Long Stored Junior: 1967 Alfa Romeo GT 1300
This 1967 Alfa Romeo 1300 GT has recently emerged from a private collection where it was stashed for 30 years. The condition is said to be quite good, thanks to its decades of indoor captivity, which has the upside of keeping the bodywork in excellent condition and not a rusty carcass like so many other Alfas of this vintage. Although the cosmetics look largely original, it does have a non-matching engine that is actually an upgrade given the low output of the original mill. Though the purists may flinch at the swapped drivetrain, bidding has still reached almost $10,000. Find it here on eBay with no reserve and located in Colorado.
Right off the bat, you can see how original this Alfa remains outside of its engine. The matching hubcaps over steel wheels, chrome bumpers, and period graphics on the lower doors and sills are all strong indicators this car hasn’t been messed with. You always wonder if the long-term storage in a “collection” was a targeted attempt to preserve what someone believed would be a future collector car, or just a project car kept in storage that ended up being preserved for the long-haul because the engine swap project was never completed. I say that because while the larger 2000cc Spica engine from a later 105 Coupe is with the Alfa, it’s not hooked up.
Engine concerns aside, check out that interior – it’s stunning. This is a great example of how preservation helps keep classics intact, as even though it saw limited road-going use in the last three decades, the components that tend to suffer the worst from wear-and-tear if daily driven for the last 30 years have survived in impressive form. The seller notes it’s not just the pictures, either, as the seat foam is still supportive and the surfaces themselves supple and intact. The dash hasn’t been modified either, and I don’t see any cracks in the pad. The only change from stock is the aftermarket steering wheel, which I’d change back to OEM-spec if it were mine.
The original engine wasn’t exactly powerful, putting out a tepid 90 b.h.p. Still, like so many Alfa products, it made the most of it and delivered fairly respectable performance. This upgraded unit should make the driving experience more lively, even at the expense of originality. The tough call to me is trading the upgraded performance for the provenance of having the correct engine installed. I doubt the next owner will revert back to an engine with a lower power output, but if the rest of the car is as unmolested as the seller claims, an upgraded 1.3L may be the best of both worlds. How would you restore it?
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Comments
A nice fun car and I think the new power plant is a good thing cause if my memory serves me correctly those with the original motor only had about 75 hp so the extra horses is a plus!!
I would leave the 2000 and the Spica. When set up properly these sound wonderful and run real nice. I bet this car ends up selling for a lot more. Such a pretty design. The side view shows many of the styling cues you see in Ferrari of the same period. By the time I took notice to these cars they were out of my reach. At least I owned several Alfa’s in the past to be smitten by the Alfa bug!
There are plenty 1300 GTJuniors in the world, so the engine swap is fine. 1300 Junior sold more than any other Bertone because it was a tax break car in its home market, though not sold new in US, I think, so this is an import. The aftermarket side stripes are a nice late 60s/early 70s touch, indicating that the car hasn´t been on the street since about 1975. Otherwise someone would´ve taken them off for being very deeply uncool.
This is a great car, worth more than twice the current level of bid. It´s fine to upgrade Bertones, but no longer to wreck them in the process, so I´d go gor a stock lok , about 150bhp with suspension and brakes to match.
To see how much you can save by buying a car with good bones see: https://www.italclassic.com/en/alfa-romeo-buyers-guides/alfa-bertone-coupe-buyers-guide/
The good news is that it’s been sitting somewhere (hopefully) dry for 30 years. The bad news is that it apparently had a rough life for its first 13. Take a close look at the rockers and the chassis photos. It need a sill transplant, although the floors don’t look bad..
As stated above, the engine and transmission aren’t really installed, just set in place. Forget about the SPICA injection. The fuel plumbing is considerably more involved than the original. I see a set of Webers coming after a complete engine rebuild. Also, you’ll need a driveshaft and several dozen other parts.
I differ with our host about the interior. Those are the original seats, but they’ll need reupholstery The dash has significant needs. It’s made of pressed board covered with woodgrain vinyl. They are fragile and the “veneer” cracks and stains easily. Those issues are evident, as is the addition of two presumably non-functional vents to the dash top.
It’s about a year or two and $$$$$ away from being a driver. The potential is there, but at the present bid price (which hasn’t reached reserve) the restorer will be underwater unless he can do the work himself and has a garage full of spares already.
@1300GTJunior I hadn´t seen the chassis pics,on the ebay listing and you are right, a lot of work to be done there! Sills and floors, so what we can see is the tip of the iceberg.
The only option here is to strip down and build from scratch, maybe putting it back to the original colour? Or a 67 stepnose in this condition would be a good GTA rep donor for someone.
Everything needs doing but car is complete. I don´t think you´d get a Bertone like this for 10000€ in EU, even though it will cost 3 times that to restore.
Looks like from the engine compartment that it was once a lovely green color but then somebody had to go and spray it red like the always do! Why, why why? Gotta love that serpentine exhaust system also. Not. This could be a nice project for someone if they could get it “cheap”.
There’s something wrong with the picture. Look at the floor under the drive train! No OIL STAIN/DRIPS! I used to own one same year, white and the original engine. It was my chix car when I manged to keep it running! It was a blast to drive and it made beautiful noise as well. I got the car cheap because my friend got tired of it sleeping on the job and major oil drip. The car spent most of the time dripping in my garage and required lots of attention to keep it running! The Alfa was my last experience with Fix It Again Tony/Alfa product for life. I had to let her go after two years-nice knowing you Babe. A H.M.C. car!
P.S. most of my problems were the carb-constant attention and the
Gremlin of Magneti Marelli electric ( could it be son of LUCAS?).
This poor baby is no virgin!. The underside pics show a fair amount of unibody rust thru. Looks like its been picked up with a fork truck under its right side as the rocker area is crushed upward. Fair amount of $$$ here to get into drivable condition. I had a 1300 Junior with the same interior in Germany in 1967-68, courtesy of Uncle Sam’s Army-I loved it!!!!
Thank you Jeff for telling us its located in Colorado
Ended: Apr 24, 2020 , 8:37AM
Current bid:US $8,400.00
Reserve not met
[ 23 bids ]