Barn Find Fiat: 1960 Fiat 600 D Multipla
This 1960 Fiat 600 D Multipla “has been in covered dry storage for the past 35 plus years. It is very original and complete.” It sure looks like a great project van. It’s listed on eBay with bids of $2,700 but the reserve isn’t met of course. This barn find Fiat is located in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Fiat 600-based Multipla has been a hot vehicle the last few years so depending on what the seller’s reserve is here the next owner could still theoretically not be in over his/her head on restoration costs if they could do most of work and not farm it out.
There will be rust repair as you can tell but the spots are few and far between, at least compared to most of these l’il vans. The seller has provided a lot of photos to check out which is great, including several underside photos and for the most part it does look like a pretty good example to start with. It’s hard to argue with the super unique shape of this thing, and even the doors are cool!
The interior looks incredibly complete and actually not bad at all. I’m so used to seeing either little $60,000 jewel box examples or almost totally worthless rusted hulks. If I owned a bodyshop I would definitively take this on as something to keep everyone busy when things slow down. This is the six-passenger Multipla as compared to the taxi version with a single seat in front and a 4/5 passenger model with two bench seats that folded down to create a bed. That’s the one I would want to save on hotel costs as I drive this 40,000 miles a year all around the U.S.. ok, that probably wouldn’t work, but it’s a fun thought.
The seller has even included a good engine photo which is always nice. Here’s where your spare SBC will get “dropped”.. No, I hope not. This should be Fiat’s “bigger” engine which was available starting in 1960, a 767cc inline-four with around 32 hp. This “car hasn’t been run in decades and I havn’t [sic] tried to get it to run.” I’m sure that it’ll run again and this Multipla is nice enough that it’ll end up being restored, but that’s just a guess. Have any of you ridden in or driven a 600 Multipla? Or better yet, owned one?
Auctions Ending Soon
2002 Subaru Impreza WRXBid Now2 days$333
1975 Chevrolet Corvette ConvertibleBid Now2 days$4,000
1964 Ford F-100 Camper CustomBid Now2 days$2,000
2006 Jeep Wrangler SportBid Now4 days$10,500
1974 Datsun 260ZBid Now6 days$460
Comments
All I see is “Dogbert” from the Dilbert cartoon.
This can be the HITLER Vehicle in the next animated cars movie
My hat is off to you sir!
Tanks , Frank…..When I go into Starbucks this afternoon I’m going to request the Sumatra in your honor.
Okay Scotty, now you’ve finally done it. I’m nominating you for the highly coveted “holy grille” award.
This one looks like a micro version of the Flexible trans continental bus. Post war manufacturers were still recovering from the ashes and had to do with what they had in order to move their people around. My last trip to Catania, Sicily still showed how much the average worker will endure just to get to work; four grown men on a small scooter of about 90ccs doing the transporting chores. Burned 20 to 1 premix sure makes your suit smell industrious. No “hands free driving” over there.
Neat find.
From time to time I have criticized sellers for not taking adequate pictures when attempting to sell items. In this case, the seller has done a good job showing the condition of their vehicle.
There is one of these near my area that is fully restored and on the road. I’ve seen it several times at various shows. You have to see one of them in person to get a real feel for how small they are. I’m 6 feet tall and weigh over 250 pounds and if seated behind the wheel, only a small child could fit next to me up front. Very cool looking little ride if you and you’re posse can get in it.
32 HP to move six passengers? I hope they’re not in a hurry. :D
Kinda neat for being as different as it is. I wonder how difficult parts are to source for this?
Is it me or does it looks like they put the headlights and wipers on the wrong end? Cool little ride though.
Worked on one just like this in Beaufort S.C. the thing was always broke, problem was the 16 year old kid that was driving it.. If I remember it was bought new at the Fiat Dealer In Beaufort, Believe the name of the dealership was Bennet Motors??
My family had one of these when I was a young kid. I think it was a pretty reliable car. My friends laughed at it. My dad ran it into the back of a parked car and that was the end of it. We then got a Lloy.
What’s that hose going from the crankcase to the fan assembly? some kind of oil breather/lube supply?
It’s the water supply. The fan assembly is actually the water pump.
My very first car was one of these. I bought it when I was only 15 prior to having my driver’s license (50 years ago). It had a broken crankshaft. My buddy and I rebuilt the engine in the back seat…in eastern Washington state…in the middle of winter!
It was the model with the four jump seats in the back (the 6-passenger version). We folded three of them down, leaving one up which created a nice working platform. The engine is the size of a large sewing machine. One person could easily pick it up (well okay. Maybe not so easily, but it could be done).
