During the 1960s and 70s, European automakers seemed to be quite fond of making their coupes so visually distinct from their sedan platform-mates that they may as well have had a different name. This Fiat 124 Sport Coupe is case in point: does it look at all like the blocky, three-box 124 sedan? Then there were the coupe versions of the Fiat 130, Peugeot 504 and Lancia Gamma that were all stunning while their sedan counterparts were plain at best and homely at worst.
The 124 coupe doesn’t represent quite as radical a departure, visually, but it is still prettier than the 124 sedan. Why didn’t Fiat give it (and the pretty 124 Sport Spider) a separate name? And why the slavish devotion to alphanumerics? After all, everything sounds better in Italian (or French, or Spanish). This 124 coupe is a sharp little ride, with an attractive paintjob and aftermarket wheels that are tasteful if not exactly period-appropriate. It’s a hot little number parked in front of a hot Italian restaurant.
Handsome whether an early model like Paul brought us, or a later one like this. I wish I still saw (and heard) these on the streets. What visibility!
Nice color, looks good at night! What’s with all the people waiting in the alley? Is it like a nightclub and restaurant?
Nice car its probably a tax dodge for the restaurant owner and a nice show piece to park out front, A workmate in Tassie found one of these in the garage of the house he was renting keys in the ignition and miracle of miracles with a jump start it went lumpy cam twin Delortos headers etc it was a Fiat of the old school left there by his landlord.
You would think in the case of the 124 or 130 NOT using a different name for the coupe and spider was a case of going with an “established” name. I suppose it was also a case of not having to come up with acceptable names for multiple markets. However, what I always thought was a bit confusing was 124 AND 125 sedans. A bit like Chevy having the Caprice and Impala start on the same platform….then splitting them off?
When it comes to names I’m torn between meaningless alphanumerics and “made-up”/almost a real word names. Infiniti calling ALL it’s vehicles Q__ is the worst. Mercedes and BMW forgoing their decades long convention of model designations that incorporated engine displacement is another. As in 328 no longer denotes a 3 series with a 2.8 liter engine.
A couple years ago one wag at, I think, Jalopnik, suggested BMW model numbers should reflect the monthly lease payments.
Many of these coupes had convertible stablemates and they were quite different as well,the 124 being a case in point. This looks like a BC – I had an AC. Fantastic cars, but they would rust as you watched and build quality was terrible. There were quite a few around in the ’80’s but I cannot recall when I last saw one.
This ones a CC. The quick tell is the larger kink in the c-pillar and the full height taillights.
I know I am in the minority, but I think the later 124 sport coupes look better than the early ones. The front and rear facias just convey more strength while maintaining the delicate and useful thin roof pillars.
The twin cam engine, 5 speed, and full instrumentation gave the car all the credibility it needed. When I turned 16 in 1985, this was one I lusted for a lot. Even by then they were not common, people knew the 124 spiders, and they knew the X19, but this would have confused everyone. All the more fun.
It’s very pretty ! .
-Nate
I recently ate at Trattoria Grappolo in Santa Ynez, a bistro so good, they could’ve parked a Gremlin out front for all I cared. Insanely great [real Italian style] pizza & the best olive-oil I’ve ever tasted; I bought a bottle from them (must be from a local orchard). Now I have to find Ciabatta bread worthy of it.
This makes shopping olive-oil even more crazy for me. First it had to be virgin, then it was extra-virgin, then it was first-press extra-virgin, then cold first-press extra-virgin, so what adjective comes next?
The answer is: a very long tradition. Essentially it’s a hold-over from the pre-war era when car manufacturers made the chassis (with a corresponding name or model number), and then typically sold a factory sedan version and coupe and convertible versions made by coach-builders (carrozzerias in Italy). A different name would have confused buyers.
The 124 Coupe and Cabrio/Spyder were of course unibodies, which required more work to make those body styles. But it was still in keeping with tradition. And one that essentially continues today, with companies like Mercedes and BMW, although they have recently given coupes and cabrios a different prefix or number.
Many aircraft companies have used this prosaic model-numbering, e.g. Boeing 377, Lockheed 049, Breguet 761, Dornier 29, Tupolev 144. Boeing’s prototype jet airliner/tanker (on display at the Air & Space Museum) was deliberately misnamed 367-80 to confuse competitors. Nobody was fooled, least of all Douglas.
“Then there were the coupe versions of the Fiat 130, Peugeot 504 and Lancia Gamma that were all stunning while their sedan counterparts were plain at best and homely at worst.”
You might add the Fiat 850 and Fiat 850 Coupe to this list.