LAD 777. The Duckett 105 GTV.

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I think it is time to tell some of the story of the car I own,  the super low mileage (9002 miles) highly original,  1974 2000 GTV in Le Mans blue.

This is the car that was advertised for a ransom at CTS 2.5 years ago, I bought it while sitting in the Serengetti in Africa afraid it would be gone by the time I returned home.

My love affair with 105 series Alfas began in 1977 when i was offered a low mileage, 1 owner Series 2, Pine Green 1750 GTV and as a 21 year old how could I resist. I had a great 6 years with the car as a daily driver with the car and subsequently owned several 105 series cars and an Alfa Sud TI.

My attention turned to other brands from the late 1980's but I am back with a vengance.

The car I now own was owned from new by Lyndon Albert Duckett a wealthy bachelor,  part of the  Duckett/White family, Melbournes first hardware merchants. Lyndon was a friend and rival of Lex Davidson and very prominent in the pre war and post war race scene. His TYP 35 Bugatti fitted with the Anzani engine was well known and very competitive.

Lyndon passed away in 2003 and several cars were found in an inner city warehouse, the Alfa was one of those it had just 500 miles on the clock and had never been driven on the road post the day it was delivered but always fully registered with LAD 777 plates. A mechanic periodically had the car on jacks and running the motor.

Graeme Quinn then purchased the car from the estate and drove it for a while before selling to Andrew Murray in WA who subsequently sold it to John Terpu in WA who subsequently sold it to John Borghetti in Sydney and I purchased from CTS who were consigning the car for John.

The car essentially remained as new with a few minor exceptions such as a bit of paint on front RHS guard to fix a large rock thrown at the car by another passing car, a bit of paint to correct bouncing around on the boat for 6 weeks on the way from Italy,  different shocks and springs in 2014 (I guess to lower the car), different wheels and for some strange reason a heap of black rubbish sprayed under the 2 front guards. Also a second exterior mirror fitted.  Interior is 100% original including the carpet which except for 2 cig burns is perfect. No radio ever fitted dash is also fabulous, seats brand new.


My brief with this car was to fix the external paint and make it perfect but keep everything else 100% original even if not in true concourse condition. This car deserves to be maintained with all it's original nuts and bolts no matter what the condition. Some of the suspension has lost it's black paint but that is how it will be staying.

To this end I have so far.......


located original date correct steel wheels and restored to correct paint finish (not the silver normally used but more a motly, grey finish as evident on the original spare wheel still with the car). I still hold hope of finding the actual wheels one day. NOS caps found on E Bay.

located a NOS correct handbook (the only doc missing from the car,  even have original delivery documents), thanks Vin.

located 2 NOS correct rear quarter badges (with curves) as the originals had been mucked with and no longer had green in the serpent. Thanks Italian Job.

Tracked down descendants of Graeme Quinn (thanks facebook) turns out to be Rod Quinn, who many of you will know. The original plates were held on retention at Vic Roads in Graeme's name so I needed the executor to release them to me. I met Rod and he happily passed ownership of the plates to me and hence back to the car.

Today,  after a few phone calls following on from reading through some of the invoices that came with the car I was able to locate the cars original springs and shocks which were removed in 2014. They are still in the then owners garage and upon returning from Europe in a few weeks time he will pack and send to me to further help in my quest to return this car to factory specifications. Super excited at that find as was currently purchasing old springs and chasing original shocks to do the job.

The car has been dry ice blasted underneath and in the engine bay and Monza Motors have removed the engine, gearbox etc to allow for a thorough and extensive under body clean and to reseal several minor oil leaks from seals that have failed...gee I wonder why. I have spent hours after that fine cleaning all areas and the body work looks superb under there now.

The car has been entrusted to Paul Rankin for the paint restoration and I have been doing a lot of the dirty work with prepsol removing all the previously mentioned black rubbish
from under the front guards.

Hopefully the car will be painted prior to Xmas and then carefully re assembled in time for the National in Mornington, it will no doubt be a race against time but one I hopefully win.

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more pics

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and more

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We were hopeful of just rubbing back and repainting as zero rust and only a few small dings all handled by the dent doctor.

Had to remove the non correct passenger side door mirror and weld though

In the end it all had to come off though to ensure my stated aim of paint perfection on the exterior.

