Hallo all,
It took me along time to recover from shock and despair in reaction to Guy's departure to the better world.
Finality I decided it is time to come back and continue Guys mission. t honopr what he did for the DOHC community.
I will continue my 124 thread , sharing the experience in building my 124 Abarth.
Let me start with the cockpit?
Is there a single right cockpit for 12 4 abarth ?
Fiat Abarth 124 Rally Gr. 4 Dashboard
What does it look like ? the dashboard looks like 12 Abarth rally gr. 4
Simple question, but the answer is not that simple
First, you have to remember that no two dashboards were the same. Just as there were no two identical Fiat 124 Abarth rally gr 4. All were very similar. but not the same as each driver had his own requirements. One wanted a one control lamp here and the other one there, one wanted a speedometer, and the other forbade it from being fitted to his car. The car on Safari was different than on Lombard, so the boards were also different. Since not every competitor always drove the same car, a mish-mash was created, which makes it impossible to conclude that the dash in 124 abarth gr 4 should look like “this” and only like “this”.
So we have to operate within a certain band of approximation. This is unless we are making a replica of a specific original car. But there is also a problem with that, as well .
I have a complete photographic documentation of Andrzej Jaroszewicz's Abarth 124 at Guy Moerenhout in Belgium. And what? Well, apparently some of the switches, indicators and lamps in this car are of course not original.
- jaro.jpg (217.95 KiB) Viewed 36858 times
.
It is similar with 124 Abarth, wonderfully rebuilt by Artur Skwarzyński.
- skwara .jpg (121.05 KiB) Viewed 36858 times
The available photographic documentation of the originals is very sparse and not entirely reliable, because only a small part of the photos come from the period, it is not known which car it is and which rally. Besides, most of the photos show their current state, and this one is unreliable for the reasons I mentioned above.
- verni.jpg (89.94 KiB) Viewed 36858 times
So what should a 124 Abarth board, gr. 4 look like?
It should definitely be historically credible, so it should be badly beaten, like the one below.
- 01 origial .jpg (101.93 KiB) Viewed 36858 times
But taking into account that it still has time to break during rallies, we will not deal with patination. However, we will deal with what it should consist of. Ideally, it should consist of elements only from the period. Of course, they are rare, you have to look for them more than once for years, and they can be cosmically expensive. So, is it possible to change the type of switch that is no longer available, a modern, very similar replica, and the clocks with their modern replacements. The FIA regulations allow it, provided that they are not digital but analog and are arranged in accordance with the original. You can also add additional indicators in places that suit the driver.
When building our 124 Abarth game 4, we were faced with a dilemma: are we going into the "original" or the so-called "Original look"
To satisfy my historical purism, we have prepared a "classic" board where everything is as close to historical originality as possible. One of our fittings below. In the end, it will probably look very similar, but the halogen switches in the middle will go lower because it is forced by the air supply housing, which goes under the board here. Of course, the board will be black.
- classic .jpg (58.33 KiB) Viewed 36858 times
However, to meet the real needs of participating in such a car in rallies for the Polish Historic Rally Championship, we have also built a "rally" board, which looks like the original to a layman, but is mostly based on modern substitutes. Below is a drawing try-on. There will probably be some changes (a different clock, etc), but the outline of its arrangement is very close to the final appearance.
- 02 rally .jpg (80.35 KiB) Viewed 36858 times
The one below is much more convenient during the rally, because almost every clock has its own, built-in indicator, which is set by the driver. Also the relays and fuses are on top, which makes it much easier to find a blown one and replace it. In addition, more gauges allows for a more precise control of the engine's operation and its parameters on the Special Stage .
Looking at both, I don't know which one I like better. The more historical one, or the more complex one ... Due to the rally convenience, we will probably start on the second one, and the more historical one will go to the shelf or hang on the wall. :)
More to come soon
Rgds
Miro