Posts Tagged ‘convertible’

This Or The Cordoba? 1978 Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce

October 17, 2013

While looking around for more obscure vehicles, and trying to sort out a high idle issue with the RustyButTrusty ’77 spider, a nice little 1978 popped up. Even in smog-strangled form, Alfa’s elegant solution of mechanical fuel injection suffered less of a power loss than many competitors. The solution to the safety requirements of the late 1970s was substantially less elegant, but no worse than many competitors. As a result, even the big-bumper series 2 (chopped-tail, non-spoilered) spiders are increasing in price – who know we’d ever see the day? Some good finds are still out there, and that appears to be the case with this 1978 Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce, listed for $2300 near Concord, CA.

1978 Alfa Romeo Spider silver right front

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RustyButTrusty On The Street – Porsche, VW, Ford, Toyota

September 28, 2013

It’s interesting to observe what cars survive on the streets of San Francisco. Some are obvious, like the VW Beetle, which is still an icon associated with the city. Others, like the Porsche 924 and Toyota van, are somewhat unexpected, but if you look at the reasons why, it makes more sense.

You can still find Porsche 924s here and there, being used as daily drivers. Thanks to their well-rust-proofed bodies, they can endure sitting outside, and with their large rear windows they should have good visibility and maneuverability for parking and driving on narrow streets. They’re also powerful enough for the occasional out of town trip, and have decent luggage space should you decide to go away overnight.

Porsche 924

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Blanc et Noir – Pair of 1987 Renault Alliance GTA Convertibles

September 26, 2013

One of the great forgotten hot econo-cars of the late 1980s is the Renault Alliance GTA. Only built for 1 year as AMC Renault’s sales were suffering from a steep decline, it’s often overshadowed by the VW Golf GTI, Toyota Corolla FX16 GT-S and Honda Civic Si in North America, and the Peugeot 205 GTi elsewhere. While the Alliance was down 15hp versus its German competitor, it still performed quite respectably and had a very well-tuned chassis that could pull .89G in the corners, better than most cars of its time. With Ronal alloys, body color grill, sill skirts and mirrors, and lowered suspension, this car epitomizes 1980s performance just as much as the GTI. You can find the white 1987 Renault Alliance GTA convertible for C$3900 in Montreal, QC.

1987 Renault Alliance GTA white right front

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