My first Alfa!
Discussion
There is a saying every petrol head should own an Alfa Romeo at least once in their life...... And despite me having owned around 45 cars so far I have never had an Alfa! Until this week.
I was *gifted* this ‘98 Alfa Spider TS for free by my landlords from whom I rent a barn. They had not used the car for several years and it was just kicking around the farm gathering dust and god knows what else. So they offered it to me for free on the proviso that I would let them have a drive in it once back on the road? Of course.....
Firstly, the paint is absolutely ****ed and will need a respray. There is savage laquer peel all over it. Not sure why, is it an Alfa thing or a poor previous respray? I can do this with a friend, so not a problem. The roof is 95% perfect, just a nick and a small crack in the window, so I think that is salvageable for now. Been quoted £700 for a new one fitted, so if it bothers me there is always that option.
So dragged it out of the other barn and ran it up, no nasty surprises, started first time, apart from a lumpy idle and slow to pick up, but spins freely to redline and sounds rorty and smooth above 1,500 rpm. The near side fan is running constantly on the radiator so that needs investigating. Other than that nothing seems amiss. Before being put away 10 months ago it went through an MOT and not moved since. It has receipts for a recent ( well, recent as not been used much since ) clutch, cam belt, recon head, , service, new battery all from an Alfa Romeo specialist so hopefully the mechanicals are decent.
![](https://thumbsnap.com/sc/RsbMqSCx.jpg[/img]</a> <a href="https://thumbsnap.com/q43AHqKp" Target="_blank" rel="nofollow">[img]https://thumbsnap.com/sc/q43AHqKp.jpg[/img]</a> <a href="https://thumbsnap.com/8nCASMoL" Target="_blank" rel="nofollow">[img]https://thumbsnap.com/sc/8nCASMoL.jpg)
I gave it a quick wash, vacuum, wipe down in the interior and it has not come up too bad. The car has done 123,000 miles.
The plan is the flatten the paint and respray it, then put done 17” Cup Teledials or 18” Alfa Blackline from a GT on. And then blat down to the Italian Alps in it in the summer. Just hoping there are no nasty surprises!
Edited by Furyblade_Lee on Thursday 28th October 12:42
Furyblade_Lee said:
There is a saying every petrol head should own an Alfa Romeo at least once in their life...... And despite me having owned around 45 cars so far I have never had an Alfa! Until this week.
I was *gifted* this ‘98 Alfa Spider TS for free by my landlords from whom I rent a barn. They had not used the car for several years and it was just kicking around the farm gathering dust and god knows what else. So they offered it to me for free on the proviso that I would let them have a drive in it once back on the road? Of course.....
Firstly, the paint is absolutely ****ed and will need a respray. There is savage laquer peel all over it. Not sure why, is it an Alfa thing or a poor previous respray? I can do this with a friend, so not a problem. The roof is 95% perfect, just a nick and a small crack in the window, so I think that is salvageable for now. Been quoted £700 for a new one fitted, so if it bothers me there is always that option.
Welcome to Alfa ownership and for free too - lucky Man ;-) - I'm 2 years back in (v6 GTV) after 12 years in the wilderness - and am just about to get mine back after an engine out top end rebuild and engine bay refurb.. I was *gifted* this ‘98 Alfa Spider TS for free by my landlords from whom I rent a barn. They had not used the car for several years and it was just kicking around the farm gathering dust and god knows what else. So they offered it to me for free on the proviso that I would let them have a drive in it once back on the road? Of course.....
Firstly, the paint is absolutely ****ed and will need a respray. There is savage laquer peel all over it. Not sure why, is it an Alfa thing or a poor previous respray? I can do this with a friend, so not a problem. The roof is 95% perfect, just a nick and a small crack in the window, so I think that is salvageable for now. Been quoted £700 for a new one fitted, so if it bothers me there is always that option.
Alfa paint is known for it especially red? a 916 Spider is a lovely thing, Get over to alfaowner there is loads of useful info on the cars there. The plastic windows in the roof become brittle as they age and it gets cold - so take care if you open the roof in winter.
