Built with no expense spared by renowned marque specialist Alfaholics, this spectacular Alfa Romeo Spider is a seriously quick and well-sorted fast road/track-day classic.
The basis for the conversion was a right-hand-drive 2000 Spider Veloce that had been first registered in the UK on 13 May 1977. The car was in need of restoration and its long-term owner was a track-day enthusiast who commissioned Alfaholics to turn it into something that he could drive hard on track, as well as drive it to and from the circuits themselves. With a brief to use only the highest-grade parts, the specification for the Alfaholics GTA-R was used as a starting point – but this Spider would benefit from a number of bespoke extras.
In order to provide handling that would complement the straight-line speed that was planned, the Alfa Spider’s bodyshell was stiffened with a bespoke rollcage. The owner specified that he wanted none of it to be visible above the door line, so once the shell had been placed on a flat jig bed and straightened, a discreet lightweight cage was welded into place in order to ensure a suitably rigid structure.
The suspension was then built up and includes Alfaholics’ lightweight wishbones, geometry conversion kit, six-pot brake kit, adjustable camber arms, adjustable aluminium dampers, and a front spring conversion that allows for adjustable ride height. At the rear, lightweight trailing arms were fitted, plus aluminium adjustable dampers and a race aluminium T-bar. A dual-circuit brake box was used, with Girling reservoirs for the individual brake circuits.
As for the engine, Alfaholics’ Twin Spark ‘four’ was installed with big-valve head and race valve gear, billet rifle drilled cams, billet H-section conrods, forged pistons with a special coating, and 45mm Webers running with Alfaholics’ 3-D mapped ignition system. Its peak power of 216bhp is produced between 6800-7300rpm.
The owner’s eye for detail extended to a non-standard front grille ‘heart’. An original heart was 3D laser scanned and used as the basis for a bespoke item that Alfaholics built from scratch. He even specified GTA-style inner door grab handles that also needed to be made from scratch and which were CNC machined from billet aerospace-grade aluminium.
The finished car was painted in Alfa 147 Bianco Nuvola, which has a slight pearl finish to it, and even the Perspex headlight covers received hours of attention to ensure that they fitted correctly.
After three years and over 12,000 miles – many of which were on-track – the owner took Spider-R 007 back to Alfaholics in 2013-14 in order for further upgrades to be carried out. These included a six-speed sequential gearbox, a programmable throttle body fuel injection system, and a Race Technology digital dash conversion.
In the winter of 2015, the engine was fully rebuilt with new forged pistons and liners, new bearings, a head overhaul and further tweaks and fettles.
To ensure this Spider was kept bang up to date, further upgrades were completed in 2022 to bestow the car with the very latest Alfaholics GTA-R enhancements.
Now being offered for sale by The Classic Motor Hub, this beautifully engineered Alfa Romeo Spider was created with fastidious attention to detail, and is ready to thrill its next owner on road and track alike.
MODEL HISTORY
One of the most iconic and instantly recognisable of all classic cars, the Tipo 105/115 Alfa Romeo Spider was launched at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show. Borrowing mechanical components from the 105 Series Giulia, the new Spider featured Pininfarina styling that won universal acclaim – plus a 1570cc twin-cam engine that was equally well received. It ran on twin Weber carburettors and drove through a five-speed gearbox.
From the very beginning, the Spider was a premium product – in the UK, it cost almost as much as a Jaguar E-type – and in June 1968 it was upgraded into the 1750 Spider Veloce thanks to the fitment of a new 1779cc engine. In the same year, an ‘entry level’ Spider 1300 Junior was added to the range.
The Series 2 Spider was introduced in 1970 and featured a redesigned rear that did away with the rounded tail of the original model and replaced it with sharper Kamm-style lines. A year later, the adoption of a new 132bhp, 1962cc version of the four-cylinder engine led to the creation of the 2000 Spider Veloce.
Motor Sport magazine recorded a 0-60mph sprint of 9.5 seconds and a top speed of 120mph when it tested a 2000 Spider Veloce. Although it conceded that – by the time of its article in July 1977 – the Alfa was in certain respects somewhat dated, it added that ‘it is the last of the traditional, conventional Alfa line, and all the more enjoyable for it, a classical design in an age of increasing conformity.’
The Spider would, in fact, live on until the heavily facelifted, last-of-the-line Series 4, which was launched in 1990. Production eventually came to an end in 1993, after which an all-new front-wheel-drive Spider was introduced.
Immortalised on the silver screen thanks to the appearance of a Series 1 1600 in The Graduate, the Alfa Romeo Spider is the epitome of the classic Italian sports car, with an intoxicating blend of chic style and charismatic twin-cam engine.
