1961 FIAT OSCA 1500 Spider

“The car was owned by a famous Italian fashion designer back in the day,” explains vendor Adam Samuels. “It’d been in storage for 24 years before I bought it and then in storage for a further five years with me, before I started the restoration.”

Comprehensive describes that process and it included a full repaint and engine rebuild, as well as refurbishment of the interior. Bright work went for re-chroming and the fuel system (including carburettor) was rebuilt. Total spend in the last few years has been in the region of £22,000.

“It’s such a solid little car; it’s very rare to find one that hasn’t had any welding,” says Adam. “It’s literally been taken to pieces and put back together again and it drives beautifully. It has such a great little engine and is a rare car. I believe only 25 Silver examples were made.

“I did have a big plastic wallet full of the car’s original history but unfortunately it got lost, which is a real shame. However, all the big jobs have been completed and it now just needs a couple of finishing touches like the odd badge here and there.”

Recently driven up from Ickenham, London, to The Market’s Abingdon headquarters Adam says it managed the journey perfectly.

There’s an instant familiarity to this lesser known Fiat Spider’s exterior styling and it’s exceedingly pretty, no matter the angle. It’s had a very recent repaint and as such the exterior presents very nicely; there’s a very decent lustre, and that’s matched by the generally excellent fit and finish.

All body moulding and trim were removed and polished before refitting. It looks good, although one or two bits (including the door handles – shiny, but a tad pitted) could do with re-chroming. The big items such as the bumpers are very smart.

New enamel front wing badges were ordered (see invoice in the car’s History File, below) but as the three empty holes on each demonstrate they never made it on to the car, so the new owner will need to source some replacements.

The devil is in the detail though and this Spider has some glorious ones – just look at those exquisite crowns that sit just atop each door handle. Perhaps the only change we would make is to source some period silver on black registration plates.

Tyres have oodles of tread left, although one or two of the wheel edges has a touch of scraping present – an easy enough job to smarten up.

Overall, it’s a glorious looking thing.

“It retains its lovely original Nardi steering wheel,” says Adam. Anyone who knows these steering wheels is aware that they’re lovely little works of art and the perfect accompaniment for any Italian roadster.

“Everything has been done inside; new door cards, carpets; the dash top was stripped to bare metal and repainted, and the dash fascia fitted with new wood-effect vinyl. The gauges were also removed and re-painted, as were the needles.”

With hood up it reveals a pretty much perfect headlining, whilst outside it remains in very good condition, and the blue colour contrasts nicely with the Silver paintwork. Of course, the car works best with it down.

Doing so reveals a very smart cabin and one that’s been very sympathetically restored. The next owner may wish to replace the rubber sill trims and the driver’s mat to sharpen things up; the latter has a few scrapes that have lifted the pile in places, although both are by no means necessary.

At the same time as the OSCA engine’s rebuild (including repair of the cylinder block and machining of the cylinder liners), a new clutch and water pump were also fitted. The Weber carburettor was rebuilt and all new gearbox and engine mounting kits used. A fresh water pump had been fitted in 2016. Aesir Automotive carried out further engine fettling in 2021 in order to ensure that it functioned absolutely correctly.

And my does it. Adam is right – it’s a lovely rev-happy unit. Fire up our video and you can see it starts first time and spins freely right through its rev range; get it on the open road and it’s even better. A suitably sporty rasp accompanies it from the exhaust tailpipe for that perfect Sixties Dolce Vita. The four-speed gearbox shifts easily and the brakes are on point, bringing the car to a stop sharply. Fresh suspension rubber and engine and gearbox mountings ensure that it’s a squeak and rattle-free experience.

Pop the bonnet and the engine detailing work recently completed is clear, as the twin cam engines red cam covers visually pop. The underside presents very strongly and looks to back up Adam’s assertion that the car has never seen a welder’s torch. The suspension components look nice and fresh, and the exhaust tailpipe still retains its original sticker. It’s also nicely protected with fresh looking underseal.

In this car’s history file you’ll find evidence of the aforementioned recent works in invoice form. These include one from Torino-based Cavalitto (08/12/2016) for €530 for a new water pump and a number (25-03-19 for a total of €362.47, 03-04-19 for €97.40 and 10-04-2019 for €1097.50) from The Netherlands-based specialist Fiat-Osca-Parts for a variety of parts.

The biggest invoice for £13,833.50 from Aesir Automotive is dated 15-07-2021 and provides a detailed step-by-step breakdown of the comprehensive works carried out including that full repaint and interior restoration.

A Crewe Engines Ltd invoice for £6229.87 (dated 02-04-2017) also lists the various steps completed during the rebuild of that exquisite OSCA twin cam engine and its various ancillaries.

As well as those you’ll find an RAC Vehicle History Check, which shows that its first UK registration was April 1st 2016 and there are no vehicle alerts showing for the car.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of the paperwork to support our claim that this car has been restored and maintained to the very highest of standards.

What a sweet little chariot. And it’s coming for to carry someone home – or at least, it’s ready for someone to come and take it home. When you think little Italian roadster you’re mind goes to the usual suspects: Alfa Romeo Giulia Spider or even Fiat 124 Spider. However, if you can take a peek beyond those beasts then there are real delights and rarities to be had, and this is one such car.

We think it’ll sell for somewhere between £23,000 and £30,000. If you consider the recent outlay of circa £22k, then if it goes for that lower estimate the next owner would be getting steal; in fact even at the top end that still applies.

With its joyous OSCA-designed twin cam engine, it’s a real little performer. Throw in elegant Pininfarina lines (resplendent here in a very fetching Silver) and for us it’s a winning combo.

We’re almost certain that the next owner will agree.

Viewing is always encouraged and as stated this car is located at our Abingdon headquarters; we are open Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm and to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing to make an appointment. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.