oppoprojects: my alfa romeo spider

"aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe" (emaxxbl)
09/27/2014 at 11:59 • Filed to: oppoprojects, Alfa Spider

October 4th 2013 was a different day for me but like everyday school had just let out and i was going home today though was different instead of getting on the bus i was getting into my dad's truck and i wasn't going home i was going to somebody's home. We were going to pick up my new car a 1976 alfa romeo spider i have no idea what attracted me to this car its not like i needed a car i already had one and its not like i needed a project either because it was almost winter and my other car was still undergoing repairs. So why did i spend $1000 on a car i'd never seen or heard of before? Well almost a year later i still have no idea why i bought it but i'm glad i did because so far i've never seen another one or meet a person who wasn't excited to see it.

pictures of when i bought it

and pictures of how it sits today

I mean sure i haven't done that much work to it considering i've owned it for a year but life doesn't always go to plan and you can't plan life infact the entire reason why i own the car is because someone's life went against their plan and they had to work overseas.

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I have no idea what the hell i just wrote i just put a bunch of words together and it somehow worked

besides isn't summer for enjoying your car and winter for working on it?

DISCUSSION (15)

cletus44 aka Clayton Seams > aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe
09/27/2014 at 12:42

I love it! Can we get a video of it running?

aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams
09/27/2014 at 12:48

ye i do have a phone-quality one i uploaded to youtube but i can take a better on either later today or tomorrow

aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams
09/27/2014 at 14:39

ye i uploaded a phone-quality one to youtube

although i could probably get a better quality one either later today or tomorrow

cletus44 aka Clayton Seams > aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe
09/27/2014 at 16:15

dat sound!

aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe > cletus44 aka Clayton Seams
09/27/2014 at 16:24

it has to be one of the best sounding 4 cyls ever made lol

also my phone didn't capture the best part of the sound the exhaust pops most of the time when you lift off or change gear it'll go popop popo popop and they are so beautifully sounding and for some bizarre reason it'll do it more when i have less than a 1/4 tank of gas left lol one time i was coasting to red light at night and it was popping like crazy the entire time i was off gas.

Jobjoris > aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe
09/27/2014 at 16:55

Awesome, a coda tronca! First thing I'd do is replace/remove those US-spec bumbers. And maybe refurbish those seats ;-) Let the winter begin and let us hope Groundhog day will be a sunny one!

Hammerfrog > aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe
09/27/2014 at 17:53

Was this the US-Spec bumper for this gen Spider? no triangle :(

Tapas > aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe
09/27/2014 at 18:25

Sounds amazing :)

Unfortunately, I might end up being one of those poor saps who has to work overseas. So I'm holding off on buying a new car....

aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe > Hammerfrog
09/27/2014 at 20:49

yeah it has the us spec bumpers but there is a conversion kit that comes with new euro bumpers and mounts

but that's like 1 grand and i got more important stuff to worry about right now lol

aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe > Jobjoris
09/27/2014 at 20:55

hehe i think the seats are going to need a bit more than a refurbishing ;)

right now i think i'll take it with bodywork being first and then the interior and paint then i'll pull the engine and trans if i have to and fix the leaks then hopefully it should be mostly done

Jobjoris > aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe
09/28/2014 at 04:21

Good luck with that! The jaguar on the side is yours as well?

aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe > Jobjoris
09/28/2014 at 10:20

ya that's my DD

OttoMaddox > aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe
09/28/2014 at 15:02

Congrats! By now you should have knowledge of the AlfaBB where you can get all manner of technical advice. That didn't exist when I bought my first Spider in '88!

A few things:

Yours has Weber carbs on the proper European carburetor manifold, instead of the hokey IAP Spica injection manifold adaptor kit. That setup is worth at least $500 right there.

The exhaust manifold is the most restrictive one ever put on any Alfa. When you pull it off, stick your thumb in-you will not be able to without it touching the walls of the tubes. Replace it with the two-piece manifold from the '74 and earlier cars and you will be kicking yourself for not doing so earlier.

Learn how to do your own work. I've rebuilt the front and rear suspension on my current Spider project, replaced all the brake lines, turned the rotors, installed rebuilt calipers, installed a good used heater blower motor and uncracked dashboard. I bought this mig welder: http://www.sears.com/lincoln-electr… and I intend to learn to use it. Don't buy any Harbor Freight welders or welding wire. HF is good for other cheap tools though.

Try not to dump too much money into this thing though-you can buy two nice ones for what it will cost you to fix this one up. Restoring any car rarely makes sense financially. People do it for the joy and pleasure if it. If it's running and driving, keep it that way-blowing it all apart to fix everything at once will cause your enthusiasm to wane.

Finally, if you intend to write for others, PUNCTUATION PLEASE! Otherwise no one will want to help you on any internet forums. Now is the time to look, sound, and act like an adult. ;)

aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe > OttoMaddox
09/28/2014 at 19:03

everything you have said i will take into great consideration

execpt for one small detail my car has solex carburetors on it not webers ;P

although i'll probably end up putting webers on it since one of the carburetors is missing a little piece that stops fuel from going into the engine while its off.

OttoMaddox > aberson Bresident of the FullyAssed Committe
09/28/2014 at 21:31

Solex made the world's worst carburetors. Dribbling raw fuel into the cylinders is a typical problem for those. Webers or Dell'Ortos are better.