After the 850 sedan was launched and the success became to be noticeable, Fiat surprised the public in 1965 with two sporty versions based on the 850 chassis and engine: the Coupé and the Spider. Although both cars were well received, the Spider was the biggest sensation. No only because of it's beautiful and extremely low Bertone body, but also because it was the best handler amongst the 850 versions. The Spider had front disc brakes and it was the most powerful of all 850's with 49 bhp for a weight of only 720kgs.
In 1971, all other 850 models went out of production, but the Spider was restiled to stand one more year in the market until the arrival of the Fiat X 1/9. On this restyling ir lost it's inclined headlights due to safety regulations, becoming a little less elegant. The taillights and back grill were also changed.
You can notice the difference between the pre-facelift version and the following on the pics of this 2 examples pictured this year at Porto, on the biggest classic car meeting ever, celebrating the Porto Grand Prix comeback.