The Best ///M/Barge/General Rant/Look at this/O/T (Vol XVII)

The Best ///M/Barge/General Rant/Look at this/O/T (Vol XVII)

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TheRocket

1,509 posts

248 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
Leins said:
I cannot overstate the near-biblical levels of hatred I have for BMWs with replica Alpina wheels though!
I know what you mean but I'd be tempted by a set of these though boxedin



s m

23,164 posts

202 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
tenfour said:
Yep, I'm imagining it alright:

currently I'm mopping my brow with a paisley cravat as I sit on the hard shoulder of the A71, just south of Bourges; bonnet aloft, coolant trickling into the gutter, tweeting birds just about audible over the inexorable roar of progress as the rest of the world flies by in their wonderfully modern, reliable automobiles that aren't horrible bd creations from the epitome of seventies unionization and west-midlands fecklessness.
Article said :-


Cheburator mk2

2,973 posts

198 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
Leins said:
I cannot overstate the near-biblical levels of hatred I have for BMWs with replica Alpina wheels though!
Do not worry, Sire!

Somewhere in the back of my garden, under a cover, there is a set of beautiful two-piece Alpina Softlines by BBS 18 x 8 and 18 x 9

No idea what I am keeping them for, but I am sure they would look stunning on a E24 or E31

RicksAlfas

13,354 posts

243 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
DoctorX said:
This Lotus must have the coolest stereo I've ever seen:

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C645989#
Just the job for picking up a 1982-era Rebecca De Mornay.

Leins

9,412 posts

147 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
TheRocket said:
I know what you mean but I'd be tempted by a set of these though boxedin


Actually, I quite like those smile


Cheburator mk2 said:
Leins said:
I cannot overstate the near-biblical levels of hatred I have for BMWs with replica Alpina wheels though!
Do not worry, Sire!

Somewhere in the back of my garden, under a cover, there is a set of beautiful two-piece Alpina Softlines by BBS 18 x 8 and 18 x 9

No idea what I am keeping them for, but I am sure they would look stunning on a E24 or E31
I cannot understate the near-debauched levels of desire I have for BMWs with genuine Alpina wheels though! wink

joesnow

1,533 posts

226 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
braddo said:
I'd probably be tending towards full comfort (late 60s rolls/bentley) or mini-GT (Giulia Alfa). By the time I sold it my old Alfa would have lapped up the bombing down the autoroute and thereon to the route Napoleon.
That's the dream trip in my Alfa. If even have this on the garage wall as inspiration...


Diesel Meister

2,044 posts

200 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all

yes

L100NYY

35,075 posts

242 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
I often have those whimsical thoughts of;

A euro roadtrip, what car...? No time limitations or costs ie fuel etc.

Hmmm.

braddo

10,399 posts

187 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
joesnow said:
braddo said:
I'd probably be tending towards full comfort (late 60s rolls/bentley) or mini-GT (Giulia Alfa). By the time I sold it my old Alfa would have lapped up the bombing down the autoroute and thereon to the route Napoleon.
That's the dream trip in my Alfa. If even have this on the garage wall as inspiration...

Do it. thumbup

The only time the engine in mine got hot was when the radiator was fked. A £140 new radiator fixed that. And the brakes never faded. Ever. Stock discs and pads, with decent modern fluid and braided hoses on the front (don't know if they were any better than stock new hoses, to be honest). Hundreds of miles of track day fun, thousands of miles of thrashing and redlining the thing through town and country - the car had had a top end rebuild and new carbs before I bought it but the bottom end and gearbox were untouched from the factory, 35 years and 80,000 miles ago. The famous Alfa 2nd gear synchro had one foot in the grave though. hehe

The unreliability I had was almost all minor electrical stuff - an ignition coil thingy, an old wire 'twixt battery and starter motor degrading. And it took years to find a driveline vibration that was a duff part on the propshaft. After that, 80-90mph cruise for hours was no problem.

I have a book with a compilation of contemporary road tests and a few of them show brake performance after multiple hard stops - the Giulia is one of the only cars ever tested back then whose brake performance actually improved after multiple stops! But then they complain that the brake pedal is over-servoed. laugh Goes to show how terrible tyres were back then.

Basically, Giulia Alfas are superbly engineered and mechanically very robust. But get ADAC breakdown cover! Les Francais will love you for making the effort - they really appreciate seeing something different from all the horribly boring stuff on their roads.



braddo

10,399 posts

187 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
L100NYY said:
I often have those whimsical thoughts of;

A euro roadtrip, what car...? No time limitations or costs ie fuel etc.

Hmmm.
Unfortunately the inflation rate is probably similar to that of a £23k XJS, but a strong contender for me is a very early Aston V8, DBS?



Eek, this makes me want to cry. I used to dream about buying a manual one of these for £25-30k back in 2001.

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C745895

Back to the Alfa then!

jeremyc

Original Poster:

23,335 posts

283 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
L100NYY said:
I often have those whimsical thoughts of;

A euro roadtrip, what car...? No time limitations or costs ie fuel etc.