I drove it everyday the whole time during high school. Since i lived on the outskirts of town, I would swing by the junior high to pick up some of my buddies who were younger than me. I charged them a dime to take them home since they could get home almost an hour quicker than the bus. I charged them a dime so they began calling my car the pay toilet. The 50 cents I got each day was more than enough to buy my gas when it only cost 30 cents/gallon at the time. The 7 gallon tank would last me for about a week.
Was it slow? Yes. But, it was a blast to drive. I actually got it up to 60 mph once. Going downhill with 5 passengers. Once.
@araknid- Great post! Thanks. That is the way to enjoy a car and life in general. I enjoyed hearing about your top speed run.
Cheers
Looks like the waterpump/fan assembly line. Pretty trick, eh?
It is the water pump. It hangs off the side and houses the fan. I don’t remember what the hose Mika mentioned does. The main input and return hoses are connected to the radiator.
So weird looking, I love it.
Don’t ever remember seeing these running on the road, the only ones I ever saw (maybe one or two) were non-runners that sat in people’s yards. Back in the early 70s Wedge Auto Wrecking in Woodinville had one sitting out front that was used to store wheels.
I’ve seen pictures of the Fiat 600 Multipla, but I’ve never seen one in person. If nothing else, I can see this being restored to driveable condition. I only hope it’s not to far gone to achieve that kind of restoration.
Cool find. I’m not a big tree hugger but an EV conversion would provide a nice mix of power and range.
Here’s one from last years Great Race.
This looks EXACTLY like my very first car! I bought my black and red 1960 Fiat 600 Multipla in San Diego for $50. I eventually gave it a rattle-can flat-black paint job, installed psychedelic black and green curtains, and sold it to a hippie for $200 when I joined the military in 1968.
I could be wrong, but it looks like somebody stole the A/C compressor. A replacement is going to be tough to find.
Air conditioning compressor? Surely you are making a joke. The joke should be how fast with the windows open to cool all the passengers in 80 degree heat outside.
A friend in NJ used to work on one of these–it was owned by a clown (no joke!) who drove it to parties and events he was hired for. It was painted with several bright colors and had some practical jokes built in…if you looked close into the drivers window there was a hidden tube where the driver could squirt you with water. Fun times, it looked great then, a car for the 80’s !
LD71 :D
I’ve been in one, being driven around various bits of Italy. We even went to Rome in it; simultaneously hilarious and terrifying…
Check out the Pennsylvania license plate…… 1 of 969…
Never seen one in person, but the first thing I thought of when I saw this one was the CARS movie. 2d one IIRC, looks a lot like one of the bad guys.
That’s so ugly it’s beautiful.
So… You’re thinking of Dr Zundapp who was a Zundapp Janus
Never actually seen one but always thought they were interesting. Is this like the one that the guy on Resquing the Classic car Show on the Velocity Channel recently recovered and flipped for Big Bucks. ? I love weird Import stuff love to have it value or not
Believe it or not, in the ’60s, the Pope used to ride around Rome in one of those in the middle of the night as a means to meet regular people unobtrusively. I know, I saw it myself.
He was going out for cannoli. His favorite was the chocolate chip ones.
This little Fiat Multipla, with pretty modest specs—see below—is one of the most popular BF entries in a while.
displacement: 767 cc
HP: about 25
0-60 MPH: about a minute
Maybe horsepower isn’t everything.
These little Fiats put regular Italian people and families on the road after the devastation of WW2. That was a massive benefit for Italy, which would have taken longer to recover than if Giovanni Agnelli and his FIAT had not designed and produced modest, affordable cars in large numbers.
There’s someone here who loves these, and insists they can haul 4 adults and gear, and still maintain 60 mph. My experience with one of these was not so energetic. In the 70’s, a friend was a salesman for a Fiat dealer in Waukesha, Wis. One of these came in on a trade, and wasn’t that old. He took 3 of us for a ride, and never did get it into 4th gear.
I was about two hours late to buy this car when it was on Craigslist in Pennsylvania a few weeks ago. I’ve been dying to bring one of these back to life and enjoy it! Especially since I sold my RHD Fiat 500 Bambina. How I miss that car!
The whole goal of selling the 500 was to get a project Multipla! Boy did I want this car! Day late and a dollar short I presume! These go FAST on Craigslist.
I know the price the buyer paid here, and I offered to match his price if the deal went through. Not likely willing to pay much more to this guy, who is trying to make easy money, or got a car that is too much work. (Though I presume the first is more likely)
If anybody knows of one that needs love, I’ve got love to give!