thinking about buying a 40 year old Intermeccania speedster. what should look for and what changes has the Intermeccania undergone over the 40 years. all the best. david
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It's assembled on a VW Type 1 chassis, check the rear frame horns & frame head as well as the axle beam for rust. The IM rear deck lid hinges will have Intermeccanica cast on them . At 40 Y/O, check the suspension, electrical - gauges etc. and all mechanicals. Posting photos here would be a plus . I restored a nice IM two years ago it was solid as a rock when it arrived here.
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@NAVYEOD, good for you! Tell us a little more about what you need. Are you looking for things to check out on the car you are considering buying? Are you looking for ways to make sure it is really an early Intermeccanica? All of the above? Here's an Intermeccanica enthusiast's website: http://intermeccanica.org/
The site is better on the early history than the later (after the move to Vancouver). Just doing a search on Intermeccanica on this site and you'll find tons of info. If you have specific questions there are owners of almost every variant of Intermeccanica 356 on this board, and you'll probably get the information you seek.
Mine is one of the early California speedsters, like the one you are considering. I did a complete body-off rebuild a few years ago with pictures if you want to see one that was taken apart. Unlike a lot of the early speedsters, mine has genuine porsche rear deck hinges, but the front hood hinges are stamped with Intermeccanica. If you are interested in more on IMs and their "tells" just let us know.
Good luck!
You're probably looking at an Automobili Intermeccanica. The modern company you are probably thinking of is Intermeccanica International. They are not the same car or the same company.
-=theron
Thanks to all for the replies. I was unaware there were two Intermeccanica companies. will research this online. The car I was thinking of purchasing now has a pending sale and will have to keep looking. I was interested in any upgrades or improvements in frame, suspension, brakes etc over the years of production from 1980-2022 of the IM, and also areas to look at in evaluating an older IM. The market right now is horrible for a buyer. I had an old CMC from the 90's with a 1776 engine., VW pan and traded it twenty years ago for a racing motorcycle that was worth around 9K. Very sound and good looking car. today it looks like would go for around 30k. all the best. david
@Theron posted:You're probably looking at an Automobili Intermeccanica. The modern company you are probably thinking of is Intermeccanica International. They are not the same car or the same company.
-=theron
But both were/are owned by the Reisners. They are linked but not the same corporate entity.
The entire story is told here (click the blue font, it's a link)
Believe the book says there were 602 built. In addition to the name cast into the hinges there was a silver foil sticker on the passenger's door frame with build information. The molds/jigs were sold to CMC and they produced the same car but in kit form to be finished by the DIY owners.