When Fiat lovers get together, they do more than reminisce
Bob Sabdo loves driving his blue '71 850 Spyder on the open road with the top down and the wind in his face.
"I'm nuttier than most because when it hits 40 degrees, the top stays down," said Sabdo of Naperville. "This is not always pleasing to my better half Gayle, but she tolerates it."
Sabdo owned a 1967, two-passenger runabout while in college and until he started a family. Then as time went by, he thought it would be nice to have one again. Three years ago through the national FLU (Fiat and Lancias Unlimited) Web site, Sabdo connected with a guy in Baltimore, went there and drove his new '71 850 Spyder home.
"I've spent a lot of money getting the car redone, as my wife will tell you," Sabdo said. "I do a little at a time. Every winter I get something done that it needs. My goal is to keep it drivable. I don't want to just look at it; I want to drive it and enjoy it."
Four years ago a group of Fiat enthusiasts including Sabdo formed a local chapter of the Fiat and Lancias national organization. Now it has 119 members and is the largest and most active chapter in the states.
The best thing about owning his 850 is the camaraderie he enjoys with the members, said Sabdo, who participates in almost all the chapter-sponsored events.
Streamwood resident Lee Putnam, president of the local chapter, owns a 124 Sports Spyder Fiat that he bought in 1986 when he was 18 years old and just out of Marine Corps boot camp.
Sports cars were cool, but the Fiat was something different, he said. "When I fired it up, it had a growl that was different from anything I ever heard."
Mechanically, Putnam has rebuilt his car here and there, but it's not your typical restored car, he said. "Most of our people are drivers; they don't just go to car shows. We drive them with dirt, dents and scuffs because we use them as they were intended.
"That's the real joy of an Italian car. It may not be the fastest or coolest, but they're fun to drive. In the last 20 years, I've put 20,000 miles on my car."
About a dozen cars from the club make the road trip to the Fiat Freak Out annual event, which is in North Carolina this July, Putnam said. "It's like taking a ride in your youth again. I have the same feeling I had when I was 18 and drove the car for the first time.
"So many guys in our club owned these cars when they were young. Then they married, had kids and drove vans. Now they're coming back to these cars, and they're so excited to have that part of their youth back."
Although no date has been announced, Fiat will be coming back to the States via Chrysler.
For more information on the national organization and club chapters, visit flu.org.