Giulia (Type 105) 1962-1993

I bought a Series 1 Alfa Spider 1750 Veloce in 2025. It looked perfect...freshly restored and imported from Johannesburg where it had been delivered in 1969. I had owned a Spider (Series 2, 2000) in Germany many years ago, so I kind of knew what I was buying, but it didn't run well so I thought "I'll just trailer it to Ramesh at Super Engineering in Welwyn Garden City...he'll get it working in a jiffy!"

Ramesh Bharadia and I have history. Fifty years ago when he worked as a junior for Alfa UK, he used to help service my Dad's new Montreal and my Mum's 1750 GTV. We were an Alfa family.

So when I built a Porsche 356 Speedster replica, he seemed like the obvious person to maintain it even though there wasn't anything Alfa about it. A great mechanic is a great mechanic, and in my travels all over Europe in it, thanks to Ramesh, it never once let me down.

So, back to the Spider. He took a look at it and approved. It was indeed that rare thing, a rust-free, pretty well original and almost un-welded, Alfa. Then he took a closer look, and started seeing things that weren't so good. Every time he saw something like that, he was naturally curious so he dug deeper...eventually the engine and gearbox was out and in pieces.

He came to the conclusion that the car had been badly rebuilt in South Africa, so it had to all come apart and be done properly. Even the tyres were the wrong size. Feeling embarrassed by my hubris, I said "Go ahead".  So he kept what he could (not much in the end) and began to build me a proper, reliable car I could take on my annual road trip around Europe. That was my brief.

The work couldn't start straight away because there were other cars ahead of mine in the queue. Ramesh doesn't have a big workshop full of people...it's really him and his son Kavin and sometimes Mario. Super Engineering in Welwyn is usually full of Montreals. He's one of the few people who can get the complex quad-cam V8 humming sweetly. But when he started on mine, the work went smoothly. 

Sadly the original block was corroded and had to be replaced. The crankshaft was reground, but a lot of the rest was just too far gone to be really trustworthy. He recommended some sensible upgrades, so he got me a S3 radiator, electronic ignition and a new loom for instance. 

Since he had discovered so many horrors in the engine, the gearbox had to come apart too. He fitted several new gears and all had new bearings and synchromeshes. While we were at it, he replaced the exhaust, brakes, starter motor, a lot of suspension parts, some steering items and a huge list of minor bits and pieces, any of which could have caused the early end of a road trip. Luckily Ramesh is very thorough, painstaking and conscientious. Corners were not cut. Flat washers were not fitted if spring washers were intended.

Happy was the day when I caught the train to Welwyn. Ramesh met meat the station and as we drove to Super Engineering's premises, he gave me a serious talk on how I was to run in the Spider. My plan was to drive to Alfristi friends in Loddiswell, Devon, stay overnight, and return the next day. That would be around 500 miles. It was ambitious in what was in effect, a brand new car.

And that is exactly what happened. I drove as instructed, and there were no strange noises or burning smells...it was all as promised. There were a lot of thumbs up from appreciative motorists who knew motoring aristocracy when they see it. In Devon, Adrian and Ali made cooing noises and we toasted "TUJ" with Devon bubbly.

The return was equally uneventful. Ramesh was waiting for me at his workshop door and re-torqued the head and changed the oil. A slight adjustment of the carbs (beautifully rebuilt by Kavin), and I was good to go. So off I went to Portsmouth.

I love the overnight ferry to Caen. It's weird, but I don't quite believe I'm in France if I dive through the tunnel. It's as if I need to see England receding and France approaching with my own eyes to actually believe it. Or maybe it's just nostalgia for childhood family holidays on the continent. 

Anyway, I slept well in the generous cabin and by 7 o'clock I was speeding south along the tediously straight roads of Normandy, roof up. It was late September and the morning sky was dark grey, and the heater was on. After enduring for years the paltry heat output of what Porsche amusingly called "Heizung", I had emphasised to Ramesh the importance of getting the heater in the Alfa working properly. Of course, like everything else it had to come apart and several things put right, and now it was blasting away...in fact I had to turn it down.

