AROC East Midlands Section Events 2014

Alfa Romeo Owners Club
East Midlands
Section
Formerly Central & East Midlands
Friday 14 March 2014
This is two tours in fact; in the morning
we will visit the Light Alloy Foundry
(LAF) site on Osmaston Road and the
largest collection of aero engines in the
country, plus a number of vintage cars
from Rolls Royce, Armstrong Sidley
and Napier, followed by a pub lunch,
then in the afternoon it’s off to the
main RR Aero Engine plant for a very
special view of things. Please let John
know asap if you’d like to go.
Wednesday 12 March 2014
We’ve invited the team from our local
AutoGlym franchise along to our
meeting in Thringstone. Armed with
their huge van, there will be a host of
car cleaning and detailing bargains;
polishes, cleaners, waxes and loads
more all at great prices.
TBC in April 2014
Date will be confirmed as soon as CV’s
Brand Manager Paul Jones has details
of the arrival of the amazing new
machine. Three cars are due - we just
don’t know when yet!
All AROC members will be welcome,
please keep an eye on our website.
Below; Leigh Nethercot in the 4C at Geneva last year.
Alfisti is edited and produced by
We gave the Fox Run event a rest last year, though
we really did enjoy it in 2012 when the run went right
across Northamptonshire. This year we will be
navigating across beautiful south Leicestershire,
incorporating so wonderful roads, villages and beauty
spots. We’ve moved it back a week from the date
advertised in January in order to avoid Mothers Day
and to hopefully catch some more spring-like
weather.
Alan Lathwell and I will be finalising the route in
March. Much of it is on our home-turf - roads I’ve
enjoyed since owning my first Alfasud, now many
moons ago!
The basic outline is to meet for a relaxed late
breakfast / coffee at around 9/9.30am at a venue
just being finalised south of Leicester, setting off
after that at intervals, following a route guide, as you
wind across the county enjoying the roads and the
views, and the glorious sunshine that bound to
accompany us. (We hope!) The finishing point will be
at lunchtime in Market Harborough at The Ice Bar
café where we will enjoy a buffet and some extremely
nice Italian ice cream! The venue is owned by a you
and very enthusiastic Alfista called Matthew Yousuf.
Matt has been along to our meetings before, and is a
keen owner of a white MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde.
So, there will be a detailed route guide featuring
simple ‘Tulip’ style instructions - plus sat nav
references too so you cannot get lost! That said, the
event will definitely suit having a navigator on board,
but for singletons we will have a convoy-style element
too.
Giulia dreaming….
On Sunday 6 April
It is important that you pre-book for the run, so
please contact me if you’d like to take part. Car runs
of this sort are normally limited to classic models only
and cost upwards of £75, so ours is an absolute
bargain and it’s open to all Alfa Romeos of course. All
of our Fox Runs have been very much enjoyed to
date, and we are sure this one will go down really well
too. The cost is just being finalised but likely to be
under £10 a head, to include route guide, buffet and
Ice cream but with breakfast extra. So why not get
your Alfa on the road doing what it does best? Drop
me an email now and book in!
So that’s a return of an old favourite - but then on
24 March we’ve something new and very different.
Thanks to Mark Wood’s initiative, we now have a
Dyno-night; an evening where you can run your Alfa
on a rolling road to find out exactly what power and
torque it’s producing. The details are on page 2 - at
time of writing there’s only a couple of spots left so
please let me know asap if you’d like to take part at
FutureMotorsports in Syston.
As you’ll see inside we’ve loads on for this spring
anyway, with still a few things being finalised of
course. For the latest news, as well as our website,
we’re now on Twitter ( @AROCeastmids ), do hook up!
Other Social Media coing very soon too. Meantime I
look forward to actually seeing you of
course! Cheers
John
Inside this edition:
John Griffiths

AROC East Midlands Section Secretary
Tel: 0774 8881317


e-mail: [email protected]

See our website for latest news and more:

www.AROC--UK.COM/EASTMIDS

Alfisti production sponsored by
■ Alfisti Issue 162 ■ March 2014
Autosport Show
MITCAR announced
Jan & Feb Meetings
Our Cars Special
Dyno Night
. . . and more
@AROCeastmids
ALFISTI / EASTMIDS
Free to club members
January Meeting Night
At the George & Dragon, Thringstone.
