Car of the month

Car of the month

Welcome to the clubs’ new monthly feature – Car of the month – As you may have read, all are welcome to register their interest in this event and a name will be drawn from the list, and a write up will be done of your car.

June 2024

The member selected for June was Chris Francis and here is Chris’ Alfa story so far.

Alfa Romeo 4C ‘Launch Edition’ in Carrara Matt White – No 318 of 500

I wanted a 4C as soon as Alfa Romeo announced it but being a big bloke, I was worried I might not fit in it so when they officially launched it at the Geneva Motor Show in 2014, I jumped on an EasyJet from Gatwick to go and try it for size. After much persuasion and some terrible attempts at pleading in Italian, the lovely Alfisti people finally got fed up with me pestering them & allowed me to sit in it. Thankfully, my bum didn’t look too big in it, so I decided there & then that “I had to get me one of these!”

Just a little extra and sad note here regarding ‘bodily’ size. I will always remember the dearly departed and much missed John Third recounting to me over a beer from his beloved growler how seeing me turn up at an event in my 4C inspired him to get one because he thought “we’ll if he can fit in it, then so can I!” God bless you John…

No 318 was first registered in May 2014 (I bought it in December 2014 from a dealer in Harrogate with just 750 miles on the clock) & was originally supplied to its first owner from Ripon in Yorkshire (so it’s his name on the matching numbers scale model and other limited accessories rather than mine).

At Brooklands under Concorde G-BBDG

My late dad was car mad and into all sorts of motorsports so that rubbed off on me because I’ve always been a petrolhead having done various motorsports in my younger days and changed cars regularly in the quest for something more challenging to drive!

I came to Alfa’s quite late having my first, a white 3.2L V6 Spider (type 939) back in 2012 to 2014 along with a ‘pimped’ Land Rover Defender 90, both of which I sold as I needed a deposit to buy my house in 2015. I miss both of those cars so much but the 4C is THE best car I’ve ever had!

I’m not knowledgeable about Alfa’s like some of our esteemed members and don’t know a huge amount about the lovely classic/historic models but I enjoy showing off my car because it’s a real head turner and I must admit it’s a summer and show days car really, so I do like it when people take an interest.

It’s only had minor modifications via The Alfa Workshop front suspension geometry kit which I desperately needed after the thing tried to chuck me into the hedge a couple of times soon after I bought it!  I’ve also changed the stock Parrot Asterid Classic stereo head unit which was pretty rubbish and I’ve now got a seven inch flip up touch screen with a wireless reversing camera which is a real must due to the poor rear visibility.

I’ve sprinted it at a couple of demonstration events so I can attest that it is as quick as the performance figures say and playing around with the launch control was good fun. I wrote an article about one event which got published in the October 22 version of Alfa Rome Driver, so I got my 15 minutes of fame!

Ciao for now and see you somewhere soon!
Chris

Hope you all enjoy the article – look out for Julys Car of the Month Selection in a few weeks.

Take care all, Safe driving.
Barb

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May 2024

The member selected for May was Gavin Moffitt and here is Gavins Alfa story so far.

Gavin tells us that his  2022 Giulia Sprint is the second Alfa Romeo that he has owned, having upgraded from a Mito, which he  owned for five and a half years, at the end of 2022.

Gavins Story …

I had decided that I wanted a Giulia in late 2021 and had set myself a target of having the car for my birthday in November the following year – I missed that target by about 4 weeks, so I guess that wasn’t too bad!

The plan was to buy a Veloce & eventually I’d narrowed it down to 2 cars that D Salmons in Colchester had for sale – a Misano Blue Veloce and another in Alfa red (both 2021 cars). The plan was to take a trip to Colchester just after Xmas & decide from there, they both fell within my £30000 budget.

But that all changed on December 22nd when I had a look on the Alfa Romeo website & spotted that Snows in Southampton had listed a new Giulia that afternoon – a 2022 Sprint in Blu Anodizzato that was their demonstrator & was just over 5 months old. I was attracted by the colour as it’s a less popular shade of blue than the Misano or Monte Carlo blue options. Decision made – I immediately pulled out my debit card & paid the £99 reservation fee! A quick trip to Southampton the day after Boxing Day & we’d concluded a deal to trade in the Mito and the Giulia was mine.

I absolutely love how the Giulia looks and drives, its’s such a sweet handling car. I’ve owned a variety of sports cars in the past (including a pair of Honda S2000s), but as a 4-door saloon, the Giulia handles brilliantly.

Whilst the original 200bhp felt great in such a lightweight car, I quickly decided I wanted a bit more oomph, especially as I planned to use the car on track days. So, in the 14 months I’ve owned the car, it has seen a few modifications:

• Celtic Tuning Stage 2 remap.
• Celtic Tuning ZF8 remap.
• DNA Race mode enabled.
• K&N air filter
• Powerflow custom-built stainless-steel exhaust system.
• Tarox Sport Japan brake discs
• Tarox Braided brake hoses
• EBC Yellowstuff brake pads

As a result of all of this, Giada the Giulia (the name of the Instagram account for the car!) now has a little over 335bhp, more than 470Nm torque and a top speed north of 155mph. The Powerflow exhaust gives the car a much more mellow sound, without a headache inducing drone!! Plus, the exhaust note is the only clue that it might be a bit more than a standard 200bhp Sprint. I’ve had the car at Goodwood, Bedford Autodrome & Curborough for track days & loved every second of it.

In my 14 months of ownership, I’ve clocked up just over 19000 miles & every second of it has brought a smile to my face. It’s a car that I just love owning.

Gavin Moffitt
Instagram: @giadathegiulia
Guardian 2042

Thank you, Gavin, for your Alfa story and some great pictures. We look forward to seeing Gaida, And you of course, during the year.  It’s very clear to see that you love your Alfa.

Hope you all enjoy the article – look out for Junes Car of the Month Selection in a few weeks.

Take care all, Safe driving.

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April 2024

The member selected for April was Jacob Green and here is Jacobs Alfa story so far.

Jacob is new to the club and is hoping to join us at a few shows this year. Welcome to the club Jacob we all look forwards to meeting you – and of course your Alfa!

Jacob has a 159 Ti 5-cylinder diesel engine. He became the custodian of the Alfa in 2023 after many years of admiring just how the car looks and knowing that he wanted a 2.4Ti waited until one came up for sale … after a day of pacing with coffee in hand talking myself out of it, I bought the car!

As far as modifications go, Jacob bought the car as He thought it was clean. It mostly needed some respraying and a little bit of love.

Jacob says, “as I have had the car part for maintenance, I have seemed to uncover a different beast, from aftermarket breather pipes, air filters, and I still haven’t got the bottom of how they achieved the turbo flutter!”

In the months that Jacob has owned the car, he has taken it as far as Germany and back driving through 4 countries in one day!  In the future He hopes to take the car to southern Europe, as far as Milan. He has heard there is a great museum there…

Jacob says, “the road is long, but I am looking forward to refurbishing this car to looking near on new and is looking forward to many years in the club. 

Once again Jacob, Welcome to the club and thank you for your article.

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