OT: Porsche Guy or Alfa Guy?

[Ken Robb]

Originally Posted by Louis

It's too bad the OP isn't closer to St Louis - I could hook you up with a '73 GTV.

(I need to make room in my garage for motorcycle stuff and I haven't been driving the Alfa as often as it deserves to be so...)

I almost bought one of these in the mid-1970s when they were just interesting used cars. I think it was $3500 and I loved the looks and handling but it wouldn't have won any drag races.

[avalonracing]

Yeah, air-cooled Porsches are overpriced but I did come to appreciate them when an old friend bought a stock 993 and put it on the track. He raced the piss out of it each month for a couple of years without doing anything major to the engine. I made me aware that they really are racecars that people just buy to drive around in traffic at 30mph.

[Steve in SLO]

Originally Posted by Louis

It's too bad the OP isn't closer to St Louis - I could hook you up with a '73 GTV.

(I need to make room in my garage for motorcycle stuff and I haven't been driving the Alfa as often as it deserves to be so...)

That's a beauty, Louis. I, too almost bought one in the late 70s but opted for a 2002 instead.

[slambers3]

So this is an interesting thread as I’ve owned a couple of the cars mentioned:

Had an ‘88 Saab 900 SPG from ‘09-‘11
Owned an ‘86 Alfa Spider Graduate from ‘13-‘14

A few things about the Alfa- at the time I owned the car, parts support was still (surprisingly) relatively strong. Some aspects of the car were pretty robust (body/engine), while others seemed very frail (interior/gauges/transmission). They’re not fast cars nor do they handle particularly well, but mine was an absolute joy to drive top-down in the summer.
I wouldn’t hesitate to own another spider, but would definitely opt for a better-preserved specimen than the one I owned.

[oliver1850]

Originally Posted by djg

Dunno, a project is a project, and I've never really acquired a true project car (unless you are counting the old Buick K Car my dad gave me when I was in grad school back when people still had K cars; and that was a different kind of project). The cars you mentioned are pretty different from each other, yes?

Selling my '06 M3 ragtop, I think. Alas.

Buick X car perhaps? I think of K car as a Chrysler product.

[oliver1850]

Originally Posted by texbike

I decided to cash in my AC 911s while the market was up a bit and rolled the dollars into what I felt was an underappreciated classic - an '88 Ferrari Mondial coupe. So far, I like it a lot.

Texbike

Pretty car and a model I wasn't aware of. I was really tempted by how cheap 308 GT4s were in the mid 1980s, but resisted. I still think it's nicer looking than the 308/328 GTB/GTS.

[JAGI410]

flame suit on....

Miata is always the answer.

Seriously, the dollar to fun ratio is hard to beat. Turbos, LS swaps, Exocet conversions, lift kits, etc. Mod to your hearts content and not have to worry about resale or collect-ability.

[texbike]

Originally Posted by oliver1850

Pretty car and a model I wasn't aware of. I was really tempted by how cheap 308 GT4s were in the mid 1980s, but resisted. I still think it's nicer looking than the 308/328 GTB/GTS.

Yeah, they were essentially the successor to the GT4. In typical Ferrari 2+2 fashion, they weren’t as well received as the 2 seat models -especially when they were first introduced as the Mondial 8. The cars went through 4 different iterations with each one improving. Mine is a Mondial 3.2 which is considered the “sweet spot” in the series. It has the same motor and trans as the 328. The cars are fairly simple and have fewer known issues than 911s of the same era. There only 32 3.2 Coupes brought to the US in ‘88.

Originally Posted by JAGI410

flame suit on....

Miata is always the answer.

Seriously, the dollar to fun ratio is hard to beat. Turbos, LS swaps, Exocet conversions, lift kits, etc. Mod to your hearts content and not have to worry about resale or collect-ability.

No need for a flame suit. Miatas rock and are definitely the best choice. However, best isn’t always the “right” choice. Archaic and simple has its own charm.

Texbike

[texbike]

Originally Posted by Louis

It's too bad the OP isn't closer to St Louis - I could hook you up with a '73 GTV.

(I need to make room in my garage for motorcycle stuff and I haven't been driving the Alfa as often as it deserves to be so...)

Louis, that is really beautiful! I had a couple of 105 GTVs and they were both great cars.

Originally Posted by Steve in SLO

That's a beauty, Louis. I, too almost bought one in the late 70s but opted for a 2002 instead.

I had several 2002s and they were probably my favorite cars out of all the cars I’ve owned. My first was a ‘71 and is the car that opened my eyes to European cars. Coming from a series of 60s era Fords and Mopars, I was astounded by how agile and fun the cars were. Later, as I moved into Alfa’s, I viewed the 105 GTVs as the “developed” 2002. It had everything that you could possibly want in a 2002 (except the IRS) - twin cam motor, fuel injection, 4 wheel disc brakes, and a 5 spd.

Texbike

[Elefantino]

Don't ask me. I'm biased.

[jlwdm]

Originally Posted by JAGI410

flame suit on....

Miata is always the answer.

Seriously, the dollar to fun ratio is hard to beat. Turbos, LS swaps, Exocet conversions, lift kits, etc. Mod to your hearts content and not have to worry about resale or collect-ability.

Mazda is a great, cheap track car, but not always the answer especially for someone asking about Porsches and Alfas.

Jeff

[joosttx]

I saw this bad boy being unloaded in the hood yesterday. Someone is going to have a bitch'in Memorial Day.

[choke]

Originally Posted by oliver1850

I was really tempted by how cheap 308 GT4s were in the mid 1980s, but resisted. I still think it's nicer looking than the 308/328 GTB/GTS.

The 308GT4 is one of my favorite Ferraris.

[Tonger]

Originally Posted by Steve in SLO

I have had Porsches for close to 25+ years now, starting with a 1978 911SC, 85 Carrera, 75 914, a 96 C2S, 73 914-6 GT clone racecar and currently own a 2004 GT3 and 71 911T-RS clone, so I am pretty conversant in Porsche. A few things I have observed over the years: they are relatively simple to maintain, and have been bulletproof in my hands. I drive rapidly but am fairly easy on my cars, so YMMV. Regarding a project car, as with any older sports car, some have lead relatively hard lives so finding a solid platform is a must-esp pre-74 cars which were not galvanized and therefore prone to rust. There is a robust aftermarket parts pipeline for pretty much any year, no matter what the model, and if you go vertically through a product line, especially 911/912 and 914, you can update and retrofit pretty much at will, to include engine/trans/suspension/brake swaps, which lends a lot of flexibility and creativity to a restoration.

I have 2 friends who are Alfistis that remark on how I must lack true committment for owning such easy cars to keep running, which tells me something. That being said, if a really nice GTV ever came my way, I would have a hard time saying no...they look so right.

‘04 GT3 captures the pure essence of Porsche and is the ‘forever’ car. Did you see the article in Total 911?

[jamesdak]

Originally Posted by Steve in SLO

That's a beauty, Louis. I, too almost bought one in the late 70s but opted for a 2002 instead.

Loved my old 2002ti!