Our January gathering is normally down a tad on
attendees owing to its proximity to the fabled
New Year Meal, but given it was only 5 days later
this year we were delighted to see around 20
along as usual.
We were particularly honoured by the presence of
El Presidenté, George Cole, who feeling a little
better than he had the week before drove down
from Grantham in his yellow 145 with which he
was reunited in December, He reminded me too
that he had recently steered his son in the
direction of a 156 also found for sale I Grantham.
It turned out to be being sold by none other than
our own Ian Osborne (he of Concourse black 164
fame.) Small world or what!
There was no special feature for this gathering
planned, however I was very chuffed to be
contacted same day by Paul Jones (Brand
Manager at Chris Variava Nottingham) to say that
the new ‘Model Year 2014’ had arrived direct
from Alfa UK and that he would endeavour to
bring it over—and that he did!
Sadly it was rather cold with a touch of drizzle in
the air, however we were able to have a really
good look over it. The new ‘G’ was in the new
colour o Lunar Pearl. Under the car park’s
sodium lamps it wasn’t to easy to appreciate the
subtlety of the colour (in reality a very pale silvery
blue/grey) - and harsh ‘smartphone’ lights just
washed it out. Anyway, he later sent me some
pics of it from the forecourt in daylight and you
can then really appreciate it—it’s very pleasant,
not far removed from the older and still rather
fabulous Nuvola Blue that even in the 1990s was
a £2,000 extra.
On the inside, this model in Exclusive spec (the
new ‘Veloce’) had PILES of standard kit, including
DAB touch-screen radio, electric lumbar support,
refrigerated glovebox, auto lights, wipers and
dimming rear view mirror - heck I’ll stop there as
the list is endless. Externally the new grille and
fog lamps are the only giveaway, other than the
attractive, standard 17” 5-spoke alloys in a pale
gunmetal.
Back inside - you
immediately notice the
new seats that boast
greatly improved side
support and the new
steering wheel with its
silver ‘V’ and higher
quality matt leather rim
and red stitching.
On this particular example
you could also notice the
new trim colour - tobacco
leather with grey microfibre inserts. I’ll describe
it as original and
interesting. Being very fair. The contrast leather
door inserts work a lot better however.
We were unable to do any test runs, given it was
brand spanking new and not remotely run-in,
shame as I’d like to have tried this new 150bhp
version of the 2.0 JTDm2 unit with its monster
280lbs/ft of torque, and to see if what impact the
additional sound proofing has in reality.
What we all did appreciate though is that this is a
subtly updated car that pulls off the great trick of
being a tad different but not making the original
2010 Giulietta seem old. That’s really important
to ‘residuals.’ o f course. The 2014 car certainly
impressed us though and just seeing this car
there on the night certainly swung one person’s
order. More next time on that.
Back inside we had a good natter as ever
covering a raft of topics as usual, and the April
Curborough Sprint Experience in particular, kindly
being co-ordinated by George again. We can’t
wait for that one! John
Photos: Top - some of the Alfas out in the rain
Middle: The ‘new’ Giulietta Paul brought along
Bottom: Who’d have thought a 2.0JTS engine
could look this good? Beautifully presented work
under the bonnet of Christian’s 156 Sportwagon
February Meeting Night
At the George & Dragon, Thringstone.
The G&D has been a great home for
our meetings. It’s sale will hopefully
not mean we have to relocate...
ALFISTI - March 2014 - Issue 162
Various work / family arrangements meant
I couldn’t get to this one - the first Section
gathering I’ve missed in over 18 months.
Alan and Brian more than coped as hosts of
course with the crew who braved the storms.
The biggest surprise though was us
learning a few days before that the George
& Dragon had been put on the market by its
owners. If anyone has a spare £375,000
maybe they could buy it and guarantee it as
our regular home fro some months to come?
Joking apart, we hope that it will remain
open for several months to come, but if for
any reason it is closed early we do have a
number of contingencies—one being
Beedles Lake Golf Club just north of
Leicester, scene of our ‘Classic Car Night’
meetings with the Jaguar Enthusiasts Club.
