• Chassis # AR 1495.11327
  • Engine # AR00106 01009
  • Finished In Its Original Color Scheme Of Black Over Red Leather Interior
  • A Highly Correct Older Restoration That Has Withstood The Test Of Time
  • Recipient Of The Coveted Alfa Romeo Owners Club Certificato d’Oro
  • Sale Includes Factory Spare, Tool Kit, Jack, Owners Manual, And Available Service And Restoration Documents
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The Overview

History

Italian automaker Alfa Romeo built the Giulietta series of cars from 1954 to 1965 in several body styles to appeal to all buyers, including a 2+2 coupé, four-door saloon, estate, spider, Sprint, and Sprint Speciale. The 2+2 coupé was the first to hit the scene, while the four-door saloon came along in 1955. That same year, the open two-seat Giulietta Spider with Pininfarina bodywork was launched to provide an alternative to those looking for open-top motoring along the Italian countryside.

In 1956, Alfa Romeo switched from the Tipo 750 chassis to the Tipo 101 and also gave birth to the “Veloce” variant of the Spider. Directly translating as “fast” in Italian, the Spider Veloce gained 10 more hp than the regular Spider, bringing the total number to 90 hp thanks to twin-choke Weber 40 DCOE2 carburetors, 9:1 compression, a new cylinder head, 9mm valve stems, and bigger diameter crankshaft main journals. Early Alfas, produced in 1960, still used the “1495” prefix of the Tipo 750 chassis on the serial number before switching to the more appropriate “101.20” prefix. From 1956 to 1961, only 2,796 examples of the Spider Veloce were produced.

This Car

This early example, Chassis # AR 1495.11327, began life on August 4th, 1960, and was sold to Hoffman Motor Car Co. in New York, NY, on the 27th of November, 1961. According to the Alfa Romeo Storico archives, this Spider Veloce was finished in black with beautifully contrasting red upholstery, a scheme it wears today. Under the hood is the 1.3 L DOHC Inline 4-cylinder engine with twin Weber 40 DCOE2 carburetors backed by a 5-speed manual transmission.

As the story goes, the car was purchased by its long-time owner, who is a good friend of LBI Limited, on Thanksgiving day of 1991 from Jerry Lucas of Lucas Racing Enterprises in Bethlehem, PA. Mr. Lucas came to the owner’s bar earlier in the week, asking if he would like to purchase the car. The owner snuck out shortly after Thanksgiving dinner to drive to Jerry’s shop and deliver the payment for the car. It is believed the car resided in the Bethlehem, PA, area for quite some time before this. At the time of purchase, the Alfa was largely dismantled with the engine removed.

It underwent a restoration in the early 1990s at the hands of restorer Jed Steely. New floors were installed, the engine, suspension, transmission, and brakes were rebuilt, the body was refinished in its original color, the interior was re-trimmed, all chrome was replated, and a new top was installed. After completion in 1994, this Spider Veloce was a Concours-quality example and won First Place awards three years in a row at the New Hope Auto Show in Pennsylvania.

In 2009, the engine was fully rebuilt from the ground up along with its driveshaft by Euro Auto Classics in Philadelphia, PA, a job that cost just under $9,000. After 20 years of ownership, the car was consigned through Gooding & Co., where it sold sometime in 2011. That same year, the Alfa received a brand-new Italian windshield that was also installed by Euro Auto Classics. In 2020, it was once more sold through Gooding & Co. to an owner in California. Under their ownership, the brakes were rebuilt by Werner Schott Classic Car Repair in Buellton, CA with the transmission receiving its own rebuild shortly after by The Smiekel Collection in Ventura, CA.

This rare Spider Veloce stands out from the rest as the gold standard of what these classic sports cars should be like, with its restoration and numerous component rebuilds resulting in an example that drives as well as it looks. This Alfa was also the proud recipient of the coveted Alfa Romeo Owners Club Certificato d’Oro, with a near-perfect score of 99.3 at the 2010 AROC National Convention in Virginia.

There are few things more enjoyable than cruising through the weekend in an open-top Italian sports car on the way to your local Concours lawn. We invite you to live out that vision in a 1960 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider Veloce. Upon purchase, the new owner will receive the original jack, tool kit, owner’s manual, Alfa Romeo Classiche Certificate and numerous service records on file.



The Details

exterior

body and paint

The body of this Giulietta Veloce is very solid and shows no issues with rust, corrosion or accidents that we could find. The body is straight down the sides, and all of the panels are in excellent condition with great panel gaps. The fit and finish of the bumpers, deco trim on the rockers hood and trunk latches, as well as the front grill and headlights, are all exceptional. In speaking with the old owner who oversaw the restoration, he confirmed that the floors and rockers were properly replaced but overall, the body was relatively rust-free to begin with prior to restoration.