Furyblade_Lee said:
So dragged it out of the other barn and ran it up, no nasty surprises, started first time, apart from a lumpy idle and slow to pick up, but spins freely to redline and sounds rorty and smooth above 1,500 rpm. The near side fan is running constantly on the radiator so that needs investigating. Other than that nothing seems amiss. Before being put away 10 months ago it went through an MOT and not moved since. It has receipts for a recent ( well, recent as not been used much since ) clutch, cam belt, recon head, , service, new battery all from an Alfa Romeo specialist so hopefully the mechanicals are decent.
Required intervals (revised downwards from the manual) are 3 years / 36000 miles for belt/tensioners and possibly waterpump (unless you replace with the metal impeller based one). The belts do degrade over time especially if not used. If you're planning a long roadtrip into europe I woudl get it done beforehand. The fan problem will in all probability be the resistor pack failing (or even falling out) ;-)Furyblade_Lee said:
I gave it a quick wash, vacuum, wipe down in the interior and it has not come up too bad. The car has done 123,000 miles.
The plan is the flatten the paint and respray it, then put done 17” Cup Teledials or 18” Alfa Blackline from a GT on. And then blat down to the Italian Alps in it in the summer. Just hoping there are no nasty surprises!
I've the GTA teledials on my V6 GTV - needed spacers - I think 18's will ruin the ride. One thing to check with the TS Spiders (and GTV) is the rear subframe whcih if the bushes are worn can actually wear away the metal of the subframe necessitating it being replaced. I'd also check if they havent been replaced your rear spring pans and the radiator bottom mount.The plan is the flatten the paint and respray it, then put done 17” Cup Teledials or 18” Alfa Blackline from a GT on. And then blat down to the Italian Alps in it in the summer. Just hoping there are no nasty surprises!
Enjoy...
S.
My old GTV was a '98, phase 1. Same wheels as yours on a dark green car. When I first got it I thought about changing the wheels to bigger teledials but in time I'm really glad I didn't. Grew to love the originals.
Mine had already had the sub-frame and bushings replaced as talked about in a previous post. It was replaced by Roger at Peak Alfa with one from the V6 which apparently didn't have the same metal vs metal problems. Chatted to him about it when he did my cam belt change as he "knew the car".
Other than that, it was used as a daily driver and only ever needed a new battery over usual servicing.
Mine had already had the sub-frame and bushings replaced as talked about in a previous post. It was replaced by Roger at Peak Alfa with one from the V6 which apparently didn't have the same metal vs metal problems. Chatted to him about it when he did my cam belt change as he "knew the car".
Other than that, it was used as a daily driver and only ever needed a new battery over usual servicing.
OP, I suggest you familiarise yourself with the Alfa Forum....plenty of very knowledgeable enthusiats & a good source of parts for GTVs as there are quite a few bits & pieces that are no longer available from the manufacturer so there are quite a few cars sadly being broken for parts.
I agree with the comment about the 17" Teledials....they look great but do compromise the ride of the GTV IMO. Be aware that suspension bushes on a car of this age will at some point require replacement & that the rear spring pan arms need to be checked and were at one point not available as a new part (I see some of the specialists are now supplying pattern parts like this but they're not cheap).
The cambelt changes are important on these cars. The GTVs are great cars (I had a 3.0 GTV with aerokit a few years ago) & an ex had a Twinny Spider which attracted a lot of positive attention when it was out and about.
I agree with the comment about the 17" Teledials....they look great but do compromise the ride of the GTV IMO. Be aware that suspension bushes on a car of this age will at some point require replacement & that the rear spring pan arms need to be checked and were at one point not available as a new part (I see some of the specialists are now supplying pattern parts like this but they're not cheap).
The cambelt changes are important on these cars. The GTVs are great cars (I had a 3.0 GTV with aerokit a few years ago) & an ex had a Twinny Spider which attracted a lot of positive attention when it was out and about.
Welcome to Alfa ownership, great model to go for.
Amazing community around it as mentioned but also Facebook and YouTube. Ricks Garage is a great video blog along with Italia autos if you want inspiration on caring for them.
TotallyAlfa is great for used and new parts. GtvCity on Facebook.
I brought my Gtv in 2008, brought its “replacement” in 2016 but i could part with it and it out stayed that replacement, brought another car earlier this year and think the gtv with stay as feels so good to drive, like a treat or meditation
Amazing community around it as mentioned but also Facebook and YouTube. Ricks Garage is a great video blog along with Italia autos if you want inspiration on caring for them.
