1976 Alfetta GTAm Project

[Cool Jesus]

Finally, the new year 2012 has ticked over, with time on my hands and a relatively clear calendar I can at long last start the surprise restoration of Mum and Dad's 1976 Alfetta GTAm. I managed to find a clear space at my mate's body shop to be able to work on the car out of the weather. Have spent the last couple of days just striping the car down.
So far at this initial stage;
*I was surprised that the rear parcel shelf was actually covered sheet metal.
*Pulled the doors off, wow there is some weight in them as a complete unit.
*Had a giggle with the boot plastic facia coverings. This model has the fuel tank up against the rear seat, even so Alfa still installed the plastic facia between the rear seat and fuel tank.
I guess it gives standing to Australian bound (RHD) 1.8 Alfetta GT's being retrofitted with the 2 litre. The fuel filler tube hole in the floor (leading to the normally situated tank under the car) was also patched with a piece of metal and rivets.

Edit - replaced the compliance plate photo with an uneditted version. I had edited the prior file, removing the chassis number (for privacy concerns) which was causing some confusion. Number now available for reference.

[Cool Jesus]

One more photo

[aggie57]

Excellent!  Look forward to following this project.

These cars were'nt retrofited with the 2-litre engine though were they?  That's a question, not a statement as my understanding is that they were built like that by the factory. 

[Cool Jesus]

These cars were'nt retrofited with the 2-litre engine though were they?  That's a question, not a statement as my understanding is that they were built like that by the factory. 

The reply I recieved from Marco at Alfa Romeo Automobilismo Storico was that the details for this vehicle corresponded to an Alfa Romeo Alfetta GT 1.8 RHD, manufactured on the 20th February 1976 and sold on the 6th May 1976 to Alfa Romeo Australia. Considering homologation for Bathurst and I've read or heard somewhere that these vehicles were organised in a hurry. Its viable that the cars were then fitted out with the 2 litre SPICA mechanicals (American market) in order to have the 25 required cars in Australia, and have a 2 litre engine by the October race, although the Clemens team managed to get a car on the track in September at Sandown.

I'm still trying to figure out if they were put together at Alfa Romeo in Italy or Australia. I'm leaning towards the cars having been shipped complete and in the rush to get them here the paperwork may have gone astray, hence Marco's reply.

[BradGTV]

im also a fan of mechanical injection.
whats the drivability of the spica system? does it run better than webers?

[aggie57]

These cars were'nt retrofited with the 2-litre engine though were they?  That's a question, not a statement as my understanding is that they were built like that by the factory. 

The reply I recieved from Marco at Alfa Romeo Automobilismo Storico was that the details for this vehicle corresponded to an Alfa Romeo Alfetta GT 1.8 RHD, manufactured on the 20th February 1976 and sold on the 6th May 1976 to Alfa Romeo Australia. Considering homologation for Bathurst and I've read or heard somewhere that these vehicles were organised in a hurry. Its viable that the cars were then fitted out with the 2 litre SPICA mechanicals (American market) in order to have the 25 required cars in Australia, and have a 2 litre engine by the October race, although the Clemens team managed to get a car on the track in September at Sandown.

I'm still trying to figure out if they were put together at Alfa Romeo in Italy or Australia. I'm leaning towards the cars having been shipped complete and in the rush to get them here the paperwork may have gone astray, hence Marco's reply.

Interesting - given that there were no spica cars delivered to Australia and that the fuel tank as fitted was a US market one, predating the similar GTV6 setup by several years, it would be surprising if they were modified here but you never know.  Someone will pipe up with the answer I'm sure.

[Cool Jesus]

im also a fan of mechanical injection.
whats the drivability of the spica system? does it run better than webers?

I'm yet to get to this point in the build, however here's some food for thought. The base for the 105 series GTAm was the 1750 GTV with a SPICA mechanical fuel injection system. SPICA survivied in the USA for well over a decade until Alfa changed car model or EFI was more cost effective. All the reputable literature that I've trawled through (Jim K, AR Bible, Wes Ingram, etc.) sing its praises. It really comes down to how comfortaable you were with servicing the unit or if your local mechanic had any knowledge on it. I believe it is derived from a diesel platform and coverted for petrol use. Fuel injection is the capacity to deliver a proper fuel/air mixture throughout the rev range, so as a standard Wes Ingram states its good for up to arounf 140hp, with minor modifications to the engine. Otherwise you need a guru such as Wes or I think Vince Sharp was another name (going of my dementia there), to tweek the SPICA and its 3D fuel cam to change the fuel map if you are looking at bigger modifcations (such as a track/race car). The yanks have been racing the SPICA for decades and sure, for the average punter it would have been easier and certainly cheaper to throw on a pair of carbs to which any petrol head is more accustomed to.

My project jalopy had been sitting in a yard for almost a year without being touched. I can start another thread on how hard that was! I had to get it across a busy road into my mates workshop, so rather than push it I tried my luck. Got a spare battery that was laying around and it turned over first go. Virtually no brakes, clutch or handbrake made for an interesting 50m dash to.

