Market #77:Clean Black 750D “Spyder”

1/30/09 update:  If eBay closed stats be believed, this car sold with 1 bid for $40,000.  What do you think, any intrepid readers care to comment?

Giulietta Spider 750D 1495*04904, Engine 1315*44211.  This car is on eBay right now out of Waltham Ma.  Car is said to have had a comprehensive rebuild but the paint and trim is original.  Starting bid is $39,900 reserve not met and the car has a $42,500 buy it now price.  This car will appeal to a certain kind of buyer, like me, who likes to use their old cars and prefers originality at the expense of a few warts, but unfortunately this kind of buyer tends to be a little tight fisted when it comes to buying cars and the asking price of this car is about what could be expected for a concours winning restored example.
663d_3This is a no nonsense car, with clean lines and presentable trim.  Black with red interior is among the better color combinations for these cars.  I like the early cars like this that don’t have vent windows.

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Market #73: Best color combo Spider Veloce

Update: Bidding ended at $24,100.  Solid money for this car in a depressed market.  Hopefully some of its originality can be maintained.

Giulietta Spider Veloce 750F 1495*04644, engine 1315*31682. This car is available on eBay right now. d’Amico and Tabucchi list this car as a 1958 model.  These don’t come up often in this nearly-a-runner barn find condition. They are usually very challenging projects or restored. The rare intake components are listed as included but there are no pictures so one would want to see their condition before diving in too deep.

bc86_3Another car that makes me wonder ‘who would let this happen to a car like this?’ This is actually pretty early for a Spider Veloce and arguably the best color combo. I would guess rust on the hood is the result of a tarp trapping moisture against it.

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Market #55: one owner baby blue Giulia Spider

Update 2/10/09:  This car has been on eBay, Hemmings and anywhere else the seller could think of.  Most recently it ended on eBay for $18,500 reserve not met with 32 bids.  The interest is there, but the seller wants too much.

Update 12/4:  This car is back on eBay.  No new photos are included and the text of the auction is the same and there is a reserve.  I suspect this auction will end about like the last time.  Juan: if you’re going to relist as car that everyone has already seen a bunch of times you HAVE to change the auction or list it with no reserve!

Update 11/25:  This car is now listed here with an asking price of $33,500 and on Hemmings for $31,500.  I still think this is a $25,000 car at most and with the economy as it is, that may even be high.

Reserve not Met!  Bidding reached $21,100 with reserve not met and the car has been relisted.  Let’s see if this car can break the relist jinx.

Giulia Spider AR*375944.  This car is available right now on eBay out of Roswell Georgia with a buy it now price of $33,000.  Fusi indicates this car is a 1963 year model and should have an engine Tipo 00112* and a  number ~08000.  Seller states that it is a one owner car with 55,000 miles.  Paint if it is original is spectacular, but I doubt it is.  This blue, renamed may times over the years in Alfa’s catalogs, is what I usually call Celeste blue, Italian for Heavenly or Sky blue.

Brightwork fit on this nose is very good, except the missing trims that go around the upper edges of the grill openings.  The mount holes for these can clearly be seen here.  I would think for $33k the seller could spring for a set since they are not usually expensive. 

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Market #51: 1964 Sprint rally/race car

Our friends over at bring a trailer have this car on offer from a collection in Southern California.  If it’s a 1964 it’s probably a Giulia 1600 Sprint.  The car is reported to have been a French market car which means it probably had a few oddities like a glass brake fluid bottle when it was new.  Alfa and Renault had a deal worked out that reduced the import tax on Alfa’s and allowed Alfa to make Dauphines and R4’s in Italy.  I’ll explore this relationship in a later post. 

This car looks like a pretty straight, lightly modified, used but not abused car that would clean up nicely and make a great driver.  Asking price is $30,000 which seems optimistic, but a trip to Orange County may find this car to be better than it appears and it probably has excellent provenance from its time on the track.

The absence of the egg-crate grills on this car makes it look tough.  I’d put some Cibie Oscars on either side of the grill heart.  All the visible trim and shut lines look good.  I like the orangy-red and would look forward to cleaning and polishing this car if I bought it.

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Market 21: California Black plate ‘Interim’ Giulietta Sprint

Update June 17, 2008.  Sold! The auction for this car ended today at $12,100. I don’t really understand this result unless here were major undisclosed problems and the primary bidders found out about them. This car seemed like a great deal compared to either the project that was the subject of this post or the incorrect and possibly sketchy subject of this post. Of course my theory that the market is somewhat flooded with Sprints may have been proven to have merit by this auction. If the sale sticks I have a feeling this car was very well bought. If only I had the cash I would gladly have welcomed this car into my shop.

Giulietta Sprint 10102 1493*20747, engine # 1315*011118. According to Fusi a 1959 year model based on the engine number. In classic car circles the world over, whether you’re talking about Alfa’s or Mopar’s in German or Japanese , the description ‘California Black plate car’ evokes a certain quality of preservation. This car is the very definition of what is meant by ‘California Black plate car’. Wearing it’s original issue black and yellow plates, no rust, low miles (79,884) and drivable with some deferred maintenance to tackle. This car is the twin of my 1959 Sprint and several other local cars I know about.

If you want to get into a true black plate Sprint, this is a good one to buy. I don’t know how many more Sprints like this will come out of California garages but it has to be few indeed.

b9ff_1

Like a casual family picture, all that is missing is a Golden Retriever laying in the shade at the front of the car. Car looks good… straight with shiny chrome bumper and grills, good panel gaps and reasonably shiny paint. “Appears to be rust free.”

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