So there I was minding my own business watching yet another Hot Version episode on the Tube of You. Then on came this insert about Keiichi Tsuchiya and his amazing AE86. You know, everything that that car is, and that makes that car great was not created in a day ...or a year. It evolved over decade! Every year the dude would improve the car by just that 10% ...the 10% that onlookers who see the car from year to year struggle to notice. Over decades those 10% hits became huge and yes, soon the car was double as good as it ever was when he got it originally. But every 10% was gained with effort and sometimes tears but this relationship between man and machine continued year after year until the man got his 1:04 car at Tsukuba. But it is not over yet - the man still has plans. Listening to him and watching the sparkle in his eye as he talks about the car, you very much get the feeling that for as long as Keiichi Tsuchiya has his AE86, everything is alright in his world.
I was deeply inspired and immediately decided my '73 Beetle and '97 Z3 were now complete and that I was going to go out and look for the machine that would be by my side for the next 20 or more years. This was to be the one that I will drive last before giving up driving and retiring to some sunny location with no tracks or attractive roads nearby. Unfortunately my country does not have the AE86 and so I had to look elsewhere. This is what I bought:
It is a 1983 Alfa Romeo GTV6 2.5 and the smile on my face could not be bigger!
As you can see from the area around the badges, it needs some restorative work. I am taking it in for fresh paint all around in its current silver. Next will be some interior work. Then the suspension ...I am hoping for an adjustable damper system with shortened harder springs. My template is the following:
I have given myself 2 years for the initial restorative work and mild mods ...given that I really will have to search hard for items like the similar but lower 3.0 front bumper (as pictured above). The only things on that red GTV6 that I will not copy is the color coding of the black trim on the front and rear bumper, as well as the color coding of the trim on the body. It looks good but is a little too modern a touch for my liking. I want the thing to keep looking Vintage! Oh ..and those Recaro seats ..no thanks to those on my car ...I am hoping for vintage racing buckets. One way or the other, if this thing can match the vision in my head, or even the red car above, well, then things are about to be real good around here ...
. And the new wheels ...well, I would happily avoid putting more money into this car and would rather put it in that GTV6. But I like the idea of the potential greater grip that larger offset rears might bring. What do you guys think? Would the spacers at the rear give more grip for less cost?
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