1300 gtaj stradale

gtaj · #1 (**permalink**) 08-08-2005, 09:56 PM

a few pics of my car (taken this evening). i'll have to push it out and get some of the front...

i can't get my mac to talk to the board so were going the long way around:

gtaj · #2 (**permalink**) 08-09-2005, 08:50 PM

heres some more about my car. i bought it in 1991 from the (in)famous steve forristall in houston who brought it over from the uk where it was owned by jon dooley. i also got the serial number (776066) confirmed by alfa and where it was orginally sold - nothing noteworthy.

shortly after i got it i sent it to michigan to have it stripped painted and mechanically rebuilt. its correct 1300 gta with 45dcoe webers and original gtaj-only airbox. one thing i think is so great about alfa and autodelta was their willingness to make up parts unique to a small run of cars. its great if youve got the parts, very tough if you dont and are looking for them.

a couple of years later jack beck rebuilt the suspension and added adjustable upper arms. i believe that its one of the most correct original street juniors in the world. it has a numbered block, mag bell housing, close ration gearbox and no sliding block rear end. the rear diff housing was cast with a flat back end in anticipation of being machined to fit a slider but never done. ive never seen another like it. it has never been seriously wrecked and has i think all original panels except for some work that was done to the right front headlight area when it was repainted. you can tell that incidently by looking inside the trunk rain gutter directly below the rear window. all gtas have their serial number stamped there and also on the side of the trunk lid in the middle of the drivers side. if those numbers arent there its been replaced.

for several years after i got the car i was pretty fired up about gtas and put up the late and great (if i do say so) gta homepage. after i moved to houston i never got it going again. i have accumulated a ton of gta materials, particularly photos i received from people and that i took and a couple registers (tony andraiessens and anders ericssons) but they havent been updated for several years. i spent some time with tony at his home in belgium and got a grand tour of the collections of several of his gta buddies.

i love the look of the street juniors. others cant understand why anyone would want a street gta and not a racer. i say whatever.

PSk · #3 (**permalink**) 08-09-2005, 09:14 PM

Looks very original

.

Pete

PSk · #4 (**permalink**) 08-09-2005, 09:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gtaj

... you can tell that incidently by looking inside the trunk rain gutter directly below the rear window. all gtas have their serial number stamped there and also on the side of the trunk lid in the middle of the drivers side. if those numbers arent there its been replaced.

gtaj · #5 (**permalink**) 08-09-2005, 09:26 PM

ive seen many that way (with the number on the trunk) typically the last 3 digits.

gtaj

Andrew M · #6 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 02:09 AM

The number in the drain channel is a body type number ie. GTA has 10532
(LHD) or 10502/A (RHD). The bonnet(trunk) lid is also stamped with the last three digits. I might add not always with the right ones! I once owned a GTA where the actual chassis number ended in 547 and the stamping on the trunk lid was 549! It would seem that this error happened on the assembly line as there is practically no other chance for panels so close in production to end up on the wrong car, or the man on the assembly line grabbed the wrong stamp? Too much Chianti at lunch perhaps.

By the way my own GTA Junior is chassis 776 043 which is not too far away from the number of the one on this thread, especially as not all numbers were manufactured. With the RHD GTA's there were only two cars made between chassis 752547 and 752561, yet there are 13 in theory. I believe that the GTA juniors were very similar in this respect with chassis numbers and actual build numbers.

Cheers
Andrew

emr5503 · #7 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 06:20 AM

You mention GTAjr only air box. My GTA (non corsa) has the same set up as pictured. Am I missing something?
Thanks,
Ed

turbolarespider · #8 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 06:27 AM

Ok, so one of these days, we need to get the only two street GTA Jrs in the US together. The other one remains here in Michigan, and is one of the most amazing cars to drive.

Couple of notes from listening to John- if you ever plan to track or autocross the car, dump the bellhousing. It will crack sooner than later. For that matter, John grendaded an aluminum bellhousing last year, which almost took out the close raito box- most of the gears survived. The trans tunnel did not...

I know John plans on rebuilding the 1300 some day, but a warmed over 1750 was a very inexpensive drop in for him, and it continues that way today.

One of the cars I would love to have.

Eric

**italcarguy** · #9 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 08:24 AM

There is a third amazingly original GTA Jr. here in So Cal. owned by John Thompson. It's a beautiful unmolested stradale. I know of another very low milage one with no bumpers in Colorado. The Colorado car was for sale a couple years ago. I am not sure if it sold or not.

turbolarespider · #10 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 08:31 AM

How can we talk them all to go to the same event? That would be rather cool.

I didn't know John had a GTA Jr... wow, I know his GTV.

If you find that Colorado car, PM me!

E-

series1gtv · #11 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 12:58 PM

Would you GTA owners mind posting a few pics always GREAT to see these cars!

gtaj · #12 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 03:13 PM

wasnt that hugh tompkins car previous to thompson? i met hugh a coupel of times - great guy. i think hes been active in vintage racing on the east coast...some variant of the gt, cant remember exactly what. i'll dig up the serial number later and post it.

**italcarguy** · #13 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 03:32 PM

Hugh Tompkins has a white with red nose GTA Jr. race car. I do not know if it's a converted stradale or a corsa version. John Thompson bought his car about 4-5 years ago from somewhere in Georgia or South Carolina. His car is a bone stock stradale.

gtaj · #14 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 09:08 PM

yeah but this was before hugh bought the racer. he had a street car but quickly got tired of it.
is thompson's chassis number 776106?

gtaj · #15 (**permalink**) 08-10-2005, 09:10 PM

no i can't confirm that. based on the parts catalogs of both the 1600 and 1300 gta i think its a 10532 part number - 1600 gta. but hey ive been wrong before...