After a full day of uninspiring roads I stopped overnight in Poitiers and drove on the next day to  Angoulême, a walled town famous for its annual classic car race around the ramparts. I had missed it by a week or so. Never mind, the comic book museum was open, and Caroline, my friend from looooong ago and now honorary French lady, was there to meet me. Together we caught up on recent events and gasped at the beautiful illustrations in the really stunning museum.

Fond farewells, and onwards, southwards!

I won't go into a detailed account of every day, but as I gradually made my way through France the temperature rose, and by day 5 it was 17 degrees, so off came the roof. This was 28th September, and it was very pleasant, cruising along, feeling the Alfa loosening up, smelling the French countryside, playing my own soundtrack in my head. 

Talking of which, I had opted not to fit a sound system. The dashboard still sported the "Pininfarina" logo instead, and I'm keeping it. I may fit a hidden system at some point, but the superb twin-cam sounds so lovely, it's a shame not to enjoy it.

I passed through many lovely places en route to Montpellier. Sarlat-le-Canèda, Rocamadour, the stunning Millau viaduct, and the trip was so far proving to be all I hoped.

I stopped off in Montpellier and then headed east to Arles, where I did a walking tour in the footsteps off Vincent Van Gough...I needed the exercise. Enjoying the sun and the warmth, I threaded my way through the stunning Gorge du Verdon as I headed east to Italy.

I avoided the crowded resorts and  stopped off in Sanremo, just inside Italy. It's a nice old town. The next day I stayed in Genoa, an impressive port with huge cruise liners and loads of restaurants. The hotel I booked was pretty nice, and just around the corner from a self-serve car was, so I treated my Spider to a wash and brush up ready for the Alfa Romeo Museum.

Just outside Milan is probably one of the best marque museums outside the Mercedes Museum in Munich. It's beautiful, and crammed with Alfa gems and curiosities. I spent a lot of time there, and bought a lovely warm sweatshirt in the museum shop...I had the Alps ahead of me, and it was October.

I pushed north, basking in the sun around Lake Como and then tackling the Stelvio Pass early one morning before the camper vans got going. I needn't have rushed because it was deserted this late in the season. It's every bit as great as its reputation...a challenging drive. But at the top you get snow and some wonderful views. Once again I was grateful for the superb heater.

As you head north from the Stelvio Pass, you're taken in and out of Switzerland and Austria...you're never quite sure which country you're in, but when I stopped for  som coffee and "Zwetschkentorte" (plum cake) I was pretty sure it was Austria.

As I headed north the weather deteriorated, so by the time I reached Freudenstadt at the southern en of the B500 Black Forest High Road, it was tipping down. I stopped for yet more "Kuchen" and pushed on to Mainz, where I stopped and visited the Gutenberg Museum. They have two original Gutenberg bibles on display there...amazingly lovely and a technical masterpiece...talking of which, the Alfa handled the wet perfectly and was just getting better and better the more miles I put on her.

I visited old friends in Dortmund and then headed west to Brussels and more old friends. Entering the city I noticed an unpleasant grinding sound from up front...not good. I spent an anxious night wondering if I had forgotten to top up the oil (the 105 series engines are surprisingly thirsty). So first thing I arranged a tow to the garage my friends use. They poked around and said it was just a knackered alternator...ironically one of the few parts Ramesh had not replaced. It would get me home, so I topped up the oil, ignored the noisy alternator and headed to Caen and the ferry home.

I left France in blazing sunshine after over 4,000kms, 17 days and six countries. I posted my days and route using Polarsteps, and ordered a book of my adventure using the pictures I had uploaded. When I arrived home the new alternator was waiting for me, sent by Ramesh, so whilst my laundry was on, I fitted it. 

What a great trip...can't wait for the road trip in 2026!