The other day I was in the middle of cleaning up my right wheel well and got the inner plastic fender off. When brushing off some dry sand... that looked like desert-sand a big dry chunk fell down on the floor. Later that night my sister was searching the garage for some car-polish and thought she saw something odd in the chunk just laying there. She took a screwdriver, poked a little in the sand and what she found made her run screaming out of there.
Well, I'm not afraid of spiders... this mainly because whe don't have anything here to be afraid of. The biggest over here are about half an inch (just the body). But this was NO swedish spider!!! The spider on the floor was pretty dry and crispy but I managed to straighten it out spraying it with some alcohol which made it a litte soft.
The car is imported from California. Does this look Californian to you?? It's a nice souvenir that I'm gonna put in frames.
------------------ Jorgen Larsson, Supporting Member
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04:21 PM
PFF
System Bot
Songman Member
Posts: 12496 From: Nashville, TN Registered: Aug 2000
how big is it? we there are big hairy spiders like that in southern florida, about 3 to 4 inches across. We called them banana spiders, but i dont know their proper name.
BTW, I used to shoot them with a 22cal crossman pellet pistol off the wall :c)
do you know the history of the car? maybe someone can do a carfax on your vehicle ID and see where it has been registered in the past?
[This message has been edited by Ken Wittlief (edited 08-25-2003).]
The monster is about 5 inches across, looks like some kind of tarrantula. I'm glad it's dead otherwise I would definitely have "Glocked" it.
I have a few import papers in the garage but it has been in Sweden for several years only driven in the summers. The previous owner imported it from CA in 1990. When I got it it had 9500 miles on it.
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Originally posted by Ken Wittlief:
you should have it embedded in clear plastic and replace the horn button on the car with it.
It's a litte bit too big for that but it might make a nice hood ornament! Fiero Spider... ummh... sounds like Fiat Spider...noo good!
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05:20 PM
Steve Normington Member
Posts: 7663 From: Mesa, AZ, USA Registered: Apr 2001
Doesn't look like anything I've ever encountered around here....however it does bear a large resemblance to a tarrantula and I know they're very common in my part of town. I imagine if the car was stored in an undeveloped area (boonies) or recently developed area it's possible that it could be a tarrantula. I really don't know of any other large hairy spiders in the area that it can be.
Almost looks like a brown recluse. Hard to tell if it has the proper markings from the pic, but they can get pretty big, and them suckers are VENOMOUS!
Almost looks like a brown recluse. Hard to tell if it has the proper markings from the pic, but they can get pretty big, and them suckers are VENOMOUS!
Its either a wolf spider(doubt it) or a brown recluse. If I was betting money I'd say a Brown Recluse. You can see the violin shape marking on its back is tell-tell of a brown recluse(also know as a violin spider). Wolf spiders are sweethearts, brown recluse spiders are dead if they get near me
Oh wolf spiders can and will get vicious, but they aren't poisonous, and brown recluses, damn, one bite from one of them, and your flesh will start rotting off in a huge patch. Not a spider you wanna meet alive.
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11:53 PM
Aug 26th, 2003
Intel Member
Posts: 752 From: Helsingborg, Sweden Registered: May 2002
Well needless to say I'm no longer feeling my way on spots I can't visually inspect on the car. Even though I know the spider has been dead for many years... why take a chance? The most dagerous animal we have here are the wasps and even they aren't that bad unless you are allergic to them.
I'm already on my toes just popping the decklid and I had a busy time BEFORE just watching the gauges and listening to odd sounds from the engine, now I can add spiders to my checklist. Is there a Fiero-shrink on the forum?
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03:59 AM
2M4 Dale Member
Posts: 3461 From: Mansfield,Oh,U.S. Registered: Oct 1999
Intel, since you live in Sweden, what you need to do is drive....
errr....I mean trailer your Fiero up into the mountains and leave it sit for a month in a snow bank. Then fumugate it with Melathion or other SPIDER killer...
Me...personally...I would never set foot in that vehicle again...
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09:15 AM
Intel Member
Posts: 752 From: Helsingborg, Sweden Registered: May 2002
Well I know for sure that there are no living spiders in the car since it has been in sweden for 10 years and it has been sitting in a dry but unheated garage where the temp sometimes dropped below -20 degrees celcius. But it still feels uncomfortable so today I put on a car-cover from an old Volvo, sealed it to the floor with tape and dropped a VERY strong insect-bomb in there. This weekend I'm gonna continue to clean up the fenders and then start pulling and washing the interior as planned. Hopefully without any surprises!
Your friend is a Tarantula and they are very common throughout the US. The size alone gives it away. Not many spiders grow over 5". I am not sure of the species of tarantula, It doesn't look like the California Tarantula or the Mexican Pink Tarantula. Probably just a common brown. Here's a cousin. http://atshq.org/pix/SCHUMM/sparky5.jpg
There is NO WAY that is brown recluse. BR's are much smaller, have a tighter abdomen, hairless, thin legs, and are no bigger than a 1/2 dollar (that would be an immense BR). Around here they are usually a lighter tan, but I imagine in more forested areas they could be darker.
Nice embalmed pet, You should name your car somehow after it.
Well I did say wolf spider. Which is what a tarantula is. so i was almost right I swear that look s like a violin marking on its back. Like I said, spiders arn't my thing, snake are.
once you get all the bugs out, your car should run like new
right?
Well if the size of that bug counts then I could sell my newly puchased 327. The car should run like a bat from hell without it.
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hey! imagine that thing had crawled down the defroster and died and the first time you turn it on full blast, it comes flying out and lands on someones face!
( I think I would pay money to see that! Where's Jsocha?)
Kind of reminds me of the facehuggers in the Alien movies.
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Dude! That's just mean. Are you trying to buy a cheap Fiero in Sweden?
No chance! I'll drive that sucker even if I have to share it with a few "buddies". Maybe I should make some stickers to put on the windows, the insurance company might lower my insurance like they do when you have a nice alarm in it.
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"you must face your fears, Luke" - Obi Wan Ken Hobie
LOL... well I prefer "Run Forrest...RUN!" - Forrest Gump
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Your friend is a Tarantula and they are very common throughout the US.
Thank God it was only a Tarantula!! And I didnt have to pay anyting to bring it over here. I dropped it of at a taxidermist(SP?) today and the lady there looked at me like I was some kind of wierdo. She said I could pick it up in a few days when they've put it in frames.
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12:46 PM
fierobaby Member
Posts: 4019 From: Niles, Ohio, USA Registered: Jun 2001
I used to go to high school with a girl who worked in the pet department of one of the local department stores. She used to pet the taurantulas.
I have been bitten by a Brown Recluse (we think). Spent three days in the hospital being pumped full of antibiotics and steroids. Didn't even leave a mark. I was amazed. I suffered no lasting ill effects whatsoever. (Other than wanting to wrap all my meals in silk before I eat.)
------------------ Raydar
88 3.4 coupe. 17s, cut springs 'n all.
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 08-26-2003).]
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04:20 PM
Intel Member
Posts: 752 From: Helsingborg, Sweden Registered: May 2002
From what I've read about the Brown Recluse you are very lucky. I just saw a series of pictures of a guy who got bitten in the hand by one and after 4 days they had to amputate his hand. Yikes! It looked like the skin melted!
I DID TOO...from this thread...
and I had a busy time BEFORE just watching the gauges and listening to odd sounds from the engine, now I can add spiders to my checklist.