Anyway, our Dep. Chair. Brian Smith who
lives very locally will keep a close eye on
proceedings with the pub and if we have to
make a move we will make sure all
members are given as much notice as
possible. Sadly it wouldn’t be the first time
we’ve had to move owing to a closure nothing we did I hope! John
DYNO-NIGHT, 24 March
At FutureMotorsports, Syston, Leics
NEW EVENT -
Fancy knowing exactly what power your Alfa Romeo is producing,
and receiving full power and torque printouts? Well now’s your
chance! Courtesy of longstanding Section member Mark Wood we
are off to FutureMotorsports at 44 The Hall Crofts, Syston,
Leicester, LE7
1LD for an
evening using
their advanced
rolling road
system,
capable of
handling
2,500hp, at a
bargain price
of just £30 per
car to include
no less than 3
runs each.
That’s a
substantial
discount on normal prices.
Mark’s good friend Bijal will be there to look after us, and he
will also be able to give advice on tuning and remapping options
for normally aspirated petrol, turbocharged petrol and turbodiesel
cars. It should be a lot of fun too! If you’d like to take part please
send me an email asap to reserve a place. We will be kicking off
from 6.15pm. ‘Spectators’ welcome, followed by pub!! John
AROC East Midlands Section Newsletter
MITCAR 2014 ANNOUNCED !
Rockingham Castle
Sunday 17 August
We’re delighted to announce the venue for
this year’s edition of our Section’s big event.
Rockingham is a remarkable castle. Built on
the instruction of William the Conqueror, it has
been the home of the Watson family for 450
years. Prior to the Watson's ownership the
Castle was held by the crown. There are very
few other homes that have been continuously
occupied for nearly 1,000 years and within that
time been owned by just one family since being
relinquished as a royal Castle. This is
a particularly extraordinary aspect of
Rockingham's long and fascinating story. The
Castle is now home to James Saunders Watson,
his wife, Elizabeth and their children, all of
whom enjoy the Castle as James did as a child.
Our display field, a 5 minute walk from
facilities and perhaps 10 from the castle itself,
is enormous, as you can see from the aerial
photo of an event there here.
Admission has been negotiated to £10 per
car, but that entitles ALL occupants to full
access to the
field, the
gardens AND
the house.
This offers a
substantial
saving to
visitors. To
cover our
organising
costs we will be selling MITCAR windscreen
stickers, which always prove popular.
The event will be advertised in car magazines
including Auto Italia, and directly with a host of
Italian car clubs so we hope to at least equal
last years attendance of around 320 Italian
cars.
As ever, we need YOUR support to make it a
success of course, and everyone who can offer
a couple of hours assistance on the day
directing vehicles, taking gate monies etc will
receive free admission.
There will be the usual awards for best
presented vehicles, including the fabled
‘Camshaft Trophy’ for car of the Day, as well as
awards by public vote.
Dogs will be allowed as long as on a leash
(and cleared up after of course!), and sensible
barbecues allowed (i.e. not on the grass!)
Gates will open from 10.30am. There will be
lots more about MITCAR as the year progresses,
but please put the date in your diary now! John
George Cole, AKA El Presidenté
brings us up to date with his
Alfa fleet.
Some members will recall my 145 Cloverleaf
V765GAN which in a moment of madness I let go
to Kevin Boyle of Darlington back in 2010.
Additional to which he also had my Alfasud
Super. In simple terms this was a consequence
of me acquiring the Terrapin single-seat racer,
which has now gone to new owners in Scotland.
After some negotiation both of the
aforementioned Alfas are back in my possession
and what was my red 145 Cloverleaf has gone to
Darlington to the aforementioned Kevin. (George
has a bit of a history of car swapping! - John)
I am delighted with this situation and 2014 I
very much hope to be on the Sprint tracks again
in ’Custard’.
Unfortunately old age is getting the better of
me and I have not been too well of late. However,
the MSA have forwarded my competition licence
for 2014 and a programme of events will be
worked out. Having dispensed with my trailer I
plan to be competing in modified production
events and will have the luxury of driving to
events, competing, and then driving home with
no hassle.
What of the proposed share in the Van
Diemen? In simple terms, having struggled to
get in I could not get out. Quite unacceptable so
that was a non-event, causing me to sadly
withdraw from the share arrangement.
