Questions On My Potential 72 GTV

[cavilry]

First of all, Thank you all very much for the dialogue on all this. I definitely feel/hope that I am prepared for a long road of repairs...the body work was done by the guy, he did the sheetmetal and primered over it. The paint is old but I couldn't fond any bubble spots or any other obvious signs of rust besudes the floorboards.

[GregTV]

Well, I think you need to start somewhere, and that "somewhere" usually means what you can afford. I knew absolutely nothing about Alfa’s before I saw the XM Radio commercial with the GT junior. I fell in love. Sense then I’ve “rebuilt” two GTV's. My first GTV was a pile of rust and junk. I bought it on eBay, drove 12 hours, hooked it to a tow bar and, with sparks and flat tires, I worked my way home. It took more than a year of late nights and weekends out in the garage, way more money that I expected and a million questions for the guys here on the BB. But, I learned enough that when it came time to choose the second GTV I knew what to look for and what to expect. I bought a better car the second time around, and spent a lot less time looking for answers. Of course, I still have a lot to learn but for me, I love the process as much as (sometimes even more than) driving the cars. Like the guys here have mentioned, it’s all in your comfort zone.

All things considered, the GTV you mentioned sounds like a fair price but it’s hard to say without pictures. I would look for solid, rust free body first, worry about the mechanicals second. Good luck, have fun… and keep us posted!

[cavilry]

I spose I should have mentioned that the guy recently rebuilt the heads and the motor has very good compresion and oil pressure, it just has the occasional puff of smoke. And the transmission is decent besides the difficulty of getting it into second gear sometimes. Check back this afternoon for pics too.

[cavilry]

Here they are, whatcha think?

[rockiemosley]

Well, not too bad depending on how bad off the rockers and floors are/were. If it has decent compression and runs, it may be a decent ride. Interior looks reasonable. I like to check things like the lip that holds the gasket under the trunk (boot). If that rusts away then water runs into the trunk and rusts the spare tire well. My rough guess- $3500 to 5k, depending on how well it runs. They all blow a little smoke.

[cavilry]

Thanks rockie! ya, i drove it for about 15 minutes and besides it being a little hard starting when cold (the autochoke stopped working so he retrofitted a manual choke lever that is a little finicky), it drove pretty dang well, it was less squeaky than my 2004 Mazda 3! He said the compression was at around 185 which seemed a little high to me but....
The floorboards were pretty bad but a previous owner had rivoted in some sheet metal. The rockers seemed pretty decent though.
And he has all new gaskets for the boot and doors, i spose i should check under the seal though to see if the lip is super rusty. Overall though, the car doesn't SEEM like it has a whole lotta rust.
$5,500 though...hmmmm

[rockiemosley]

Actually, my estimate could be a little low on second thought. There arent all that many GTVs left. It is possible to fix floors and rockers, or leave as is and have fun with it. Could be a good racecar. How good are you with a MIG? If it runs well and the brakes dont leak, Id say go for it.

[cavilry]

My plan is to keep it as is for a bit and then make it an autocross car for sure and hopefully roadrace it eventually. The master cylinder is new and he reworked the rotors and put in new pads. I know how to weld but have to buy a welder again

[njh1964]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex Purchases like this should be made by the head, not the heart ... and it sounds like the latter is in danger of winning the argument at the moment! Cheers, Alex.

[cavilry]

that is exactly what i was thinking njh. I mean, i am just out of college, starting a new job, and recovering from 4 broken vertebrae and a laundry list of other injuries, I definitely should probably not be buying anything! haha

[gigem75]

X2 on what Roc said, there are a million ways to fix rust but only one way to do it correctly. If you have access to the car run a compression check. Take a ball peen hammer and tap under the car on the floor pans, pull up the carpet. take a magnet and see if it sticks to the rockers and everywhere else. How is the interior. Seats, dashes, and trim can add up to a pretty fair amount. How is the glass? What is the oil pressure when the engine has been completly warmed up and driven briskly for a few miles? I would not attempt this unless I had a shop or large garage to work on it in. You'll need lots of tools, grinders, drill press, air compressor, etc. Never has the saying "the right tool for the job" ever been more appropriate when doing a restore. If you don't it's easy to get discouraged and or make expensive mistakes.
I just finished a GTV and if it moved I replaced it or refurbished it, if it didn't I cleaned it and painted it. I have a folder that is about two inches thick of receipts that I have not had the courage to add up yet. Good luck!

[cavilry]

My fortune cookie earlier tonight read: "You know want you want--go get it." Im taking it as a sign from the alfa gods...
I didnt check the compression myself but like i said, he said it was around 185 and the oil pressure was great. I shouldnt take his word for it maybe, but he is an alfabb member and has been in the alfa world for a while, so I like to think he wouldn't lie.
As far as tools, it is amazing how many times you are working on a car and think, "crud, i need that tool." Luckily I have gone through that with two cars so I THINK i am almost there.

[Damo105]

If you want it, go for it.

Just remember though, there are cheaper hobbies than restoring old Italian sports cars! The car is over 30 years old, so anything that hasn't yet been replaced/fixed/refreshed/cleaned/painted since it was new will eventually need doing.

3 years ago I bought a really nice '74 GTV with 'no rust', a 'strong engine' and $20k worth of receipts from previous owners over a ten year period. It was the best example I'd seen at the time, and I was pretty happy to part with $13500AUD.

And while at the time there was no rust, there is a bit coming through now. And while the engine was strong at the time, it wasn't after it threw a valve guide!

A short list of some of the things I've done to my 'really nice example' GTV since I bought it:

Engine rebuild
Gearbox rebuild
Starter Motor and alternator rebuild
complete brake overhaul including new boosters
rebuilt the carbies
sorting out electrical niggles ($1200)
had all the brightwork professionally polished ($1400)
new tyres
new headlining
a whole bunch of NOS interior trim bits etc
new window regulators
about to replace springs, shocks and bushes.

The list goes on. I haven't totalled up the receipts but I'm sure I've spent $25k on it, and even though it's mechanically almost perfect now, and has a good body with almost concours paint, there are rust bubbles appearing. And that means in a few years I'm up for $10-15k for a bare metal paintjob.

Not meaning to scare you, but these cars can cost a LOT of money!

Before you buy it, decide if you will be happy to drive it as an old banger and put up with crappy paint, worn interior etc. If not, you're up for a bucket of money to restore it.

[gigem75]

Wow, not to highjack, but threw a valve guide! Never heard of that before. Did the guide actually come out of the head all by itself? wow! Now I'm really glad I used that locktite on the guides I hammered into my head. Now that I think about it that might be my problem, guess I'll go to the doc and have that checked out

[daveydog]

So he's asking $5500 and he's an Alfa board member. You're young and just starting out in the world but you've had a smash-up and your back is cracked. I can tell you right now that if you buy this car you'd better be able to do some bending and flexing and crawling underneath it during your ownership or you might just want to walk away from this project. Your talking of buying an old Italian car with your heart, but your head is saying you'd better consult the BB first. Your heart says "Do It!" because it's a very good example of a beautifully designed Bertone coupe and really, who can resist that?
But your resources are small and you will need extra money for the interior and definately to paint the ugly exterior. If you plan on keeping this car for a long time and working on it ($ometime$ a lot) over the years, then yes, by all means buy it and enjoy the experience. You'll definately get lots of looks.
Please though, don't buy the car because you think it's cool and that's it. These cars are cool, really cool, but you'd better have either deep pockets to pay for your mechanic or be able to do the job yourself.
Aw hell, buy it and let the chips fall where they may!