over from me because he needed an automatic. That silver 2 Door we retired to a parts place in the early 1990’s still mechanically perfect but rust finally eating it up. Both cars broke my heart and I cried about the silver one. Both always started regardless of how cold it got back. With 4 winter tires it never got stuck even though they were rear wheel drive. Never had any mechanical issues. A great mechanic and looking after it like a European made a huge difference.
There is nothing left but pain and failure in that carcass
Sadly, and for many reasons, certain imports fell victim to negative press – and this was before social media – but when properly maintained, they ran well and were enjoyable, just like the myriad and millions of the same car made in their home country. We enjoyed the Fiat we rented in Italy and they are/were everywhere, including many 20+ years old.
I proudly owned a 1978 131 Super Brava, a mid-year upgrade to the 131 that gave it the Brava body and interior with the 131 mechanicals (1756cc, Weber carb, 5 speed). Few articles ever mention that model. I drove it for just over 10 years and 250,000 miles. At the time, I was commuting 75 miles a day on Oregon’s back roads in all kinds of weather. The little green car was known, shall we say. I did almost all of the mechanic work myself and eventually replaced nearly every part of the running gear. I made some performance upgrades to the engine: different camshafts, bigger Weber, exhaust, added a rear sway bar and +1 Cromadora wheels and larger tires It would happily rev to 8 grand on a regular basis although I didn’t due it everyday just for reliability. Anyway you cut it, 8 grand is a little hard on an engine if you do it all the time. Six grand was my usual shift point. I estimated I had about 100 hp or so. It was the car in which I learned to drive smoothly and quickly since going fast was pretty much out of the question. Oh, how I wanted to drive one of those Abarth rally cars! To pass cars, I had to make a run at them, gaining speed and timing it just right to catch up to them in time to pass. Uphills required a run up as well and usually a downshift. By the time I retired it, I had acquired quite a set of spare parts and tools just for that car and my wife’s silver 131 (also retired at 10 years and 190,000 miles). I always resented the bad press. They were beautifully styled, with a decidedly Italian flair (the steering wheel had one spoke only) and said, outloud, “I am not American, German, or Japanese.” They were cars that required maintenance and care. If you gave it to them the reward was a fun car that handled very well, loved to corner, and gave years of pleasure. It was the car in which I learned to heel and toe downshift, a lost art today. I kept it for a few years to drive in the summer, but eventually had to move it on. Sadly, its life was cut short by the idiot I sold it to who proceeded to wrap it around a tree not 2 weeks after he bought it. I still miss it sometimes.
I’ll venture that this specimen arrived at the junkyard around 1983…
I speak from FIAT experience. Ouch.
We are lucky to have a stable of fun and (at one time) cheap cars. We have a Mirafiori in silver at our cottage, and a Bertone X1/9 stashed at home. Had them both for nearly 18 years. We service them well , and run them regularly on local roads- only. They run great, sound great and always draw admirers. 80% of the issues came down to uneducated owners and poor caliber service. These have a few rust bubbles here and there, nothing more than cosmetic.
I too spent my childhood in Fiat sedans and I inherited the 78 131 SuperBrava as my 1st car in 1986. It spent more time in the shop than on the road; but when it did run, it was so very FUN! Thanks for the nostalgia
I had a Brava, yellow. It was purchased brand new, but started to rust within the first year. No reliability issues that I can recall, other than a windshield replacement leaked badly until it was re-installed. That’s on the glass company, though. The rust, on the other hand WAS an issue. My husband saw the car about a year after we sold it–terribly rusted through. This was in Houston, and it never saw snow, ice, or saltwater.
Dannazione! È stata una corsa dura! Un po’ di vino, per favore (Damn! That was a rough ride! Some wine, please)
Fiat made the US cars in a single batch run with different parts to meet our regulations. That’s why window cranks and other US stuff fell off, they were never really tested before sale or updated after feedback. The stuff that was standard (minus the cost-saving 3rd member of the 131) was pretty good. All cheap cars back then rusted and the weight-saving thinner panels didn’t do well here.
@Randy- Pardon me for asking again, but did you ever race in Western New York?
I absolutely LOVED my Fiats. In order, ‘71 124 Spider, ‘72 850 Spider (future wife’s car); ‘75 124 Spider, ‘74 124 T/C sedan, ‘74 124 Coupe and the ‘78 131 Super Brava.
Contrary to the experience of the rest of the world the only failure I experienced was a starter on the ‘75 124 Spider.
Those were some damn fun cars!
I had a total of about 1million miles in three 128s. Super fun, especially going up mountain roads (freeways) passing the tanks and making all kinds of noise in second gear. It was fun going into the Honda dealer in 2002–“What brings you in, folks?” “My car is 27 years old, and it’s a Fiat–in Ohio. My husband’s car has 750,000 miles on it. It’s time.” We kept both cars for a while after getting the new one. Great memories!
This is one car I would say buyer beware. Better to pick apart for parts.
If that car could talk I know what it would say. “I don’t look, drive or perform any different now than I did on day one”. Sorry. It’s not an American car.
Yes Pauly.