ALFISTI - March 2014 - Issue 162
Midlands Italian Car Day
returns to Leicestershire
for its 14th edition.
Left - the castle an gardens at sunset. It really is in a beautiful location.
Above - part of the attractive gardens.
Below—the Great Park is used for several shows each year, including a
regular Rolls Royce event, Horse Trials, Land Rover gatherings and more
Mention should be made of Custard’s engine
being in need of attention, of which I was aware
prior to its return to me. A word with Dave Knott
at Alfa specialists IntaServices in Leicester
resulted in a change of main bearings and
additionally an adjustment to the nearside lower
front wishbone which was loose having been
fitted with a wrong bolt. Dave kindly lent me his
147 for a few days. Consequent to this
operation, Custard was transformed and whilst
restricted to 3,000rpm for 600 miles, (just 80 to
go as I write), it is now running as well I
remember it in first ownership. Of course that
cost me a penny or two but Dave is very
reasonable and I was totally satisfied.
Coincidentally, on Christmas Eve I purchased a
nice 156 Veloce on behalf of my son Ian who
lives in Capel St Mary. (Same village as Phil
Gotts, who many people in our Section know.)
The coincidence is that I negotiated it on the
phone not knowing it was owned by Ian Osborne
at Sleaford. (He of black 164 Cloverleaf
Concours car fame—John) It is a small world.
All the best, George
Photos: Top - ‘Custard’ returns
Middle - The Van Diemen Formula Ford which
wasn’t to be.
Bottom - George with his previous 145 QV
STOP PRESS - The above note was from George in early
January, Sadly at time of writing he’s awaiting two operations
in hospital. It goes without saying we all wish him the best
treatment and swiftest of recoveries. John
AROC East Midlands Section Newsletter
AutoSport Show, including the
NEC Birmingham, January
Well here’s a show I hadn’t been to
in about 4 years. When Alan asked
me to go with him as he’d got a pair
of freebie tickets it didn’t take long to
say yes! It’s always a nice distraction
in January.
The show comprises a motor racing
showcase from Autosport; covering
all forms from karts to oval circuit to
touring cars, clubmans series,
classics, single seater formulae right
up to the very latest F1 cars all PLUS
the Performance Car Show, including
various vehicles of that type from
individual owners and
manufacturers. Many car magazines
carry displays too. There’s loads of
traders present as well selling
everything from race overalls and
helmets to books and models, a great
place to spend your Christmas
pennies anyway. (I overloaded on car
cleaning products again!)
Also in the ticket price was
admission to the Live Action Arena.
We were in the 9.30 show, first of the
day, and it was great fun to watch
under the lights and accompanied by
some ’bangin tunes. SKY F1
commentator David Croft and The
Gadget Show’s Pollyanna Woodward
did the presenting in the 4,500
seater arena in front of the UK’s
biggest indoor racetrack.
It started a tad slowly with car
parades (e.g. Autocar’s ’Best Drivers’
Cars and Classic Lotus F1 cars doing
brief tootles, but the, quote,
“adrenaline pumping mixture of high-
octane stunts, wheel-to-wheel racing
and precision driving and with a new
90m projection screen” certainly
kicked in later on. We had tons of
classes in for brief races, started by 3
‘drift cars’ sliding round in formation
then loads of ‘oval’ track racers from
insane grass-track cars with rear
mounted Hayabusa engines pulling
wheelies, to—get this—racing Smart
For-Twos (mad) to deafening V8
BRISCA stock cars. Stunt driver Terry
Grant impressed with his control in
cars too. The show closed with a
small team of stunt motor bike riders
doing ludicrously high jumps over
flame throwers, even doing loops!
Very impressive stuff, then some
rather mad Ford Mondeos, or more
exactly, two fronts half of Mondeos
welded together in a push-me pullyou. At the end of their ‘races’ they
dimmed the lights then spit them in
half to do donuts! (Castors helped
keep the back end up.)
After that ‘adrenaline’ stuff we had
a nice relaxed wander around the
show halls. A few highlights were
Fabrizio Giovanardi’s Alfa 156 Super
Touring car now belonging to John
Pearson who races with HSCC—a
gorgeous version of that racer in its
Selenia colours. Nearby to that a
recently refurbished Fiat 131 rally car
impressed too.
