Market 20: Waterloo Sprint Veloce 750E 08721

5/8/2013:  This feller has popped up for sale at Bonhams at their up coming Spa Auction.  Estimate is $53,000 – $66,000.  Probably a bit on the low side.

“‘The Alfa, in a few words then, is a small car with a rev-happy dohc engine that can carry two people from point A to point B over all types of roads quicker than most cars twice its size. It does this not with blinding speed but with a wonderful combination of roadholding, compact size and sheer willingness.’ – Car & Driver on the Giulietta Sprint.”

Five years later and no new pictures.  Thanks Jerry for pointing this sale out to me.

6/10/2008: Giulietta Sprint Veloce 750 AR1493E08721, Engine 1315*32399. Listed for sale on Classic Driverfor 31,200 GBP, or about $61,000. The ad text says it is a 1958 Confortevole but Fusi lists the chassis number range for 1958 ending with 07921 though there is a typo where the page breaks for the 1959 year information and beside the 1959 750 designation Sprint Veloce’s it says 1958. Conforevole’s end with car 06611 so its a stretch of the accepted definitions to call it one. In this condition and at this price I don’t think they added any premium for calling it a Confortevole and I doubt there is any dishonesty at work, likely just a lack of solid information combined with the usual regurgitation of hear-say.

“Perfect in all respects.” This is a car that the seller means for potential buyers to come see in person, and who in their right mind would buy a car at the absolute top of the market without viewing it in person and taking it for a spirited drive. I want to go see it just to get a better look at the sellers facilities.

This presentation is great. More museum than Classic car dealership with period pictures and statistics built into the display. You probably have to qualify to even step into the ring for a closer look.

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Market 65: same old sad story 61 Spider

Update 3/25/13: Hard to believe it, but this is the same car after several years of restoration work.  Bravo!  It can be done.

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Great work has been accomplished on this car.  I think this started out as one of those borderline hopeless projects.

Update12/2/08:  This car ended at $4606, reserve not met.  I predicted $4500 so I’d be the big winner on The Price is Right and win my choice of a brand new Ford Escort wagon, a Mercury Sable or a kick in the head by a steel-toed boot.  Do I get a shot of Whiskey first?  I digress… If I was the seller I’d be willing to let this car go to the high bidder for the end bid if they were willing.  Of course they probably paid $7000 for it, thinking it was super rare and valuable but not taking the nonexistant economy into account.  Look for the follow up.

Giulietta Spider AR1495*11804.  This car is available right now on eBay out of Medfield MA.  Fusi lists this car as a 10103 series 1960 Spider, that year production ending with car 11900.  This car would be the perfect companion piece to the rusty Sprint that was the subject of Market #58 both needing extensive rust repair and well… everything else.

sad giulietta spider noseI have a great idea, I’ll do an experiment to see what 20 years under a blue tarp in a cold wet climate will do to a car, and not just any car, I’ll find a really clean Alfa Spider.  This is truly sad.  Note that all the trim, with the exception of one headlight ring, is present and straight.

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Market 464: Abarth – Alfa – Colani 1000

Update 2/14/13: As they must, things seem to always come around.  Henrik pointed out that this car is now on offer for (gulp) €380,000!  Quite a bit more than the auction estimate of a few years ago.  Is this crazy?  I don’t really think so.  A unique (refreshing to be able to use that word without hyperbole) rebody of an already very special car with an Abarth Tubular chassis, Alfa race intended engine rework to 1000cc etc.  It’s a styling that works for some and doesn’t for others -like an Yves St Laurent masterpiece (for seldom do masterpieces satisfy all lookers or readers or…).  It’s kind of a shame that both cars can’t exist.  Do any of the other original Abarth examples survive?

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Eddy sent me this image among some others from Retromobile.  I guess the mismatched wheels are period and thus the way it has to be.

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Market 38: 1959 Giulietta Sprint Project 20107

Update 2/2/13:  Bid to $18,100 with the reserve not met.  I’m torn here.  $18,100 is not a lot for a complete project car that is ready for a light skim, paint, trim/mechanical refresh and assembly -the body had to be done, but ball-parking it, you will be $10K into paint, $12K into the mechanicals and probably $20K refinishing and assembling trim/interior etc.  That’s $60K for a ’59 Normale.  I know a few guys who are deeper than that into theirs, but I don’t think I’ve seen one sell for that (have I?).

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Update 1/21/13:  Looking better without those widened wheel arches, this car is back on eBay after considerable work.  Good car for someone who wants to just paint and put together a car.

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Metal work looks great!  Buyer gets to choose the palette and level of finish.  It’s a lot of work.

