Alfa Giulietta 2 Oran Pk 82

Alfa Giulietta 2 Oran Pk 82
Originally uploaded by gtveloce

My 2nd-most popular image on Flickr. Probably because it's a car on a race track, and a race track that has been closed for redevelopment as housing. It's also an Alfa Romeo, an iconic car brand if ever there was one. And a Giulietta, possibly the nicest of the Alfetta line, outside of the GTV.

FWIW it's me in my Giulietta at Oran Park, NSW, Australia in 1982. Nice understeer... It's an Alfa Romeo Owners' Club event, probably a lap dash. If you don't know BP corner then you haven't lived. Basically you come hurtling out of some fast bends, go down into a ditch, come up and go hard left into a long straight. So you've picked up some speed, bottomed and released the suspension and then chucked it left into understeer territory. You can see how the rear wheels remain planted square to the road by the deDion tube and the fronts are trying v. hard to get the car around the bend... and not into the wall.

Mini magic

Can't beat a short wheelbase, FWD and a handbrake...

On VW Golfs, windscreens and cables

Golf no windscreen 80
Originally uploaded by gtveloce

Not an Alfa, but a VW Golf. I like the Series 1, I had 2 of 'em myself, but this one is not one of those. It's seen here somewhere outside of Lithgow, NSW, Australia. Without a windscreen - it wasn't as laminated as we thought. The moral of this story is 'be careful what you wish for'... we (my then girlfriend and I back in 1980 - she owned and was driving the car) were behind a truck on a good road. I said to her something along the lines of 'maybe we shouldn't be so close, it could kick up a stone' just moments before exactly that happened. Ooops. And yes, Golf windscreens were quite difficult to find in 1980, especially in country NSW, but we found one after a bit of a search.

As a postscript, a few months later the Golf broke a throttle cable (it was simply a wire to the carby that passed through a rubber grommet in the firewall and eventually wore down to the metal). Not dramatic, the car just failed to accelerate as desired. (OTOH there's also a throttle return spring that broke on a separate occasion, resulting in the sudden application of full throttle.) Anyway, as the car sat in a driveway I wondered aloud how long clutch cables lasted, given that throttle cables break after a couple of years. Sure enough, the clutch cable broke the next time it was used. So be careful what you say aloud, it may actually happen...

Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA Junior Gr.5 Racing

It starts slow but ends up fast and well done. Shame about the exhaust gases and all but oh well...

BMEP or Weight Transfer, anyone?

I've just put my Brake Mean Effective Pressure calculator online at Google Docs... http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pJDQWs1Qj-Gq7HgSBoeH3Rg

It includes my Weight Transfer calculator as well, but here it is on its own:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pJDQWs1Qj-GqNBA_KCIsydg

Plus I have a Simple Diesel vs Petrol calculator, so you can make sense of why diesel will take you further: http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pJDQWs1Qj-GqOX1xloHwzPw

My Energy Mustknows... collected from all over, these energy facts are as correct as I can make them and are as objective as we can be in comparing different energy sources. Attributed where I can, please let me know if you see better figures. The conclusions you draw are of course your own... http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pJDQWs1Qj-GraqesgS5tfTQ

And of course my 'Energy to make a car' calculation, back-calculated from the retail price in Australia: http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pJDQWs1Qj-GofPn1flSH-bA

Please use with caution, these are not guaranteed to be 100% correct in every way, nor have they been tested by teams of chimps. Anything incorrect or plain silly, let me know...!

Is this the Top Gear test track?

Well, reputedly so. It looks like a classic WWII triangled runway layout to me. Check it out.

Alfa Mi.To: are you ready to play?

The Mi.To - it moves!

Accidents happen

Shame to lose someone who has seemingly had a positive influence lately.. but there you go: Frank Stephenson, 49, the multicultural American who has guided Alfa Romeo's styling department to the triumphs of the 8C Competizione and the Mi.To hatchback, has parted ways with the company.

Top Gear Alfa 147 GTA vs Golf R32 vs Focus RS

Well it's a bit of fun, isn't it?

Interesting look at Notes 8

8 Reasons You'll Love Using IBM Lotus Notes 8

From: elsua, 7 months ago

| View | Upload your own

This is a presentation that details some of the new features from the latest release of Lotus Notes, Notes 8, and which clearly details that it is so much more than just another e-mail client.


SlideShare Link

Probably not the Alfa 159 GTA

But a nice getaway anyway...

Alfa Romeo MI.To

It's small, it's got Italian styling, it's got the Alfa badge. I want one, but please change the "me-too" name!

Alfa 33 vs Alfasud at Pukekohe, NZ

Sud attack in NZ! Close and furious...

RACING ALFA Romeo VELOCE IN CAR.!!! HILL CLIMB RITSONA 2007

What a fine car for a hillclimb...

VW Golf GTI W12-650

Yes, yes, utter waste of resources, time and money. Does nothing to help global warming. Still, kooky fun to watch. It's certainly not new or innovative in concept, either, although the engineer explaining how journalists rather than customers or simple logic could help it into production is a trifle revealing...

1o. Alfa Romeo Road Trip - GTV Autodelta

Yep, that's an engine...

Alfa Romeo 8c Competizione Promo Video

Can't resist... a bit of style, some history... sure, it's an advert (and I'm not even in the market!) and it's a global resource-hogger, but it's also art on wheels. I'm torn between supporting classic design and a strong feeling of environmental doom. Not good.

New word formations from evo mag

OK, I've had enough. Firstly it's "organic" grip vs "mechanical" grip.... huh? Now it's (from evo mag) The new Clio would feel more involving if it had some of the old car’s organic mechanical weighting.