TotallyAlfa is great for used and new parts. GtvCity on Facebook.
I brought my Gtv in 2008, brought its “replacement” in 2016 but i could part with it and it out stayed that replacement, brought another car earlier this year and think the gtv with stay as feels so good to drive, like a treat or meditation
I've got the 1996 twin to yours although mine was in worse condition when I got it, picked it up for £200 just over 5 years ago and finally got it on the road this year after doing a nut and bolt restoration on it. Absolutely love the car and the TS drives really well when the suspension is refreshed and set up.
Lots of good advice already above but I would say prepare to open the wallet!! Personally I'd do the belts as soon as you can and leave it all standard (suspension and wheels). You might also find it'll idle better if you put the original airbox back on rather than the K and N, don't think it adds much to a Twin Spark apart from induction noise.
Looks as if your car sat in a showroom for a while too after being built, yours is a Ph 1.25 with all of the nightmare to source ABS unit and Airbag ECU. They changed over in circa Q2 1997 to a different set up, if things go wrong it's almost impossible to source these parts now for the early cars. It took me nearly 3 years to get a working ABS unit and that came from Germany in the end.
Good luck though and welcome to Spider ownership.
Lots of good advice already above but I would say prepare to open the wallet!! Personally I'd do the belts as soon as you can and leave it all standard (suspension and wheels). You might also find it'll idle better if you put the original airbox back on rather than the K and N, don't think it adds much to a Twin Spark apart from induction noise.
Looks as if your car sat in a showroom for a while too after being built, yours is a Ph 1.25 with all of the nightmare to source ABS unit and Airbag ECU. They changed over in circa Q2 1997 to a different set up, if things go wrong it's almost impossible to source these parts now for the early cars. It took me nearly 3 years to get a working ABS unit and that came from Germany in the end.
Good luck though and welcome to Spider ownership.
Well at least it wasn't expensive to buy. 
But I'm sure getting it back to its' best may not be quite so cheap.
I think it was Clarkson that started that "every petrolhead needs to own an Alfa" thing.
I had a couple of 70s twin-cam Fiats and they probably taught me much the same lesson, so since 1981 my wallet and I haven't wanted another Italian car! Well unless I hed untold riches and it was a Ferrari.
Anyway good luck get it sorted for your trip.
But I'm sure getting it back to its' best may not be quite so cheap.
I think it was Clarkson that started that "every petrolhead needs to own an Alfa" thing.
I had a couple of 70s twin-cam Fiats and they probably taught me much the same lesson, so since 1981 my wallet and I haven't wanted another Italian car! Well unless I hed untold riches and it was a Ferrari.
Anyway good luck get it sorted for your trip.
Looks great, especially for free! I wouldn't worry about the paint for the time being. I would run it for a while and see if you get on with it.
I would also leave the wheels as they are. The Spiders do suffer from some scuttle shake so bigger, heavier and grippier tyres won't help! Although many owners don't worry, the wheels from the 147/156/GT had a different offset than the GTV/Spider and can look a bit odd.
Enjoy it!
I would also leave the wheels as they are. The Spiders do suffer from some scuttle shake so bigger, heavier and grippier tyres won't help! Although many owners don't worry, the wheels from the 147/156/GT had a different offset than the GTV/Spider and can look a bit odd.
Enjoy it!
RicksAlfas said:
Looks great, especially for free! I wouldn't worry about the paint for the time being. I would run it for a while and see if you get on with it.
I would also leave the wheels as they are. The Spiders do suffer from some scuttle shake so bigger, heavier and grippier tyres won't help! Although many owners don't worry, the wheels from the 147/156/GT had a different offset than the GTV/Spider and can look a bit odd.
Enjoy it!
Seriously, I threw a bucket of water over it to simulate lacquer moments before taking the pics, the paint is sooooo bad the Police would pull me over if the saw me in it!!!!! I would also leave the wheels as they are. The Spiders do suffer from some scuttle shake so bigger, heavier and grippier tyres won't help! Although many owners don't worry, the wheels from the 147/156/GT had a different offset than the GTV/Spider and can look a bit odd.
Enjoy it!
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