Category: Race cars

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Market 148: Cobra-ized early 750 Spider

Update 8/18/2015:  As yet finding it difficult to find a human whose tastes align with its character, this Giulietta Spider continues to float from mark-up to mark-up (I would have thought mark-down to mark-down -but who am I to speculate).  Buy it now on eBay for $37,900 and be eschewed by Alfa owners, Cobra owners and those who aren’t comfortable in the presence of this much yellow.  I mentioned in the last update that the clock was ticking toward a time when it would be an attractive value proposition to take this car back towards stock.  That clock is still ticking.

$_57

How hard could it be to lose the black?  

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Market 434: Winning-est Giulietta racer Spider 750 03083 ‘Sophia’

Update 8/23/12: Sold for $72,450 including premium.

Update later the same morning:


I got this picture taken at Road Atlanta circa 1983 from Michael McClure, then owner of the brown Giulietta racer and wearing the gold race suit talking to Martin Krilanovich (in green sleeves). The red car is Sophia with Phil Mason in white racing suit leaning over it talking to his crew chief Jerry.  Time flies. 

Giulietta Spider 750D 1495*03083, 1315*41849.  The late Al Leake Jr. raced Sophia to much success on the west coast.  I can remember seeing them many times at Sear’s Point and Laguna Seca -always out front or nearly so -even against cars that on paper ought to have gotten around the track faster -even if driven by lesser drivers.  I don’t remember where I heard/read it, but I seem to recall that Sophia is one of the winning-est race cars in history.  Lineage includes prior ownership by Phil Mason and connection to H. B. Luginbuhl, who some say had a lot to do with development early on.  Anyway, Sophia is being auctioned by Bonhams this coming Monterey weekend.  Estimate is $65,000 – $85,000.  It’s too bad the seller chickened out and omitted the rubber chicken that used to be seen dangling from the trunk -oh well, maybe that rubber chicken is a stuffed trophy over someones mantle now next to a 12 point buck or buffalo head.

Tasteful for a dedicated race car.  Development started in the mid-70’s and by the late 80’s Sophia was a potent machine.  Fiberglass grill and trim?

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Market 384: Sprint Veloce Zagato 1493*06184 at auction

Update 5/30/12: Sold for 414,400 Euro’s, about $546,000!

2/13/12: Giulietta Sprint Veloce ‘Zagato’ 750E 1493*06184, 1315*30851.  This very interesting SVZ is going to be auctioned by RM in Monaco soon.  While most cars I write about are straight forward subjects, and anything I say should be taken as insightful mainly due to heavy exposure to the subject if nothing else, and as being typically off the cuff.   A car like this demands careful consideration and wording.  Why?  The genuine article -a Zagato re-bodied Sprint Veloce, that was re-bodied ‘back in the day’ i.e. the late 1950’s, is a very valuable car.  See this thread on the AlfaBB for some lengthy but enjoyable reading on the subject.  Interestingly, this car is listed as MIA since 1960.  It’s important to note that there was no search party out looking for it -it just stayed under the radar since then.  So, with a spirit of caution, I start, and will reserve my comments to ‘ooh’s and ahh’s’ once more.

That is one desire-able object!  Note squared off wheel openings.  Hood is a low as they could practically make it and still fit the engine.  Color scheme is bold -red headlining is fantastic.  Any significance to that license plate number? Wheels look to be period cast wheels -magnesium?  This is pretty close to the top of the Giulietta food-chain.

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Market 381: SS 177325 Retired Scuderia Del Portello race car

Giulietta Sprint Speciale 10120*177325.  This car wears Milano plates and is available from Luzzago right now.  There are many pictures of it racing from 1987 – 1996, after which it was retired, set up for street use and apparently given somewhat of a restoration.  There is no asking price stated for this car.  Check out the link in the vin above -lots of pictures of this car racing1

There are a lot of pictures like this -blurry race shots that evoke days gone by and racing fun.  Fergats have a reputation for breaking under heavy use.  I wonder if this guy suffered any breaks?

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Market 380: restored Sprint Zagato in Italy

Giulietta Sprint Zagato.  Sharing warehouse space with yesterdays SZCT in Italy, and also on offer on Autoscout is this very clean Sprint Zagato.  Asking price is €300,000, a lot of money for a little car, but these have always been 2 to 3 times the cost of a Sprint Veloce Lightweight, so maybe comparatively speaking they have lost a little ground.  Not enough of these change hands to form a basis for a sound cost analysis, so the money has to be relative to your ability to buy it.  As with yesterdays SZCT, I’m far form expert so will reserve my commentary to appreciation for design -always a safe ground to stand on with Zagato products of the 50’s and 60’s.