OK, I think when a car mag says "organic" anything they mean "we really don't know what the heck it is but we believe it's different somehow". So despite the fact that tyres sit squarely (or not) upon the road purely by mechanical means, and derive grip by mechanical action between rubber and road, they mean to say that somehow something else is going on that they can't figure out. That somehow the tyres are better than the car's suspension and are providing extra grip that the suspension alone couldn't provide. Of course a suspension in isolation produces no grip at all, as it only does so through the tyres... yet somehow they need to say that some of this grip is being delivered generously by the tyres alone, despite the car's best intentions. So they call this magical mystical extra quality "organic". The car's crap, but the tyres are great. Why don't they say that instead?

And now evo has evolved "organic mechanical weighting". Hmmm. So what, I ask, could "in-organic" mechanical weighting be?? Why not just "weighting" or steering feel?

More on the 8C

Some pics and words on the top-of-the-range-and-then-some Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione from evo mag. OK, it's fast, it's beautiful and it will do the job of luring eyes to the marque. Will it lead you to buy a 159? I guess it won't hurt, but it's a long way from an Alfasud. Personally I'd be more excited - and happier to own - a nuovo Alfa 1.5 Sprint. Pleeeeease!

Top 10 engines? All gasoline? Wha??

It's silly, but here it is: Ward's Top 10 engines of 2007. Of course they mean power, smoothness, technical prowess, advancement of the art... but they do seem stuck on petrol as a fuel source. Electric motors produce more torque, instantly, but they don't look as fancy or sound so nice, do they? Or is that something we've only learned to like in the last 100 years or so? Anyway the "rules" preclude anything not installed in a US-spec car, blah blah blah.

The legal lemon meter

For you US citizens with an unreliable car that is driving you nuts.. but you aren't sure where you stand legally - well the Lemon Justice lemon meter is a for-profit site that offers a free "not yet" or "yes" action appraisal under each state's lemon law. I can't - and won't - vouch for its accuracy but I have tried it and it seems to be offering a useful inital service. Check it out yourself. Interesting idea, anyway!

The Ugly Stick hits hard

Boy, aren't some show cars ugly. Whilst I can see what they are getting at, this Hyundai Hellion is Hell on wheels, surely?

Taking the Alfa for a spin

Well not literally. I mean go for a drive. It needs a run, an Italian tune. To be honest I'd enjoy it - the musical sound of it, the harsh ride of those Bilsteins and the general 'drive me' feel that comes over me when I sit in that Italian wood, leather and plastic cockpit. But I do fuss about and worry about greenhouse gases. It's our modern struggle. Do I lash out and enjoy what we (as a society) have earned by our earnest endeavours, or do I walk to the shops instead?

Maybe I'll do both - and then plant a tree just in case.

Alfa 8c at Paris Show

It's beautiful, if wrong. What can we do? The Alfa 8c won't make the world a better, cleaner or safer place but I still admire it. From the carconnection.com:
Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione 2008 Alfa Romeo 8C CompetizioneBig news! Alfa Romeo is returning to the USA. Well, sort of. The Italian firm used the Paris Motor Show to unveil the production version of its 8C Competizione, an ultra-exclusive supercar limited to just 500 units globally. A handful of those are expected to find their way to America. The 8C first debuted as a concept car in 2003, and road-ready trim features a 4.7-liter V-8 delivering 450 hp. Production starts next summer at stablemate Maserati's new factory in Modena, and the first cars will delivered in the autumn. It will cost around $150,000, is only available in left-hand drive and orders will be handled centrally by Alfa HQ. "The 8C is being offered in limited numbers to encourage buyers to personalize their vehicles," said a spokesman. "This is a trend which harks back to Alfa's heritage as a fledgling company nearly 100 years ago. Then it just sold rolling chassis, allowing customers to create their own body styles with the help of bespoke coachbuilders." Interior detailing is one area where owners can make their car unique. However, the spokesman hinted the 500-car limit might be flexible. "I see no reason why more might not be offered if there's demand," he added.

The 116 GTV

Well, it's still starting. As you'd hope. It's been registered for its 24th consecutive year; and as the weather warms up it starts without choke. Just 2 pumps of the pedal to prime the twin carbies and off she goes, first turn of the key. A bit rich, but that's OK. Too lean can burn the valves, although those sodium filled valves can take a bit of heat. Nothing to report. I looked underneath - thought I saw a drip the other day but it hasn't dripped again. So how's your Alfa?

As an Alfa owner, Suzukis I could own

OK, I've owned 3 Alfas... my current GTV, a 33ti and a Giulietta 1.8. The GTV is the most fun you can have in a 24 year old car. But I have also had 2 Suzuki Swift Gtis... the first series and the 2nd. The 1st handled like a go-kart and the 2nd was prettier but softer.

Anyway, here are 2 Suzis I'd consider owning... the lowered, souped up turbo SX4 and and the 1.6 Swift Sport. If we are going to exploit the world's resources and risk catastrophic climate change let's do it in small cars, manage the risk, and make them fun to drive.

GTV6 at Spa

OK, can't resist mentioning this video of an Alfa GTV6 on the track at Spa...

Alfa 75 V6. 5 laps on Laguna Seca

Alfa 75 V6. 5 laps on Laguna Seca

Can't resist... in car at Laguna Seca... V6 75 catches NSX and 2 WRXes

Top Gear Alfa 147 GTA Autodelta

Top Gear Alfa 147 GTA Autodelta

Speaking of 147s, how about a GTA?

147 replacement in 2008?

It's suggested that the 147 hatch will be replaced by the 149 in 2008... the initial photoshopped images look smoother, rounder than the 147. It is also said to be a 'MINI-killer'. We shall see.