A national champ’s second chance: Fiat X1/9

“The original builder had a pile of nationals wins, both in Solo and ProSolo,” Robbie shares early in his build thread. “Red may have had her name longer than I have had mine, so I'm not changing it now!”

When Red, a Fiat X1/9 and former autocross champion, came up for sale for less than $2000, GRM forum member Robbie swept it up and started his build thread.

“The package included the car, the trailer, a huge pile of spares and parts, and some excellent documentation,” Robbie shared. “This car was last raced around the turn of the century, yet there are still setup notes in oil pencil on the fenders. In addition to all the wheels and tires on the trailer, parts also filled the truck bed. But, maybe best of all is the ‘Book of Red’.”

“The Book of Red” had it all: rule clarification letters, national-winning setup and alignment specs, and even handwritten notes with thoughts and performance insights.

The first goal for Robbie? Get Red started.

After removing the alternator, crank wheel and accessory belt, new plugs, timing and V-belt were seated, reassembled and tightened. Now for the moment of truth: Would Red start?

“[I] plugged the battery in, and I had fuel pump noises. Tried the starter and I had spinning. But no pops,” Robbie explained. “So, I tried a squirt of starting fluid, and she started right up! Still nothing on the fuel system, though.”

Closer examination showed fuel leaking around the fuel rail and injectors. So, Robbie pulled everything apart and sent off the injectors for cleaning and flow testing.

But Robbie didn’t sit and wait. Instead, he tackled other areas that needed some work, like the vacuum lines, fuel lines and fuel filter.

Finally, injector day arrived.

Just like that, the fuel rail was rebuilt and tested. No leaks–but would Red be happy with these changes?

Robbie spent the next year upgrading and tweaking. New pedal box, fuel lines, and even some ECU and tuning work.

Finally, Red was running under her own power. But Robbie’s work was far from done–caliper leaks and a few other issues appeared.

Slowly but surely, Robbie was ticking away each box on his to-do list.

But as everyone knows, life happens. After nearly a year and half, Robbie and Red returned to the thread with a new goal for 2024: hitting an autocross.

After some tuning trial and error for the next few months, Red and Robbie were on the road and ready to tackle their first course together.

“I believe that this was Red's first [autocross] event in 25 years. TWENTY-FIVE YEARS,” shared Robbie excitedly. “If I am remembering the story correctly, the last [autocross] for Red was in 1999. That is cool on its own. But to add to the coolness, Red drove two hours to and from the event, competed competently (except for the driver, I think), and made it home with no significant issues. I even drove from the airport to get tacos during the lunch break.”

Was everything perfect? No. But Robbie took notes, formulated a plan and got to work. Why? To attend our 2025 Grassroots Motorsports $2000 Challenge.

After fixing up the headlights, adjusting suspension and alignment, and addressing a few loose items like the speedometer cable, Red stood Challenge ready–including the addition of decorative vinyl party hat–and they set off to Gainesville Raceway for the event. 

The results?

Red had a solid three runs, with Robbie coning his fastest one. But, while handing over the reins to the pro divers, something happened.

“Alan came back after just a second lap saying that Red was only running on three cylinders, and sure enough he was right,” Robbie shared. “I confirmed with a temp gun on the headers that number one did not seem to have any fire. A quick pull of the spark plug lead told me I still had spark. So, it was either compression or the fuel injector.”

At first, Robbie was so dejected he thought about calling it for the day. But some GRM friends convinced him otherwise, and they got to work fixing Red.

“We tested that we were getting electrical signal to the injector (and accidentally blew a fuse in the process), pulled the injector, used test leads and direct 12V power to tap it a few times while spraying carb cleaner through it,” Robbie explained. “We reassembled (with a new hose clamp and a new fuse), and we had all four cylinders again.”

Robbie and Red got even more run time at the GRM official test track, the Florida International Rally & Motorsport Park, the following day.

“[The FIRM day is] the best track day of the year for the company, the track time and laid-back atmosphere. Seriously, I don't know why more people don't do it!” he exclaimed. “Unfortunately, I only got a few good laps in before Red was down on three cylinders again.”

Now, Robbie had driven Red down to Florida from Flossmoor, Illinois, but luckily he wasn’t alone. His whole family had joined in on the $2000 Challenge fun during their spring break–in a separate car. So, all Robbie had to do was hook up Red with a tow bar before heading home.

“I spent the rest of the day hanging out, riding along, driving other cars,” Robbie shared, “and, of course, enjoying cheeseburgers a la Tim.”

Want to learn more about Red and Robbie’s next steps? Check out his build thread on the GRM forum.

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