The paint is in excellent condition with no evidence of poor prep work or excessive aging. The paint was done many years ago and has still held up to be in excellent condition. If there was going to be any issues with the prep of the basecoat or aging elements of the paint, they would’ve shown up already. The paint is consistent with a deep shine and no excessive swirl marks, bubbles, or serious scratches. There are, of course, a handful of blemishes here and there, as to be expected from a car that was restored such a long time ago.

glass and trim

All of the glass appears to be original, with the correct securit insignias on the passenger and driver-side windows, and they are crack-free. The windshield is a quality replacement and is also free of cracking or chips, though it does have a couple of tiny bits of stone peppering. The passenger side window does have some streaking marks right in the center, as well as some tiny little chips that are evident on the exterior that could perhaps be buffed out. The rear window of the top is very clean and clear, with only some minor blemishes and fading. The top fabric is in excellent condition, and the top fits nicely.

All of the rubber trim appears supple and crack-free with no issues to note. The chrome is in excellent condition for being redone so long ago. There is virtually no pitting or serious scratches anywhere. All of the chrome shines nicely and is very straight. None of the chrome was left out during the re-chroming process and all of the interior chrome has been redone as well as all of the smaller exterior chrome bits. The door handles show some slight age, as well as the trunk hinges, though nothing worth fixing.

The interior gauge chrome bezels may be the only items on the car that haven’t been re-chromed, as they are original looking and some slight hazing/fade is present. Overall, the chrome is excellent, and we would still put it in the show condition category.

wheels

The wheels look to be correct on all four sides, and the silver and stainless finishes are still in excellent condition with no serious blemishes to note except for a few minor blemishes. All four tires are correct looking Michelin XAS tires with 2014 and 2015 date codes so by time they should be replaced but the tread is still very good.

notable flaws

There are a few blemishes to note, including the biggest blemish,l of which is located on the driver-side fender wheel arch, where the tire must have been turned, and a pothole was hit, which bent the fender seam down slightly. This could likely be corrected with painless dent removal. On the trunk, just below the driver-side hinge, is a small 1-inch crack in the paint that is noticeable only under certain lights. There is also some minor stone peppering on the nose area, though only noticeable under a close eye.

interior

seats and surfaces

The interior is very nice looking for being done so long ago. The seats are in good shape with only slight sun fading, with the carpeting being in similar condition. The crinkle finish on the dash is in excellent condition, and the painted part of the dash is also in excellent condition, with clear gauges that all seem to function properly and tidy wiring components under the dash as well as a wheel that is crack-free and in excellent condition. The door cards are also very nice, with no issues to note. As stated before, the interior chrome is an excellent condition and has all been redone besides the gauge bezels. The area behind the seats houses the clean-looking spare tire, clean and supple rubber mats, as well as the original tools and jack all very tidy. The seatbacks have lost a slight amount of their tightness.

Overall, the interior presents very well for an older restoration and has held up exceptionally well over the years.

functionality and accessories

All of the lights and gauges seem to function properly including the headlights, tail lights, turn signals, and brake lights, though the passenger brake light appears to be out. The fuel reserve light does seem to be stuck on even though the tank is half full. Otherwise, everything seems to be in good working order upon a cursory check.

engine bay and trunk

engine bay

The engine bay presents very well and was done to a very high standard when the car was initially restored. Attention to correctness was paid to multiple areas of the engine bay. With evidence of original stickers, clamps, original type carburetors (but not sand cast), Marelli stickers, factory markings, and correct codings. All of the finishes have held up very nicely over the years, and the car could certainly be taken to the next level with just a bit of further attention, but it remains very resentable in its current state.The hood pad is in good condition with only minor blemishes.

trunk area

The trunk area is very tidy and correct and even shows factory spot welds in various places you would expect to see them. The biggest issue with the trunk would be under the rubber mat, there appears to have been trapped moisture at some point, creating some surface blemishing in the paint in the form of surface-level paint bubbling. To make it perfect once again, repainting it would be the best thing to do.

Underside

The underside is very tidy and correct with clear evidence that all of the work was done to a very high standard. There are no obvious issues to note. A good steam clean or dry ice cleaning of the underside would go along way to help in the overall presentation but the underside present very honestly as is.

mechanicals

engine

The engine fires to life after a few turns upon cold start. It idles nicely with choke until warm and makes good linear power throughout all of the gears with no odd noises or issues to note. Overall it sounds healthy and performs excellently. In the lower RPM range it stumbles a little bit sometimes as it likes to be revved out in the higher ranges of RPM. A slight carb adjustment will likely help to mitigate this a bit.

transmission

Gear shifts are smooth up and down. No grinding or difficulty shifting was noted. The clutch engages right in the middle of the throw as it should, with no slipping or noticeable issues.

brakes and suspension

The brakes function as they should and do not squeak or chatter. There is nothing to be noted for brake issues or suspension issues. The suspension is firm feeling without any bounciness, though there is an occasional clunk in the driver’s side rear when going over larger bumps in a corner. Cornering in this car is an absolute pleasure overall. The car tracks straight down the road with no pulling to either side.

tires

driving experience

Driving this car is a real treat. The quintessential classic sports car experience with all of the right sounds, shifts, wind in your hair, and all the thumbs ups you could ever want. This is an excellent older restoration done to a very high standard which shows through to its driving characteristics and overall presentation.