So much to see—I’ll carry on! The
F1 cars all looked splendid (Red ones
best!!); I absolutely loved the Lotus
stand with its various Elise, Exige and
Evoras (V6 Sport Exige in white
please); The mental GTR GT3 racer
looked mighty; great to get close to a
host of new Caterhams too - then a
full-race Porsche 911 GT3 and its
road sibling both looked superb. The
new UK track day funster the Zenos
was launched there too, brainchild of
former Lotus employees the stripped
down 2 seater has 197bhp form its
Ford 2.0, carbon tub and very
attractive styling (you can even have
a windscreen!), all from just £25K.
Must be tons of fun to drive. They
will even sell you a bespoke
enclosed trailer for under 10K to go
with it. It’s great work and they
deserve to succeed.
Into the Performance Car area and
it was Astons, GTRs, Porsches galore,
and the odd Ferrari. Once again as
per Geneva last year I was totally
smitten by the 720bhp Ferrari F12.
That car is stunning in the metal, with
one of the best interiors going I
reckon.
We were also surprised to spot
some AutoItalia flags, and lo and
behold magazine editor Phil Ward
was there too! I’d organised a V6
Alfa photo soot for him on the coming
Tuesday as it happens so it was nice
to chat. He was actually rally sharing
some of the stand with Oakley, the
Italian Supercar modifiers. They had
a ‘bare metal’ Lambo Aventador
(horrid finish—it looked like it was
made of scratched baking tins); plus
a white Ferrari FF. Awesome car but
one of my all-time least favourite
Ferraris. They also had a black 500
Abarth, tuned to 230bhp. (Mad!)
Talking of which, the Abarth stand
was good too, with examples of the
special 595 edition cars, and a rather
stunning deep-plum coloured
convertible, the Maserati edition.
Cream leather and grey Maserati
style alloys giving the game away
there.
The Coy’s auction featured some
nie Italian cars too, notably an
Autodelta Alfetta coupe, a Fulvia and
a Bertone Coupe. Over in the Oval
Circuit room, there were more road
cars strangely. I was utterly delighted
to see one of my favourite supercars
there too. It may have an Audi
derived engine but I love the Gumpert
Apollo with its clamshells and
gullwing doors. One for the lottery.
Got to get me a Gumpert… :0)
Several race drivers and celebs
featured, notably John Surtees OBE
who had quite a feature f his race
cars and bikes, plus Alan McNish and
good old Martin Brundle.
The show seemed pretty busy, and
it was great to go to a car event and
not have to worry about organising
something for a change.
Is it all worth £33 to get in and £10
to park? Well, if you fancy a good
winter car fix I’d have to say yes, but
again this time thanks Alan & Alan’s
mate! John
PHOTOS,
Clockwise from to left:
Martin Brundle signing
autographs;
The superb 156 racer
Commentator David Croft;
Presenter Pollyanna
Woodward;
Newly restored FIAT 131
The ‘Oakley Design’
Lamborghini Aventador. (Not
sure about that finish.)
ALFISTI - March 2014 - Issue 162
AROC East Midlands Section Newsletter
More photos from the show: Top row, L-R; Giant Alfa 158 painting; Acid-trip twin engine
Mondeo; Middle row L-R; 2 Glorious Lotus 72s; The bonkers Gumpert Apollo (love it!);
The crazy stunt bike show; Last season’s Ferrari; delightful Lotus Exige V6 Cup, and
underneath the Abarth 595 ‘Maserati’; The sublime Ferrari F12.
Dave McFarland locates
THE HOLY GRAIL
….A BRAND NEW 3.2 BUSSO V6!!
Dave’s fettling of his splendid 916 GTV V6 is set
for a new high this year. At the end of last year
Dave was able to get hold of a simply amazing
item, a brand spanking new edition of the
awesome 250bhp Busso 24v V6 engine. It was
held by Alfa specialists Shop4Parts. They had
located 14 of these, ordered one straightaway
but when they went back for more the next day
they had all gone, snapped up by a buyer in Italy.
