Alfa Romeo Spider 2.0 JTS Lusso
I bought my silver Alfa Romeo Spider from Black & White Garage, the Alfa specialists in Newbury, Berkshire in May 2008. She is a 2-litre JTS Lusso model, first registered in September 2005, and had just over seventeen thousand miles on the clock, courtesy of two previous owners, both regular customers of B&W. Black & White proprietor and VSCC member, James Wheeler, kindly delivered her to my home in Worcestershire on the firm’s impressive Fiat low-loader. Since then, my Alfa has become a regular visitor to VSCC and other events which I have covered, mainly for The Automobile, and has frequently been spotted by the roadside as I waited to ‘ambush’ participants in VSCC and Light Car road rallies with my camera. Even so, she has yet to clock up 45 thousand miles on the odometer.
She is a delightful car to drive whether for my preference of relaxed touring or, if you were so inclined, capable of lively performance thanks to her 5-speed manual transmission and, of course, the type of petrol fuelled power unit for which Alfa Romeos are renowned. With the electrically operated top down – sadly, not as often as I should have liked in 2012 – she is in her element but, hot or cold, with the hood and electric windows closed, the elements can be kept at bay by full air conditioning or the powerful heater. Leather upholstery, FM radio and CD player all add to the comfort of driver and passenger. Being a sports car, luggage capacity is not huge but I have easily stowed all my bulky camera gear, boots and waterproofs and occasionally overnight baggage with no problem at all.
Currently she is in great condition with four good Pirellis on her 17-spoke alloy wheels and has been regularly serviced, not by me but professionally, and has an MOT valid until September and road tax not due until the end of April. She has just been fitted with new cambelt and associated bits by local Alfa specialists, NJS, and the clutch has also been replaced so her new owner can have peace of mind for many miles to come.
So, why am I selling? Well, I’m genuinely reluctant to part with her but, with two other ‘fun’ cars now at my disposal (Lea Francis Hyper and Triumph TR3A) I can afford to have a more ‘grown up’ car for everyday transport and considering some of the places I need to get to when covering trials and other events, I have been persuaded by my other half that a 4-WD vehicle would be a good idea so I can stop borrowing hers.
Finally, how much? Well, at £5,500 given the excellent condition the car is in, I think the Alfa represents a lot of car for the money. She has been well looked after and surely has many years ahead of her and I hope someone will carry on caring for her and enjoy driving her as much as I have.
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