A fire is one of the worst things to happen to a car enthusiast, as even if the blaze is contained, it’s rarely worth the effort to repair the damage. Italian cars in general seem to have a higher rate of extinction due to engine fires, and for the year or so that I owned an Alfa Romeo Milano project, one of my bigger fears was the crusty fuel lines igniting. Sure, that can happen on any car, but it just seems like a bigger gamble on old Italian junk. This 1982 Alfa Romeo GTV6 listed here on Facebook Marketplace was bought in its current state along with a parts car, but the seller isn’t going to get around to building one car out of two. 

Now, it’s always challenging to pick up a stalled project when some level of disassembly has already occurred, but this is potentially another level since you don’t even know which parts survived the blaze. The driver’s seat has gone missing a long with the carpets, but the exposed floors appear to be in good shape. That’s a big deal as these cars are not immune from profound rust issues if the car is from a snow belt state. It’s a shame the seat is missing and that the passenger seat is trashed, as the stock GTV6 seats are among the best in the business.

The GTV6, however, offers enthusiasts one of the only ways to get into a sexy Italian coupe with a lusty Busso V6 under the hood for under $15,000. At the time, the Alfa was one of the more expensive options compared to other sporting European couples like the Porsche 924, but it was hard to complain when you had one of the prettiest engine notes ready to enjoy with the twitch of your right foot. It’s difficult to say where the extent of the fire damage is concentrated under all that dust, so it remains a question whether this existing powerplant will come back to life with its full 160 b.h.p. on tap.

The wheels are aftermarket and period correct; they strike me as resembling the Azev brand that was so popular in the 80s. The seller’s plans – and what he is undoubtedly hoping the next owner will want to do – is to buy this fire-damaged car with a clean title, and also take the parts car with the components necessary to rebuild the damaged Alfa. Since the parts car with no fire damage doesn’t have a title, it doesn’t make much sense to try and rebuild both Alfas; then again, you’ll have to assess just how involved it is to repair a an old Italian GT car with what appears to be an engine bay blaze. How would you tackle this Alfa project pair? Thanks to Barn Finds reader Chuck F. for the find.