The story goes that once cars drop out of
warranty then the manufacturer has no
obligation to maintain significant volumes of
‘new’ parts - so Alfas old off this valuable stock.
Dave, being the type of guy he is, has had a
terrific time dismantling the engine before
sending the moving components off for
balancing. Once done it will all be carefully
reassembled before its transplant into the silver
GTV. Dave’s current 3.0 unit is a peach, it’s only
done just over 50K, so will be retained. (I really
wouldn’t put it past Dave to have that rebalanced
too!)
Dave’s resisting the temptation to go OTT with
tuning, after all the 250bhp is a fantastically
muscular unit when ‘stock’. Meantime on the car
he’s got hold of a set of adjustable drop links for
the front and am waiting for the rear set then
it's back to Peter Cambridge for set up. More
soon! John
ALFISTI - March 2014 - Issue 162
AROC East Midlands Section Newsletter
Wheels and iron….
I admit to playing on detailing company websites. It’s a
bit sad I know. I love seeing the step by step processes
they go through to make a car absolutely spotless,
buffing out the fine scratches in the paint and generally
making everything perfect. Before and after shots are
amazing. I had a go a few times with our ‘communal’
Multi Directional Polisher than now’s moved to Wales,
but with very limited success. Maybe I lack the patience
on that. Anyway, something I really like is trying out some of the professionally
recommended products, and I have now found a particularly good one.
I always try and keep our Alfas wheels nice an clean, and have used various products over
the years, acidic and non-acidic. I used to use Wonder Wheels a lot, but the AutoGlym
scientists I met at their HQ put me off that - its WAY to liable to damage the paint. Anyway,
I’d sometimes resort to the ‘acidic’ stuff if the wheels every got lots of gritty black deposits
in them. Now it transpires, according to various sites, that these are likely to be ‘iron fall
out’, usually from the disc brakes, but they say it can get on the paintwork from other
things, even being transport on railways when new, as Alfas are nowadays.
Basically, tiny bits of iron can bury their way into lacquer coats on wheels and car
paintwork (bottom of doors in particular) and be vey tricky to shift. The product I’m
recommending here chemically reacts with those, lifting and dissolving them away. Others
are on the market, but this is the readily available low-cost one, and it has a cracking
name: ValetPro DRAGON’S BREATH. Why the name? Well, it absolutely stinks!! One of
the chemicals in it no doubt. You spray it on, agitate with a brush and then wait a short
while, say 5 mins. In that time it changes colour, highlighting all the bits of iron, and then
you wash it all off. I was mightily impressed when using it on our MiTo! Cost is around £11
for 500ml in a trigger
bottle (many
companies have it on
eBay.) You’re not
going to need to use
it much, especially if
you use a wheel
sealant afterwards
and wash the wheels
regularly using a
good cleaner, like
ValetPro Bilberry or
AutoGlym Custom
Wheel Cleaner (acidfree). The finish it
gives is excellent.
John
ALFISTI - March 2014 - Issue 162
More MiTo Mods
Range changes happening soon...
Alfa Romeo is making further tweaks to the range. Both
turbocharged MultiAir petrol cars will get the Twin-Clutch
gearbox alone, the 135bhp version being tweaked to 140bhp
too. The Quadrifoglio Verde will stay with 170bhp but its
acceleration figures will improve thanks to the ‘constant
torque’ allowed by the clever ‘box. A special Launch Edition is
expected too.
Meantime the 1.3 and 1.6 JTDm2s stay with manual ‘boxes,
ditto the 105bhp TwinAir. There’s possibly an even more
powerful version of that coming later in the year too - don’t
rule out 120bhp. John
AROC East Midlands Section Newsletter
AROC East Midlands Section Events 2014
Date
Event
12 March 2014
Monthly Meeting at The George & Dragon in Thringstone
from 7.30pm. Our local AutoGlym franchise will be in attendance with bargains galore!!
14 March 2014
Rolls Royce Heritage Exhibition & Aero Engine Production Tours– Derby
Two tours in fact; in the morning we will visit the Light Alloy Foundry (LAF) site on
Osmaston Road and the largest collection of aero engines in the country, plus a number of
vintage cars from Rolls Royce, Armstrong Sidley and Napier, followed by a pub lunch. In
the afternoon it’s off to the main RR Aero Engine plant for a very special view of things.