As a matter of interest I'm looking at modifying the engine per Jim K's recommendations and I will be guided by Wes' (or local guru) as to upgrading the SPICA to cope with the modifications. Of course I'll be able to give a better first hand answer once the unit has been rebuilt. Dad remembers how the only trouble the SPICA gave him was the cold start solenoid which would stick occasionally (that the only electronic device on it too by the way). He was a mechanic in both petrol and diesel so he knew how it worked. Unfortunately it stranded his ledest daughter some 1000kms away on a trip and the local mechanic couldn't understand his instructions to unstick the solenoid, this is when he sold it as he got the sh1ts with always being called out by mum or the kids. He also recalls how he left a Lotus dead in its tracks one day too, so even in standard form it was a rocket which ended up costing him his licence, hahaha.

PS, almost forgot the seond part of the question. Compared to carbutrettors its a mixed bag of reviews that I've come across. However in saying this I would lean towards them being comparable and more efficient than carbs. The tech savvy give the SPICA a thumbs up, however the general populus give it a thumbs down. As mentioned earlier, I'm reading between the lines here and believe that its more a matter of the user not being acquainted with the unit. This isn't anyone's fault other than Alfa Romeo's, as they were so scared of losing their American market to backyarders tweeking the sytem to circumvent emmision requirements that no info left their factory. If anything was to be done to it, even technicians had to send it back to Italy.

[Cool Jesus]

I'd like to add here that I'm looking for these sorts of discussions and input as I'm also writing up a short history on Alfa Romeo and this model Alfetta for when I present the car to Mum and Dad, just so I can get a caveat in writting, that the car is to be bequethed back to me!

If anyone missed it I've included a link to when my search began for Mum and Dad's car below which will give some insight as to why this is occuring;
http://www.alfaclubvic.org.au/forum/index.php?topic=6454.0

[Anthony Sharp]

The cars where delivered in Austraila from the factory with the injected 2L motors, these cars where modified by Alfa before shipping, but Alfas records of production may not show this as the homologation modifactions where done post production either by Alfa or Auto Dalta. The last shipment was delivered on the tarmac at Mascot airport straight out of the back of the plane to there new owners after practice had started under CAMS supervision so that the race cars could run at Sandown, then where returned to Alfa Aust for predelivery.

[aggie57]

The cars where delivered in Austraila from the factory with the injected 2L motors, these cars where modified by Alfa before shipping, but Alfas records of production may not show this as the homologation modifactions where done post production either by Alfa or Auto Dalta. The last shipment was delivered on the tarmac at Mascot airport straight out of the back of the plane to there new owners after practice had started under CAMS supervision so that the race cars could run at Sandown, then where returned to Alfa Aust for predelivery.

Now why didn't we suspect a Sharp would know the answer to this one!

[Alan Hopla]

Sadly I think I can remember the GT AM at Sandown in '76. I can remember staring into the engine bay down in the old pits, of a red Alfetta GT with fuel injection. Thinking to myself how exotic it was, the only other cars I had ever seen it on at that time were F5000's.
Unfortunately this was long before digital cameras and you took hundreds of pictures of everything, at best I might have had a Kodak instamatic with me, but I haven't been able to find any pictures from this meeting yet.
Alan.

[Cool Jesus]

Unfortunately this was long before digital cameras and you took hundreds of pictures of everything, at best I might have had a Kodak instamatic with me, but I haven't been able to find any pictures from this meeting yet.
Alan.

Those photos would be great if you could find them Alan, they'd be great for the book, the thread and the project. Keep searching...
I secretly searched high and low at mum and dad's home for the photo they took of the car being presented by Dad to mum back in the 1980ish without any luck. The wife thinks that they were destroyed when the photo albums were rain damaged one year.

[Cool Jesus]

The cars where delivered in Austraila from the factory with the injected 2L motors, these cars where modified by Alfa before shipping, but Alfas records of production may not show this as the homologation modifactions where done post production either by Alfa or Auto Dalta. The last shipment was delivered on the tarmac at Mascot airport straight out of the back of the plane to there new owners after practice had started under CAMS supervision so that the race cars could run at Sandown, then where returned to Alfa Aust for predelivery.

Anthony, I've come across this also in my research. I believe there was also photos taken of the auspicioius delivery. How did you come across this, I'd like to get actual confiramtion of this having occuring if at all possible before committing it to print. I've been trawling through all sorts of web media for a few months now, along with some Australian news and publication archives without much luck.

[Cool Jesus]

I should also add here, if anybody as after any specific photos while the Alfetta is being stripped, I'd be more than happy to post them for your perusal.

[Enforcer]

I'd like a photo of the boot/fuel tank arrangement please!!

Good luck with the resto, and for keeping us informed. Anything you coem across in relation to the actual race cars would be appreciated as well..

Regds

Bill