Alfa Romeo GT Junior (1969)

The Alfa Romeo 105 series is a stunningly beautiful car, introduced in 1962 to replace the 101 series range of compact saloon and performance cars. The 2000 GT Veloce was introduced in 1971 as a direct replacement for the 1750 range in both the European and US markets. Similarly to its predecessor, the most significant change introduced was an increase in engine displacement, this time to 2,000cc and now producing 130hp at 5,500rpm. Despite the increase in power being slight, when combined with the lightweight chassis performance was transformed.

A number of cosmetic improvements were also made including a re-designed front grill assembly and larger rear assemblies. Inside a new instrument cluster could be seen as opposed to the dash installed gauges seen in all earlier cars.

Alfaholics

Alfaholics was originally founded in 1999 by Richard Banks who quickly turned the company into a one stop shop for everything classic Alfa Romeo. Expanding their parts catalogue and improvements to a wider selection as the years went on, Alfaholics then reached global acclaim through the launch of their fully upgraded cars, the ‘GTA-R’, in 2016.

Based on a 105-series Coupé, the GTA-R represents the ultimate evolution of this generation. As the order books would go to show, they caught on quickly and in current times, if you wanted to order a new example, the waiting line will keep you 7 years whilst costing over a quarter of a million pounds.

This example was sourced from the very warm climes of Sicily in 2017 by its former keeper, a passionate mechanical engineer residing in Germany. Hearing of the car to be offered from the estate of a close friend, he visited the barn in which a couple of cars were stored and purchased the Alfa along with a Fiat 500. He made the ambitious decision to drive the car back to Germany in its recently extracted condition; a journey it made under its own steam bar a small pitstop in northern Italy.

Upon returning to Germany, Mr Dibella embarked on what would become a comprehensive restoration. The body was walnut shelled revealing several areas of corrosion and some perforation that had previously been hidden, but almost the norm for these cars. These were addressed using traditional lead-loading techniques where appropriate, before carefully finishing and sanding the repaired sections.

The body was placed in a jig, allowing it to be rotated and held on its side and granting access to the underside of the car. From this new sections of the underbody and floor were welded in where needed.

In 2019 the Alfa was transported over 600 km to Wegberg in Western Germany to a specialist race preparers. There, the bodyshell was reinforced in several critical areas using techniques similar to those employed on period competition Alfas. The roll cage was designed and properly engineered, to be a structural component, contributing to both the rigidity and safety of the car.

Carbon fibre bonnet, boot lid and doors were sourced from Alfa specialist Peter Praller in Munich, after which the entire bodyshell was professionally repainted in midnight blue.

Invoices for suspension components, the wheels, lightweight glazing and many of the other performance parts from Alfaholics total nearly £83,000 and were installed in the build up of the car post paint.

The electrical system was rewired to ensure simplicity and functionality whilst being reliable and as lightweight as possible, using very light modern components wherever appropriate.

The engine, the strengthened gearbox with revised/shorter ratios, and the limited-slip differential were built for me by Peter Praller in Munich. A post build dynograph demonstrates just shy of 200 bhp, or nearly double that of the original output.

Restored with as the interpretation of the ultimate road-going classic Alfa Romeo: this example retains the beauty, character and analogue feel of the original Giulia, while incorporating the weight reduction, chassis rigidity, suspension, drivetrain and braking performance learnings of recent years.

Today presenting on the button, this restored Alfa Romeo GT Junior presents as a superb opportunity as a usable and upgraded example. Accompanied by its history file and documented restoration, this example is available to view at our showrooms outside London immediately, this Alfa is currently European taxes paid.

• Sourced from Sicilian collection in 2017
• Comprehensively restored and fitted with a wealth of upgrades
• Alfaholics invoices totalling £83,000
• Accompanied by its history folio including photographically documented restoration
• Dyno'd at 197bhp
• Available to view at our showrooms immediately
• EU taxes paid