Italy vs England

It was to be expected that when Joseph Caruana got his driving licence, his first car would be Italian. “In the late 60s and early 70s, Italian cars were the rage of the day. Although outnumbered on the road by the more popular British models, they were in a class of their own for their style, speed and sleekness. In addition, my father Anthony had an English vehicle that was always giving him trouble,” Mr Caruana said.

In 1978, the eyes of the 18-year-old fell upon a brand new Fiat 131, also known as the Mirafiori. He bought the Series 2, 1.3l, Super.

“This car had just come off the production line, replacing the Series 1 that had started this now iconic vehicle four years earlier. The replacement to the successful Fiat 124, the car saw the company departing from its traditional naming of models after three-digit numbers, and adopting the Anglo-American style of naming new cars. In fact, Mirafiori is the area in the suburbs of Turin where the vehicle was manufactured,” Mr Caruana said.

The Series 2 Mirafiori had more than cosmetic improvements on the previous model, which had come out with a straight-four, front engine, now replaced by a new twin-cam engine.

The steel monocoque body, built on a typical three-box design for the engine, passengers and boot, had a facelift with larger rectangular-shaped front lights, instead of the previous rounded ones; the rear lights were bigger, while new bumpers were also installed. The upholstery received a new trim too.

Proud of the pedigree of his champagne yellow vehicle, Mr Caruana has always taken great care of it, using it very infrequently during the long period it has been in his possession.

This is evident by its low mileage, and outstanding showroom condition. He said that besides the regular maintenance, the only things he has done to it were a clutch replacement and a respray.

“I worked for nearly 40 years at the Malta Drydocks and from Monday to Friday, a private bus provided transport to and from where I live.” However, on Saturdays, he had to make his own way to work, and that’s when he had to drive the Mirafiori – something he hated to do.

His determination to keep the vehicle in mint condition led him to start looking around for a second- hand car which would see to his intermittent driving needs.

By coincidence, his uncle, a priest who served in a number of towns and villages, needed a more effective and modern car to carry out his pastoral work, and was looking for someone to buy his old Hillman Minx. Mr Caruana jumped at the chance of getting his hands on this classic, which was still in a good running shape.

“I worked very little on the 1957 Hillman Minx Series III – minor things like replacing brakes – but I used it a lot, so much so that the Fiat would sometimes remain idle in the garage for three whole months. That also explains the low mileage on the Mirafiori,” Mr Caruana pointed out.

Mr Caruana had four uneventful years going around in his two-tone, grey and green Minx. Then the front axle broke. “I blame it on the engine replacement,” he said. Dismayed at the rise in the price of petrol, his uncle had replaced the original 1390cc petrol engine with a much heavier diesel one. But Mr Caruana found the body of an identical Hillman Minx and swopped the frames.

He is proud of the fact that his Hillman Minx was twice chosen by foreign film companies to feature in productions partly shot locally. In 2005, he drove it for scenes in Steven Spielberg’s film Munich.

“Every morning on arrival, sniffer dogs and their handlers would examine me and my car.” Two years later, Mr Caruana was once again in the spotlight cruising in his Minx in Valletta, where director Robert Young was shooting Eichmann.

While still roadworthy, Mr Caruana is planning a nut and bolt restoration project for his Hillman. “My uncle also gave me the original petrol engine, and it is my objective to reinstall it. This would also mean transferring the gear system from the present floor state to the column manual transmission position. The body has started to display patches of rust, so it needs removal. The light blue upholstery also needs to be replaced.” Mr Caruana is banking a lot on his son Victor, a professional sprayer and panel beater.

Mr Caruana laments about the fact that there are many old cars garaged that never see the light of day.

He is proud that in Mellieħa, classic cars thrive, adding that besides many one-vehicle owners there are at least three families having more than 20 old-timers each. One family even has a collection of around 60 old motorbikes.

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