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Market 205: Giulietta Spider project in Washington

Update 1/10/13:  It runs and stops.  Hurray – let’s put it back on eBay.  Starting price is now $13,000.  It’s not a Veloce, it’s rusty (if you look closely at the underside pictures you can see finger trails where someone took a bathroom caulk approach to pushing filler into rusty areas before undercoating the thing) and unless you have a complement of attributes seldom found in one single person, it will be a confounding factor in your life.

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Serious garage action here.  rear end sits really high -stuff must be frozen under there.

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They’re hanging up the mop on this one…

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One is forced to concede improvements have occurred.

Update 2/5/12:  This car is doing another tour of eBay -in what will likely be a decaying series of ending prices.  The last result of $6901 was pretty reasonable for a scruffy, loosely assembled project with the wrong motor.

Update 1/24/12: Close maybe, but no sale.

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Market 242: frightening SS project 380956

Update 12/8/12: Still available.  Surprised?  Me neither.  This is a long uphill slog with a boulder on your back.  You would have to be a lucky guy who bought a project that came with an extra cars worth of trim etc.

Update 2/12/12: Elmar informs me this car has been relisted by Laurent with a reduced asking price of €8,900.  No less a crazy project!

French build plate.  Positive ID.  Someone somewhere will decide this is worth fixing.  Eventually.

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Market 62: Restored Giulia SS 380024 (still) on the block

Update 8/13/12: Still available.  Description says it was restored from bare metal by Carrozzeria Touring.  Price is now “upon request”.  Maybe a good car to bring to the US and try and sell at auction for a profit?

Update 2/13/09: This car is now listed on Anamera at 59000 Euro’s.  They have included a statement that the engine is an 00121.

Oops:  I confused this car with another.  This one was not (to my knowledge) restored by a German and didn’t benefit from a parts car that was sold for 50 Euro’s.  Sorry.

Original post 11/24/08: Giulia Sprint Speciale 10121*380024, 00121*00128.  This car is available now out of Italy from Luzzago.  Car was restored by a German Gentleman who is said to have had a parts car that he sold for 50 Euro’s when the project was done!

The condition of this car is very good  and Luzzago has several mid-restoration pictures to assure you that things were done right where the body is concerned.

giulia20160020ss20196420azzurra2000220wBumpers fit very well in this picture, as does the hood and headlight rings.  I like the blue but it might be a little better if it had a little less baby in it.

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Market 69: Yet another restored ‘Guilia Spyder’ 372402

Update 7/22/12: This car has surfaced on Hemmings Motor news for $47,000. Still looks good. Amazing how they get around.  The current seller has done a lot of work to the interior -it looks amazing now.

Sensibly the Ferrari sticker has been removed from the fender.

Update 12/15/08: Auction ended at $26,250 with 35 bids, $250 more than I predicted.  Look for the follow up.

Giulia Spider 10123*372402. This car is on eBay right now. Car was new with a single carb 1600 but the seller states the original engine was a 750 series 1300 with a 4 speed which can’t be right, but as the driver of a 1750 powered 2000 series Berlina I don’t doubt that is what was in it when they got it. Older Alfas tended to get whatever running engine was on hand when the original gave out. I don’t know how a guy can spend $40,000 on restoring a car and misspell both of the words in the model name on the title of the auction, but hey, it’s a free country.

2d3a_3Pretty odd combination of mirrors can be seen here. This car is Porsche Boxter metallic ‘Ocean Blue’, a nice color in the right setting, and I’m sure striking on this car, but a detractor to most people that would spend big money on a car like this. I’d have talked him into Dutch or Tornado blue, both period correct, striking and not far from what can be seen here. I can’t fault the preparation though, the car looks great with all trim in top condition.

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Market 22: Mexico City Giulietta Sprint survivor

Update 7/1/12: 1 bid, reserve not met.  No sale.

Update 6/25/12: This car has turned up on eBay after 4 years with the same pictures and from the same seller. Sprint values have come a long way in the last 4 years. I expect it will find a buyer this time.

Original post 6/20/08: Reserve not met! $12,099 was the ending price, $1 less than the black plate car out of Cottonwood. Seller added some new pictures of the car outdoors in daylight that show it is a pretty nice car. I think either of these cars was a pretty good deal and would be a great basis for putting together very nice original driver. I think both suffered from somewhat poor presentation and the fact that they both went through eBay at the same time. There can’t be that many guys (or gals) out there looking for Sprints, so any more than 2 or 3 a month in a given area is market saturation, and we’ve been seeing 5 or 6 a month since I started this blog. Last, I suspect both these sellers, encouraged by the strong sale prices mentioned earlier for project cars, put these on the market just to kind of see what they would do, without a real necessity to sell them.

Added pictures include this nose shot, always a pleasant sight. I wonder if a yellow curb has the same meaning in Mexico.

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