Rob's rust-free alfa page - guaranteed

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We do try to cover our costs by selling mugs, teeshirts, hats, bags, stickers and images...
The A2W large mug!	The GTVeloce mug!	OODB large mug!	The Tipo116 large mug!	Yet another mug!

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

My '82 GTV with '84 interior

82 GTV with 84 interior_0516
Originally uploaded by gtveloce

Never looked inside an '82 GTV? Note that this car is half an '82 (the tan) and half an '84 (the black) inside! Note also Alfa's faux Recaro 'mesh' seats (the originals had a laminated wooden headrest - you'd know them if you saw them). Also worth pointing out are the round window winders in the back - not levers.

posted by gtveloce # 10:31 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

Thursday, October 16, 2008

More 149 pics

Click and follow to find more pics on the 147 replacement... Feast your eyes on Alfa's brand new hatch! This is how the sensational 149 - a direct rival to Ford's Focus - is shaping up. Based on the same platform as the Fiat Bravo and Lancia Delta, the replacement for the 147 will blend the raw beauty of the 8C Competizione with the style of the MiTo in a larger, family-sized package. The front end's generous curves and circular headlamps take their inspiration from the MiTo, while the sharp, arrow-like nose and deep Alfa shield grille are borrowed from the 8C Competizione.

Labels: 149

posted by gtveloce # 11:15 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

Monday, October 13, 2008

Nice car, shame about the spelling

Why is it so hard to spell 'ALFA' correctly?

The Alpha 156 is as much a sports model as family car. The Italian maker seems incapable of designing one that's mere transport, injecting a special flavour into even machines that would be built as “ordinary” cars by others.

Labels: 156

posted by gtveloce # 3:52 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Alfa Romeo GTV6 2.8L

Wow. Yuck. Amazing. Awful. Great. I can't decide. One thing for sure - it would give me a headache sitting in it.

posted by gtveloce # 10:31 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

GTV 6 with straight pipes - part 2

It looks great, sounds wonderful. I'm sure it's also immense fun to drive... but I'd be worried, tense and anxious about what type of day the police officer has had just before they pull me over for an illegal exhaust...

posted by gtveloce # 10:27 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

GTV6 with straight-out-the-side pipes

Dreadful to live near, sounds wonderful; but surely this is a car no police officer could resist pulling over?

posted by gtveloce # 10:24 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

Thursday, October 09, 2008

New 149 has that 8c look...

Rounded, swoopy, with big round headlights. It's a hatch. The new 147 is looking good.... and may get a classy name: Some rumors speak of an alternative name, "Giulia", at 149

Labels: 149, Giulia

posted by gtveloce # 5:53 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

Now there will be a Chinese Alfa?

Does it matter where it's made? Probably not. It just doesn't sound as traditional somehow. Unless we dig back to Marco Polo - now there's a link.

Alfa in China will make its 166, a difficult thing for Alfa fans to digest even though the 166 hasn’t had shades of brilliance throughout its long career. The car will be manufactured by Guangzhou Auto, a Fiat and Nanjing partner in Perla production (derived from the world car Palio and Siena ed Albea project).

Labels: 166, China

posted by gtveloce # 5:45 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

Friday, September 12, 2008

My GTV has a battery in the boot

GTV 116 boot_0147
Originally uploaded by gtveloce

Want to improve weight distribution? Run out of room in your engine bay? Want to run a long wire to your boot but didn't have a good reason to do so? Well the Alfa GTV Tipo 116 got the 'battery in the boot' treatment whenever aria condizionata was added... and that's why the battery is in the boot. It's got a nice bit of stiffened carpet to cover it, just pulled away in this shot. That's the fuel feed pipe just to the right of the battery, btw.

And yes, you can still put a bike in there, just take the wheels off first.

posted by gtveloce # 3:44 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

Friday, July 25, 2008

The headlamp how-to: the screw that holds it together

GTV-the screw that holds_0672
Originally uploaded by gtveloce

There are 3 screws, 2 of which aim the lamp. The screw near my hand (ie top and inside) holds the lamp in place. The outer top and lower screws adjust the beam, so don't move 'em, or if you must move 'em at least count your turns accurately and screw them back the same number. A spring clip also holds the outer, top adjusting screw in place. Yes, you must unclip that. You then pivot the unit gently out from the body and up. There's a "prong" on the unit that fits into a hole behind the lower screw. It locates the headlamp unit in place. Job done!

Labels: GTV, Headlamp, Tipo 116

posted by gtveloce # 4:36 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

The GTV headlight unit

GTV-headlight unit_0671
Originally uploaded by gtveloce

OK, I got it out and got the rubber boot off as well. The boot was tough to shift and I was worried about tearing the "tabs" that I pulled on. Make sure it goes back on properly, to keep the weather out.

3 screws matter. Top left screw (left as in the picture) holds everything in place. Top right adjusts (or aims, if you prefer) the headlamp, as does the bottom screw. Don't move these, or if you do ensure you set then as they were. There's a clip on the top-right screw that holds the lamp. And the bottom screw conceals a hole into which the lamp unit sits via a locating "prong".

It's the lowbeam that blew, the centre single-spade connector. The other connector is for the parking light. I changed that 10 years ago so it should be fine ;-)

Labels: GTV, Headlamp, Tipo 116

posted by gtveloce # 4:35 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

The 116 that blew a headlamp

GTV-removing headlight_0673
Originally uploaded by gtveloce

Just before annual registration time, of course. It's a common and simple task, really, but also it's the first time in 10 years So I had to remember all over again how to do it... it's clear that you can't access it from behind, so it must come off from the front.

So here are a few pics on the subject of removing and replacing a 1982 GTV (Aussie spec) halogen headlamp. Bear in mind this is a low beam unit with parking light - not a sealed beam. I think the sealed beam unit fits on and is aimed in the same way though.

Labels: GTV, Headlamp, Tipo 116

posted by gtveloce # 4:34 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

How it was...Catalina Park rallycross in the '70s

A different scene from the deserted, disused track it is today... funnily enough I like it better as it is now!

posted by gtveloce # 11:36 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

A lap around Catalina Park

An interesting lap around an overgrown Catalina Park as it is today, unfortunately going the wrong way...

posted by gtveloce # 10:57 PM 0 Comments Links to this post

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Alfa Giulietta 2 1981

Alfa Giulietta 2 81
Originally uploaded by gtveloce

This just keeps bringing back memories. What a great car the Giulietta was... barely different from the Alfetta sedan, sort of a wedge-shaped interpretation of the 116 platform. Not quite an Alfetta, not yet a GTV. In between. If I collected Alfas in a parallel fashion (rather than serially) I'd have one of these again. (But not the plastic-coated 2.0 version.)

posted by gtveloce # 10:58 PM 0 Comments Links to this post