Hmmm.
Simples. smile



yes

gowmonster

2,471 posts

166 months

Thursday 26th May 2016
quotequote all
jeremyc said:
imples. smile



yes
Ahhh the Rover SD1.... no wait...

k-ink

9,070 posts

178 months

Friday 27th May 2016
quotequote all
olly755 said:
L100NYY said:
Isn't that lovely.

And an Evo V RS for me please.

I used to run a V12 XJS and Prodrive Subaru Impreza at the same time. It was amusing to get out of one and into the other for a drive. Everyone would come over to talk to me in the Jag. I felt everyone sneering at me in the rice mobile. I also tend to drive in a different manner in each. There was no point in trying to hurry the old girl along.

rejn

1,991 posts

221 months

Friday 27th May 2016
quotequote all
jeremyc said:
L100NYY said:
I often have those whimsical thoughts of;

A euro roadtrip, what car...? No time limitations or costs ie fuel etc.

Hmmm.
Simples. smile



yes
Honestly, if I was going on a Euro roadtrip next week, I'd fancy a DB11:

jeremyc

Original Poster:

23,335 posts

283 months

Friday 27th May 2016
quotequote all
rejn said:
Honestly, if I was going on a Euro roadtrip next week, I'd fancy a DB11:
nono Too many turbos, not enough gearsticks. wink

rejn

1,991 posts

221 months

Friday 27th May 2016
quotequote all
jeremyc said:
rejn said:
Honestly, if I was going on a Euro roadtrip next week, I'd fancy a DB11:
nono Too many turbos, not enough gearsticks. wink
Maybe. But just think how relaxed you'd be as you pulled into Nice/Bologna/etc.

tenfour

26,140 posts

213 months

Friday 27th May 2016
quotequote all
What, no XJS? Pffft!

joesnow

1,533 posts

226 months

Friday 27th May 2016
quotequote all
braddo said:
Do it. thumbup

The only time the engine in mine got hot was when the radiator was fked. A £140 new radiator fixed that. And the brakes never faded. Ever. Stock discs and pads, with decent modern fluid and braided hoses on the front (don't know if they were any better than stock new hoses, to be honest). Hundreds of miles of track day fun, thousands of miles of thrashing and redlining the thing through town and country - the car had had a top end rebuild and new carbs before I bought it but the bottom end and gearbox were untouched from the factory, 35 years and 80,000 miles ago. The famous Alfa 2nd gear synchro had one foot in the grave though. hehe

The unreliability I had was almost all minor electrical stuff - an ignition coil thingy, an old wire 'twixt battery and starter motor degrading. And it took years to find a driveline vibration that was a duff part on the propshaft. After that, 80-90mph cruise for hours was no problem.

I have a book with a compilation of contemporary road tests and a few of them show brake performance after multiple hard stops - the Giulia is one of the only cars ever tested back then whose brake performance actually improved after multiple stops! But then they complain that the brake pedal is over-servoed. laugh Goes to show how terrible tyres were back then.

Basically, Giulia Alfas are superbly engineered and mechanically very robust. But get ADAC breakdown cover! Les Francais will love you for making the effort - they really appreciate seeing something different from all the horribly boring stuff on their roads.
Thanks Braddo, sounds like you miss yours.

I also track my Alfa, and its great fun. I've found its about preservation of momentum and adopting some balls through the corners to chase down Mx5s and low power Elises. It may be that they are just slow drivers, but overtaking them is great fun in an older car, and getting the most out of it is a joyous challenge. Its so cheap to run as well.

Mechanically, it is in fine fettle, with all bushings and rubber bits of the drive train refreshed and suspension uprated too, but you're right on the wiring. I've not had any failures or issues, but the wires have reached that point of case hardening, so I take a small reel and connectors with me just in case there's ever an issue. I'd agree also on the brakes, I have the ATE caliper running DS2500 pads all round on stock disks. After a refurb of the calipers, braking is progressive with no fade. My car had the servo removed previously, so they do need a shove. Even at Donington and stretching the legs, the temps remained half way around their respective dials.

Plenty of Alfaholics bits, including an lsd, exhaust system and liberal use of the Nord tuning book to liberate flow from the 1750 motor result in a car that can keep up with modern traffic most of the time, and giving me a grin whilst doing it too.
Sounds about right for Route Napoleon.




Edited by joesnow on Friday 27th May 13:11


Edited by joesnow on Friday 27th May 13:12

Leins

9,412 posts

147 months

Friday 27th May 2016
quotequote all
Ah, Euro road-trip! If weather was guaranteed, it would be Loire - Biarritz - Nice - Tuscany - Amalfi in one of these


PowerslideSWE

1,116 posts

137 months

Friday 27th May 2016
quotequote all
Leins said:
Ah, Euro road-trip! If weather was guaranteed, it would be Loire - Biarritz - Nice - Tuscany - Amalfi in one of these

Ooooh, that is nothing short of p0rnographic. cloud9

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