Please contact John to check if any spaces remain.
24 March 2014
Dyno-night at FutureMotorsports, 44 The Hall Crofts, Syston
Leicester, LE7 1LD. 3 runs on the rolling road with full print outs of power
for just £30. Contact John to reserve your place. 6.15pm start!! Will last about 3 hours.
TBC April 2014
Alfa 4C launch open day at Chris Variava Nottingham. Date will be announced as
soon as available. Please keep an eye on our website! John will also email out to all local
members as soon as it is known.
6 April 2014
The Fox Run - Breakfast meet up, scenic drive in South/East Leicestershire finishing for
buffet lunch and Italian Ice Cream at The Ice Bar Café in Market Harborough.
9 April 2014
Regular Monthly Meeting at The George & Dragon in Thringstone - from 7pm.
30 April 2014
Curborough Circuit Experience – Thanks to El Presidenté, George Cole, 10 cars from
our Section take on the challenges of this tight and twisting circuit – the Nurburgring of the
Midlands! Price @£55. Contact John Griffiths. (NB all car places taken.)
10 & 11 May
2014
AROC 50th Anniversary Weekend - National Alfa Weekend. BOUGHTON HOUSE near
Kettering will be the ‘park up and polish’ day including model parking and National
Concours d’Elegance. The other day will be track-focussed (circuit TBA) - with special car
parades, track day circuit driving and more. More details in the next edition.
14 May 2014
Monthly Meeting at The George & Dragon in Thringstone - from 7pm
11 June 2014
Fun Concours Night at The George & Dragon in Thringstone - starting at 7pm.
All Alfa Romeos automatically entered and all present do the voting! Stacks of categories
from Shiniest Paint to dirtiest wheels. One not to miss...
29 June 2014
Summertime Classics – with Auto Italia, at Stanford Hall near Lutterworth, Leicestershire.
Incorporates the Italian Car Concours. Great display of Alfas expected.
9 July 2014
Summertime Spin at The George & Dragon in Thringstone - starting at 7pm.
Summer meet up, with a convoy drown around local lanes thrown in.
13 August 2014
Spider Night at The George & Dragon in Thringstone - from 7pm. All Alfas welcome of
course, and we’ll be having a ‘Blag-a-Ride’ too...
17 August 2014
MITCAR 2014 - Midlands Italian Car Day, Rockingham Castle near Corby, LE16 8TH. The
14th edition of our Section's flagship event will be one not to miss! See feature item inside.
Admission to show, gardens and house for all occupants, just £10 per car!
7 September
2014
Leicester Aeroclub Open Day - at Leicester Airport (aka Stoughton Aerodrome), including
air displays, special Alfa display and potential free pleasure flights too!
TBC Sept 2014
Karting Challenge - Will be at an outdoor circuit; more details later in the year.
8 October 2014
Section AGM and Alfa Quiz - at the George & Dragon, Thringstone, from 7.30pm
TBC Oct/Nov
Triumph Motorcycles Tour, Hinckley - Details will be confirmed as soon as new visitors
centre is open.
TBC Nov 2014
Classic Motor Show - NEC Birmingham. AROC stand will again feature some superb
classic Alfa Romeos and possibly something new.
This draft is very much subject to change! Lot’s more will be added!!
AROC East Midlands Section Merchandise
Polo shirts with full colour embroidered logo, in mid or dark blue.
All sizes - Just £15 each.
Fleeces from £25 and Soft-Shell waterproof jackets from £30
Gazetta
News Snippets
CURBOROUGH EXPERIENCE IS FULL . . .
READY FOR TAKE 2?
Our Sprint Experience day at Curborough
circuit sold out in minutes for cars, though
space remains for additional drivers. We
have three people with cars currently on the
reserves list, but we may advertise another
date later in the year giving preference to
those who’ve not been before. If you’re
interested in being either an additional
driver on 30 April OR taking part in another
event later in the year, please let John
know. It’s a wonderful day and a bargain!
EMAIL ADDRESS DETAILS - ARE YOURS UP
TO DATE?
