From 1954 to 1965, the Giulietta was a cadre of automobiles produced by Alfa Romeo in Italy. A variety of body styles were offered, including the Spider (a 2-seat sports car). This 1961 edition of the Spider came with the purchase of some property nearly 50 years ago and has remained dormant since. Covered for part of the time, this Alfa will need loads of work to be functional again, but what a success it would be to pull it all off. Located in Bend, Oregon, this classic sports car is available without a title here on eBay where just the opening bid of $8,000 has been cast.
In 1961, the Giulietta received its second styling update, and the Twin-Cam 1.3-liter inline-4 got a modest increase in horsepower. They were reasonably quick cars that could almost top 100 mph. These were unibody vehicles with the standard front-engine, rear-wheel drive arrangement. Over its 12-year production life, the Giulietta saw 176,000 units leave the assembly plant, of which just 14,300 were the Spider which was likely the most often imported of the cars to the U.S.
The seller doesn’t have many details about this 1961 Alfa as his/her father has passed away as has the owner of the property that the car was found on. It sat under a tarp for 10 years, which suggests that it sat out in the open the rest of the time. We assume it quit running at some point and was left to retire with 43,000 miles showing on the odometer. It may be a complete vehicle, but time and Mother Nature have done a job on the machine, especially the interior which is a mere shadow of its former self.
Rust has managed to creep into things in 50 years, such as the floorboards and fenders. The chrome seems to have held up and the seller says the electrical stuff is all still there, but who knows if any woodland creatures came to feast. While its manual transmission appears to shift okay, there’s a whole spare tranny in the trunk should it be needed. If you’ve got the time and money and a love for these mid-century Italian sports cars, this could be an interesting labor of love.
“Out of sight, out of mind”. Such a shame, as these are typical of the Latin, especially Italian automotive sculptures.
Resurrection of this unloved beauty will be a challenge but worth it to the ones that find themselves embracing the ardor found in driving it when it’s finished.
Having owned one of these in my youth, it evokes many fine memories of all the joy in driving it brought me, after many hours of restoration work. While tempting, it is priced a little high, considering what restoring this will involve. Best wishes on the sale.
At least it’s “Rust Free” – you get the rust for free.
A friend had a similar model back in ’80. Hope this one has a spare frame handy, like my friend did, as the original frame wound up holier than thou. Or several thou…
Parts may be worth quite a bit. 52 yo Alfa? Awesome car, seems beyond a rebuild. Too bad. These were/are incredible automobiles.
On everything a little rain must fall, but this drowned and then was baked in the sun.
Worth a punt and restoration…..never say “no” to a Guillieta Spider!
Iconic to say the least…..I like it.
👍🤓
IMO, if the body shell is salvageable, it’s worth restoring. There’s a good supply of mechanical parts, not so sure about body panels. The seller’s car is one of 2,744 model 101.04 Normale units produced as a1961 model. It had some improvements over my1957 type 750D Spider, notably a new transmission with a split case and better 2nd gear synchro (much appreciated by the SCCA crowd), some dimensional changes amongst engine components while retaining the 1290cc displacement, a slight but, useful increase in cockpit dimensions and non-functioning vent windows to minimize wind buffeting when the roll-up windows are down. Some AROC members thought the new engine components boosted the output from 65 to 80 Hp. Having never owned or driven a ’61 Normale, IDK if that’s accurate. I later bought a 1963 Giulia Bertone Sprint 1600. The Giulia 1600 with a 5 speed gearbox and Bosch electrics was a marked improvement over the Giulietta and it’s Lucas (Prince of Darkness) electrics. A new owner/restorer should scrap everything with a Lucas name on it and replace with Bosch or Marelli components.
I have a ’65 Giulia Spider, and it’s been great. By the time you restore this properly (key word), you’ll be into it for more $$$ than buying another car that’s already done and ready to enjoy now. As you get older, projects like this are less tempting because they eat time.
thnx 4 da memories Russ.
I cut my eye teeth wrenchin on these, some fiats, anda few lancias as a mid/late teen. I musta had the best parents as they let me drag home these lill jewels (not so much rust as here, justa lota twisted metal – accidents) in the mid’n late 60s. My buds had the brandie new stang 2+2 FB, a 442, vetts etc but I could afford a run to “goldie’s” JY, Quincy (been wrkin since my single didgits) for one of these w/a tree limb thru the cloth top, pass side fender up in the engine compartment, etc. Back on the road, safe, reliable and inspectable till sold & the next ‘free ride’ at goldie’s caught my eye~
This listing was ended by the seller on Sat, Nov 25 at 8:12 AM because the item is no longer available.