1998 Spider in Washington state........yes 1998

**John M** · #1 (**permalink**) 01-12-2005, 10:22 PM

So who is going to buy this one? $30K. 15k miles. Legal supposedly. The Oklahoma Spider....probably imported by the same guy that had the 166 for sale too awhile back.

The link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...sPageName=WDVW

The description:

I bought my 1998 Alfa Romeo Spider Convertible from a friend of mine who lives in Oklahoma on June 6th of 2003. He is a dual citizen of the United States and Great Britain. He originally bought the car from an American soldier who had been stationed at Ramstein A.F.B. in Germany. This American is believed to be the original owner of the car, and he was transferred to an A.F.B. in England. When he got to England he sold the car to my friend when he received a new overseas assignment from the Air Force. My Friend kept it at his house in England for almost 2 and a half years. On one of his trips back to England he decided to ship the car over to the U.S. and use it over here. He is the one who completed all the legal paperwork that was required to make the car compliant with U.S. Standards. The only modification that he told me about that he needed to have done to bring the car over here was the installation of 5 M.P.H. bumpers front and rear. He had this done at a dealership in the London area. After bringing the car to the states he had it licensed and titled in the state of Oklahoma as a 1998 Alfa Romeo Spider, which is exactly what the car is. This is not an AutoDelta car! I bought the car on June 6th of 2003. When I purchased the car it had 10,500 kilometers on it, about 6500 miles. The original odometer and gauge cluster was all in metric readings. I had him order a new instrument cluster and odometer that had standard measurement units so that I could tell how fast I was going. This new odometer came and was started at zero miles, it currently has approximately 8,357 kilometers on it. When the old odometer was removed it had 15,826 kilometers on it. The total kilometers on the car are approximately 24,183, or about 15,000 miles. The new odometer does read in kilometers, but the speedometer does have a reading for M.P.H. and k.p.h. both, so that at least now you can see how fast you are traveling. There is also a complete shop/technical manual that goes with this car as well. It is a 5 volume set. This will be very useful should you ever need to have any repair work done on the car. I also have some additional spare parts that I have already ordered that will be included with the car as well. The car is licensed here in Washington State and my credit union gave me a loan to buy the car as it is legally titled here and registered with the Washington State Patrol as well. When I got my Washington tags I had to take it in for emissions testing and it passed with flying colors, no problems whatsoever. To my knowledge, and according to friend in the U.S. Customs department, this is the only 1998 Alfa Romeo Spider that is here legally in the U.S. The car was brought into the U.S. through the port of Galveston, TX, and I have the D.O.T. paperwork that shows this. This is a one of a kind automobile that runs and drives great! (Actual VIN number listed below in shipping details....please email me at hilzy2002@yahoo.com with any questions.)

The actual VIN for this vehicle is ZAR91600006046885.

The images:

Best Regards,
John M

BKCowGod · #2 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 12:14 AM

good color... my favorite part: "This is not an AutoDelta car!"

claykilla · #3 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 07:00 AM

Sigh! If I only had the bucks! Well, then there is convincing the wife we really need it.

Regards,
Paul

mrbram77 · #4 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 07:23 AM

30.000 is way to much you can get a decent 98 in europe for about 8 to 10000 euro

sheerace · #5 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 08:16 AM

I'm not sure it is prudent to buy a car from someone who could not figure out how fast he was driving in kilos...

...I've been to Cozza's shop in Florida, anyone want firsthand knowlege of his operation....let me know,...Wally...

Currently
79 Spyder
74 GTV

In past..'67 GT...71 Spyder...71 Montreal....another 74 GTV

81gtv6 · #6 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrbram77

30.000 is way to much you can get a decent 98 in europe for about 8 to 10000 euro

RogerB · #7 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by claykilla

Sigh! If I only had the bucks! Well, then there is convincing the wife we really need it.

Regards,
Paul

RogerB · #8 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ossodiseppia

Not true, Ford Motor company has or had one in Detroit back around 1995.

I emailed the seller to show proof of the EPA and DOT paperwork.

BKCowGod · #9 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RogerB

A 2-seat convertible sportscar is never about "need." It's dessert, not the main course.

**John M** · #10 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 11:07 AM

One thing to note on the price. This car originally sold two or so years ago out of Oklahoma. I remember this car being listed as well as a 166 on Autotrader. The list price then was $30,000.

Best Regards,
John M

RogerB · #11 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BKCowGod

Actually, a few years ago my dad switched daily drivers from his BMW 735 to a Z3 2.5. The Z3 got twice the mileage and in California was eligible for a Low Emissions Vehicle sticker so he could use the carpool lane even when driving solo. It's small, easy to park, and really think to yourself - how often do you need to carry more than one passenger? My Spider is my only car, and about once a month I borrow a diesel Mercedes (which gets about the same mileage - 27/gallon - as the Spider.

So I guess it just depends on your definition of need.

RogerB · #12 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 11:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ossodiseppia

No, silly, not a 1998, but a 1995. I think there was an article about it in Autoweek back in 1995. I'll see if I still have the magazine.

BKCowGod · #13 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 11:46 AM

He needed a safe car that could reliably and comfortably get him 150 miles a day and could get out of the way of traffic. Sure he could have gotten a Honda, but then you're considering a car as an appliance (with worse brakes and transmission than the Z3. All I'm saying is that I think we see "special cars" and immediately think they're useless. Again to use my Spider, how many other rear wheel drive small cars get good milage and have cheap insurance and can be had for less than $5000?

Quote:

Originally Posted by RogerB

Well, if all he "needed" was a small, easy to park, low emissions car with good gas mileage, then the Z3 was overkill.

magista · #14 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 11:55 AM

I've seen this car in the flesh. I have some photos of it from the annual Ferraris on 15th. I did not get to speak to the owner though.

Probably a fun car to drive but I never really liked the GTV and Spider of that era. The front end just doesn't do it and I can't stand the Acura like head lights. Barf. But that's just me.

**AR4me** · #15 (**permalink**) 01-13-2005, 12:13 PM

Quote:

So, your documentation of a 1995 Spider is irrelevant.