There is something about owning and driving an Alfa that is different than other cars.  I’ve owned British and Japanese sports cars, but nothing is like driving an Alfa.  It’s really an emotional thing that’s hard to explain.

The Alfa organization is fantastic about supporting owners and fans, or Alfisti as we are known.  For example, the factory maintains a database of all cars ever made and will share that information with owners.  The man in charge of this effort is Marco Fazio and here is a video where he explains what it means to be an Alfisti.  The last 30 seconds are better than I could ever explain.

I wrote him to find out more about my car and here is the reply

I decided to install IAP’s headlight relay kit.  To get at the wiring, I had to remove the front bumper assembly.  This also gave me the chance to see why one of the rubber tits sticking out front was loose (no good reason, just loose bolt).  While I had the bumper off and lights out, I thought a picture was appropriate.

The kit itself was a waste of time.  The harness wasn’t really designed with a 74 Spider in mind and I wound up pretty much taking the kit apart and just using the parts.  Now the switch on the steering column only carries the relay coil current, not the headlight current.  Separate relays for high and low beams.

Also noticed while I had the bumpers off that the car probably tapped something at one time.  The mounting point for the driver’s side rubber tit showed a little deformation and holds the tit out slightly from the bumper.  I really like to get rid of these bumpers and have a call in to Larry at Alfa Parts Exchange for replacements from a ’71 or earlier.

Now that the seats are done and the car is back home, I lost no time in putting the new wheels and tires on the car.  The old style wheels, called ‘turbina’ by the alfisti, were impossible to clean and not all that attractive to begin with.  The tires that came on the car when I got it were some Michelin Mud & Snow tires of unknown vintage and oversize to boot.

The news wheels came from Alfa Parts Exchange from an unknown donor.  I had them power coated, polished the sombrero hub covers, and ground years of dirt off the lug nuts.  I also replaced the center caps with repros.  Finally, I mounted new Vredestein 165HR14s all around.  165HR14 is the stock tire size and only available from vintage tire shops.

I think it turned out pretty good.

The new seats and carpets are finally done!  After estimating two weeks, Carlos took two months to complete the work, but I think it was worth the wait.  The seats really do look better than new.  What’s more amazing is that they are completely hand crafted from many, many custom cut pieces carefully sown together.

The old seats needed a little work…

The new seats