The car has a white factory undercoat and we are replicating that too

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Here is where we stand currently,  rubbed back to reveal any low spots and imperfections a couple found but described by Paul and others who work on these cars as utterly amazing, no rust, no accidents apart for the rock strike and is being used as a reference point for future restorations.

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Original GTV owner Lyndon Duckett with Lex Davidson and their cars and Davidson in his Alfa leading Duckett in his Bugatti

[bonno]

Hi Terminator
What an interesting history of this beautifully maintained low mileage Alfa GTV 2000. Coincidently, I also owned a GTV 105 1750 GTV back in the mid 1970's and fell in love with the Alfa Romeo marque from that point on.
Cheers
bonno

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Hi Bonno,

Thanks for the reply.

Your an old fart like me it seems. I have always hoped to find another great series 2 1750 but alas it never happened this is
certainly the next best thing.

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Original paperwork for the purchase

Sale price $6688

Some of the other documents and rego stickers that came with the car.

Running late for the 7500 mile service!!!!

[GTV-074]

Congratulations on the car, it will come up a treat once repainted.

I remember seeing this car for sale at the time and thinking it was a high water mark for a coupe
but we've seen it surpassed. It indeed looked like new.

I tried to buy a Le Mans blue coupe years ago from a customer of ours but she wouldn't sell, always liked the colour.

Be great to see it once its all back together - it will be a stunning car.

Cheers,

Paul.

[McAnnik]

Mr terminator,  You may be interested to know that the orginal steel wheels that were fitted to your car along with the near as new Pirelli tyres,the as new stainless steel nave plates, (hub caps) and the 16 original wheel nuts are alive and well and living in Williamstown. I got them from Graeme Quinn who had removed them  and replaced wth mag wheels and new tyres  when he first owned your car. Another chapter for your interesting story..........Cheers,   Ian

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Well I'll be dammed, wow, wow and wow!!

It was only last week I tracked down the original shocks and springs that had been removed in 2014 by one of the WA owners.

Would you like to assist in returning this car to its rightful condition, I am hoping that is the reason you posted that info here?

Obviously I am very happy to purchase them from you if possible or I have a set of restored ones with NOS caps and near new tyres that may be of interest.

I will cry if I can't return them to the car now that I know they exist!!!

Please call or email me

Clyde. 0419 595813
clyde@the-boyers.biz


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Well today just gets better and better.

I heard from Ian re the tyre/wheel etc.

We are meeting next week with the view to arranging a swap/purchase so the original wheels and tyres can make their way back home.

Awesome!!!

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Congratulations on the car, it will come up a treat once repainted.

I remember seeing this car for sale at the time and thinking it was a high water mark for a coupe
but we've seen it surpassed. It indeed looked like new.

I tried to buy a Le Mans blue coupe years ago from a customer of ours but she wouldn't sell, always liked the colour.

Be great to see it once its all back together - it will be a stunning car.

Cheers,

Paul.

Hi Paul

Yes I was called a raving lunatic by many for paying what I did but how often do you get to buy a car like this...once in a lifetime......and I am pleased to be enhancing it and returning it to it's original state so that it will be a true time warp/preservation car. Given the prices now unlikely to be mucked with again in the future either.

A friend bought the silver/red trim series 2 1750 GTV from CTS recently,  paid well in excess of what I paid and while it is nice it is restored. Preserved cars always carry a premium with me and most collectors now too. There are preserved cars and then preserved cars, this will undoubtably be one of the best,  if not the best.

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I met Paul Rankin from Rankins Panels (the painter of LAD 777) at the Victorian Alfa Spettacolo which incidentaly was a great display of old and new Alfas at a great venue.

Paul told me to get on with cleaning under the front guards so he could proceed to paint, he didn't want prepsol flying over his new shiny paint.

Accordingly this morning it was on with the old clothes and back to work I went.

So far 16 hours, 10 litres or more of prepsol,dozens of rags and brushes and lots of showers have got us to within an hour of finishing. Bugger of a job.

I assumed I would find something nasty under the black, rubberised compound sprayed under both front guards but luckily all I found was perfect panels and almost pristine paint.

No idea why a previous owner chose to paint this on the car, sure wish they hadn't although it has probably helped to preserve the original materials.