Giulia (Type 115) 1962-1993

On 14th May 1990 I became the proud owner of GGO 878X.

I'd been looking for a Spider for some time.  RHD UK cars in decent shape were too expensive for me, so the option of importing a rust-free car from the States was very attractive.  I went so far as to stake a claim on a red car that was already en route, but my inspection when it finally arrived in early May, cleared customs, and made it's way to leafy Surrey, was very disappointing - not all US cars were rust-free!

There was no world-wide web at that time (certainly not available to the public) so searches involved poring over various classic (and non-classic) magazines - Exchange & Mart for example - but I was lucky that the seller of the ropey Spider kindly told me of a couple of cars that were for sale in St. Margarets.  I made the call and spoke to Paul at DTR, made an appointment later that day, and was thrilled to find a perfectly rust-free car waiting for me.

Paul took me for a spin. Kudos to the young lady who nearly fell off her bike as we pulled up to the lights with the top down - whether it was the car or Paul I will never know but one or both clearly had an interesting effect :-D - and (I'm ashamed to say) definitely helped sell it to 22-year-old me!

I immediately paid over the princely sum of £700 deposit on the asking price of £7000, and arranged to collect the car from Steve (the registered keeper at DTR) a day or two later, it having had a few things sorted, and a fresh MOT.  Rusty UK cars were over £10k at the time...

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I'll be adding to the story of my 35-year ownership as and when I can... the fun, the restoration, the maintenance, the car shows and concours wins.  And the pros and cons of the US (Californian) spec, of DVLA, and of LHD.