1972 FIAT 500L

An original right-hand-drive car, the included V5 document shows that this 500L was first registered on 13/04/1972. It also indicates that in that time it’s had just three owners.

Our chap Geoff took ownership in 1999. ‘I bought it on a whim really, as I’d always liked them and it was such a nice little thing,’ he explains. ‘The previous owner had passed away and I purchased it from his wife.’

It had approximately 60,000 miles on the clock when he took ownership. ‘I didn’t get round to using it as much I wanted to, as I’m an Austin 7 person. It’s not been driven much in recent years, but I have used it for a few local classic rallies.’

Geoff says that ideally it needs re-commissioning but, as he suffers from arthritis, it requires ‘someone who’s a touch more agile than me.’ He’s fettled it over the years including fitting a new correct Weber carburetor, redoing the electrics and fitting a new sliding roof.

‘It does want a bit of attention, but basically it’s quite good really. There is rust, but when you jack it up nothing moves, the doors still close and that’s a good test of the bodyshell’s solidity’.

This Fiat 500L is located at The Market headquarters in Abingdon, so as with all our lots we recommend hitting the ‘contact seller’ button to arrange a viewing and test drive.

As Geoff said there’s a bit of rust on the body, but it looks to be predominantly at the 500’s peripheries – front valance lower edge; wheel arches and lower front wing sections.

Taking these back to bare metal will reveal the extent of it, but even taking those areas into account it looks like a good honest car. The Red Ochre paint finish is a little depressed, being faded and a touch patchy here and there; so if carrying out restorative works it would certainly benefit from full re-spray.

When Geoff first got the car home he opened the sunroof and a load of rust fell into the cabin. ‘When I removed the original roof there was no rust on the body itself – it was just the frame it came from.’ The new roof/frame came as a package (for around £150) and that’s what it wears now.

The painted steel wheels and chrome hubcaps offer a lovely contrast to the body colour, and are still in lovely condition. It wears Marangoni rubber at the front and Camac items at the rear, so the next owner may want to invest in a full set of matching tyres.  

The car’s cabin remains in very reasonable condition, with everything veering towards well preserved. Vinyl covered seats and door cards are without any rips or even significant blemishes. Rubber matting is in similarly in good condition (each foot well is covered by a carpet mat), as is the rear headlining.

In front of that, the roll-top sunroof remains in almost perfect state and slides back and forth easily, revealing that solid metal on the roof’s exterior. Everything inside appears to be here and complete, including sun visors (often missing) and door card storage units (often broken).

The driver’s seat doesn’t slide easily, but a touch of lubrication should sort that. Geoff says he’s had a few issues with the manual push washer and bought a new one, but hasn’t yet fitted it – it’ll come with the car.

Best of all though is that tarnish-free trapezoidal speedometer, which looks like it could have left the factory yesterday. Overall, it’s a charming original space – small, but perfectly formed.  

The little Fiat starts well and that minuscule engine ticks over nicely, but the choke sticks on a little bit so it’s a touch over revvy on the throttle. We’ve spun it around the block a few times and everything seems to function – it pulls, stops, rides and shifts – but we’ve refrained from taking it any greater distance. ‘It’s good to drive,’ says Geoff. ‘It steers well, but the brakes want a bit of attention.’

The engine presents well. It’s nice and clean, as well as being tidy in appearance. The fuel pipes look to be in good condition, and there’s no evidence of any puddles of oil underneath. The bay itself is a little grubby at either side, but that’s to be expected with a 47-year old bambino.

Popping the bonnet reveals a spare wheel and jack both correctly stowed and secured, while the fuel tank and fuse box also look to be in reasonable health.

It’s a bit surface rusty and crusty underneath. That applies to suspension components, brackets and leaf springs, but the actual floorpan looks quite good with original paint still discernible underneath. The exhaust system too appears to be nice and solid.

At the front there’s evidence of a bit of overspray on suspension components, so it’s obviously had a bit of paint here and there over the years.  

As well as the included V5 document (showing three owners from new), you’ll find the original Fiat 500/500L Instruction book. There’s also a small box of spares, although that includes some old boxed parts that have been replaced – still, nice to have the originals!

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained to a very high standard.

What a lovely little car, and it’s being sold by an equally lovely gentleman. As a genuine RHD car, it’s a rare opportunity to snap one up. The mileage is still fairly low (certainly given its vintage), and the mechanicals look to be in quite good health.

It is in need of some re-commissioning but this lovely little 500L is a proper little charmer. We think owner Geoff is spot on in his assessment that the underlying structure is solid, and believe it’ll offer a nice basis for a very good example.

Without doubt its strongest element is the interior, which is has been preserved incredibly well and in close to original condition. With a little bit of body TLC, we think this is going to be one sweet example.

Of course the next owner could decide to go all-out and commission, or carry out, a full restoration, which would turn it into a showstopper.

What would we do? Hmm, sharpen up the exterior and drive the little rascal. We think that it’ll sell for between £4000 and £7000, which is absolute buttons for the pleasure on offer.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this car can be seen here at The Market HQ in Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’. 

If needed, please remember we have a network of trusted suppliers we work with regularly and can recommend: Classic & Sportscar Finance for purchase-financing, Thames Valley Car Storage for storing your car, AnyVan for transporting it, and Footman James for classic car insurance.