Unrestored Roadster: 1936 Fiat 508 Balilla 4M Spyder

This 1936 Fiat 508 Balilla 4M Spyder is described as 1 of 12 thought left to exist, and one of only three built in Italy instead of France and Poland where Fiat licensed the bulk of production. 

The car was parked in 1979 after a blown head gasket was found, and was resurrected and sorted mechanically at Catz.  It runs and drives fine but remains unrestored.

The body wears black paint that is believed to have been applied in the 1950′s, and, from a bit of scratched paint in an inconspicuous location, shows it may have originally worn royal blue paint with black fenders and tan interior. There is surface  rust on the car, although the underside also has a good amount of surface oxidation.

The interior is covered by a tan colored top that may be the original, and the frame mechanisms appear to be functional. The upholstery on the bench seat appears to have held up moderately well, while the floorboards look worn but intact. The gauges and hardware look a little tired after almost 80 years, but they are complete.

"The second word on the grille is Weber as in Weber carburetor.

The 1930 t0 1933 were an older dated version. The 1934 to 37 model years ran the “new” body/grille, more HP 32 I think, and the new Weber carb instead of the tractor carb.

This model was also produced in France and Poland, the differences being the bumpers and lighting to conform with their laws and the side grill styling, wheels and some of the badging were different. Fore instance the Polish badge on the front grill said Fiat but had wings added to it (had nothing to do with Red Bull!)" ~ Tom Zabrasky

Besides the headgasket work, the car was put back on the road with a rebuild of the Weber carb, points, plugs, and wires, and brake work that included a rebuild of the brake and slave cylinders. The engine has a gravity feed fuel system and thermosiphon cooling.

"I myself did not know the rarity of this car when I bought it. It was only after that my research found that there was little to no information on this car via the internet. I contacted the Balilla Registry in Italy and they said of the 100,000 cars that were built they only knew of 45 Italian built Balillas and that of those 45 only 3 were the Roadster. Of the Balillas out there 1I found only 1 similar to mine, it is highly incomplete with parts that are impossible to find and the asking price is $40K USD. Coupes and sedans have sold for at least that much and the Fiat Sports are in the $250K range. So this did not just come from my own ideas of what it is worth. Like they say it only costs too much if you can find another cheaper, in this case there is no “other”. ~ Tom Zabrasky