A very potent race car in its day.  Short, low and light.  Zagato had a head start on the design since they had converted crashed cars into Sprint Veloce Zagato’s for customers, with the final iterations being VERY similar in appearance to the Alfa sanctioned SZ seen here.  Period alloy wheels?

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Market 379: Sprint Zagato Coda Tronca in Italy

Giulietta Sprint Zagato ‘Coda Tronca’.  Elmar sent me a link to this car on Autoscout, for sale out of Italy for €270,000.  They made about 200 SZ’s, the last handful of which were ‘Coda Tronca’ (CT is how I abbreviate it other places) with the Kamm tail.  I have no authority to say anything about these cars, so will keep the commentary to a lot of ‘oohs’ and ‘aaahs’.  Anyone know the VIN of this car?

A handsome critter.  Note they figured out how to incorporate a wind deflector into the hood.  I wonder if it also provides pressure relief for the engine compartment like the louvers on an SS hood?  Helps keep the front end from getting light at speed.  That nose is like a big egg; white, bulbous and extremely fragile.  No parallel parking allowed in a car like this.

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Market 365: Sprint Veloce racer 157435

Giulietta Sprint Veloce 10106*157435.  This car is listed on Anamera as available now out of Italy.  It’s a rough and ready racer with a spartan, uninspiring interior and lots of modifications.  Asking price is 32,500 Euro’s or $41,500 at the time of writing (as the Euro depreciates against the dollar).

I’m not much into yellow, but it works on Sprints.  Body looks pretty straight -no glaring problems.  Hood fits well and the grills all look nice.  Lots of trim is missing, but that’s just dead weight -right?  Wheels look as though they may be original Cromodora’s.

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Market 340: Sprint set up for racing

Update 12/14/11: 34 bids were placed, but the car failed to sell for $15,000.  Rightfully so.  Makes me wonder about where the best place to market this car is.


Giulietta Sprint 10102 1493*24148.  Out of Southport CT comes this Sprint racer via eBay.  It has been listed a few times before but I don’t remember how much it got to without selling.  Car looks to have been imported from Italy.  This kind of set up seems like it should command some sort of premium, but with tastes seeming to favor restorations or originality these days, this will probably sell for less than you’d imagine.

Cool stuff.  Body and paint do look very nice.  Looks like a street car with stickers and driving lights -speaking of which the left driving light is set up to make a pool of light a few feet in front of the car -needs adjustment.
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Market 337: Early Spider racer

Update later the same day:  Sold for $19,800.  A bargain?

Spider 750D 1495*02031.  This car is on eBay right now out of Denver Colorado.  Racing set up is as purposeful as they come, with lots of refinements that probably make it highly competitive.  These cars tend to be a bargain to buy compared to the expense of the development represented in the final product.  I’d have to tone it back a bit so it could be used on the street too.

Between the sun and the saturation of the red, the lines of the car are almost lost.  Widened steels look very tough.  I like the cut down windshield -reminds me of Conrad’s Spider Veloce.
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Reader Race Report: Lime Rock 2011 Fall Finale

Track day report from Giulietta Sprint owner Marc in Mass, photo’s were taken by Jim Dyer, captions are mine: ” The 2011 Fall Finale vintage race the last racing event organized by the VSCCA and was held at Lime Rock Track October 14 and 15. The weather cooperated and the participants were graced by sunshine  and an almost dry track as rain was only sporadic. A strong number of Alfisti showed up and so the organizers were able to add an extra 15 lap session on the Friday for Alfas only! 8 Spiders (2 Veloces) ranging from 1956 to 1959, 2 Sprints (1 gorgeous red Veloce in period livery) and a delightful 1960 Sprint Zagato piloted by Sandra McNeil. Added  to the mix was a 1976 Berlina and a 1966 Lancia Fulvia both driven by Italian ex-pats.  Several of the lighter Spiders battled up front while other cars were happy to get a real Italian tune-up. The spectators were treated to some spirited drifting around Big Ben and through the S’s.  In the end each driver was a winner as all cars survived both days. Amazing to see a wonderful group of 50 some year old cars fly around this lovely race track framed by the surrounded fall colored hills.”
We all know what this must sound like -a 12 cylinder air plane or 4 Alfa race cars approaching!
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