One under restoration

Classic Alfa specialist Peter Smart reckons he’s “always fancied racing a Giulia TI Super”, but the chance to build a replica came by accident. “I didn’t go looking for this car,” he says. “It came to me more than anything and it made sense to race it because it is a relatively easy base on which to build.”

This early ’70s car, originally a Super with 40mm downdraught Webers rather than the TI’s 45s, was imported from Cyprus four years ago where it had spent its entire life. The right-hand-drive shell, which came without an engine, had already been largely stripped. It’s been a side project at Peter Smart Classic Alfas for the past couple of years.

“The shell was in good shape, but we took it back to bare metal,” says Smart. “Every nut and bolt is more or less new.”

Smart has built up an engine with Cosworth pistons and Carrillo conrods, which he is hoping will have about 155bhp.

The car now has a Giulia 1300 gearbox for its shorter fifth gear and is fitted with a limited-slip differential. That’s a non-period modification allowed for the Historic Racing Drivers’ Club’s TC63 series. Smart intends to compete in this series rather than in the Historic Sports Car Club, because more overt specials such as the Lotus Cortina aren’t eligible.

One part remains on the to-do list, however: Smart has yet to source an original lightweight TI Super grille. “I’ve made one, which people have said looks good,” he says. “But it’s not quite the exact grille with which I want to finish off the car.”

Peter Smart Classic Alfas, Milton Abbas, Dorset. Tel: 01258 268130
thamesmotorcompany.co.uk