AROC likes to send occasional broadcast
messages, as does John about what’s
happening in our Section, but it is known
that several email addresses held on the
central database are out of date for
members. To correct this, please email
[email protected] with your up to
date details and the team there can get
your information corrected. Could you also
drop a message to John too? Thanks!
ELECTRIC ALFAS? THEY ARE A NO-NO
Fiat/Chrysler boss Sergio Marchionne has
recently stated that electric cars are still
something he doesn’t really consider as a
profitable business. Hybrids will be looked
into, though. Meantime we await Alfa’s big
product announcements in April…
FCA - FIAT CHRYSLER AUTOMOBILES
After the full
acquisition of
Chrysler, the
new company
is called FCA.
Registered in
Holland with
tax domicile in
the UK! The main base will remain in Italy.
Fiat’s investments for 2014 amount to a
total of around 8 billion euros - and a
substantial amount of that coming to Alfa
Romeo and the redevelopment of the
Italian factories. The Chrysler deal is about
a year late, but it’s exciting times ahead.
OTHER MARQUES
What’s more rare than a Ferrari?
A 2013 MG that’s what! In the course of
the year in the UK Ferrari sold 694 examples to MG’s 504. Who’d have guessed?
All items are genuine high quality and an absolute steal at the price.
TO ORDER contact our man Brian Smith at [email protected]
The Small Print: ‘Alfisti’ is published primarily for the enjoyment of members of the Alfa Romeo Owners’ Club East Midlands Section.
Chris Variava Alfa Romeo Nottingham supports the cost of Alfisti’s printed production carried out at cost rate by a Section Member’s company.
Alfa Romeo Owners’ Club UK ltd cannot endorse or recommend services or products advertised in its publications. Any opinions published in
‘Alfisti’ or its sister website are personal ones. Alfa Romeo Owners’ Club Ltd registered Number 01106134. Please contact John Griffiths if you
have any queries about the club or our active local Area Section. See cover for contact details.
ALFISTI - March 2014 - Issue 162
AROC East Midlands Section Newsletter
Fiat Corner - Barchetta - Martin Lindus
Alfa 6C Speciale - Andy Wallington
Andy’s red rocket, complete with Alfa 2.5 Litre V6, has now arrived home
after top coats in glorious Rosso Alfa. His ‘originale’ spoked wheel look
superb next to the shiny paint, and the hump at the leading edge of the
cockpit looks every inch a 1950 Alfa 158!! Magnifico! Andy will now be
commencing
various fettling to
make the machine
road legal - so
‘cycle wings’, lights,
indicators, and
number plates
need to be
attached.
That grille shape is
pure 158 racer
though, so some
metal work is
required there
too….
After several years
in the making it’s
brilliant to see how
close it is now to
completion. Come
on Andy, let’s get it
ready in time for
MITCAR... Go for it!!
156 1.9 JTD 16v Sportwagon Veloce - Rob Galloway
Rob’s not been ever so well lately with an injury, and this has prompted him to
swap his 916 GTV for something a bit easier to get into and out of. After some
searching he’s found this
tidy example of a ’late’ 156.
He spent more than 3
hours looking over the car
before committing to buy.
The car’s previous owner
had treated it to a
professional remap, and it
is giving a proven 181bhp,
which will certainly make it
shift! Rob will of course
enjoy its practical side too,
though these are more
hatch than estate. Great
looking cars...
From and email to John: I’ve enclosed a shot of ‘our’ new Barchetta – Jax
thinks it belongs to her!! It’s a 2001 Ltd Edition Riviera model, one owner from
new and only
40k on the
clock. It has
the quilted red
leather interior
and is metallic
black. A few
minor bits to
sort out but
really good fun
to drive on a
sunny day.
Hopefully she
will qualify for
the next Spider
run?! Martin
GTV 3.0 V6 - Simon Drury (Jason’s brother!)
From and email to John: I have just joined AROC, after buying my GTV. I owned
an AlfaSud 1.5 back in 90's and always wanted a GTV V6, and always knew
that once you have the Alfa Bug then there really is no cure. I was looking for
months and finally found this one in Kent, with only having 64K on the clock by
far the best I ‘d driven. It as
unmarked Blue leather and good
bodywork bar a few bonnet chips.
IT just wants to keep going and as
much as the roar from the V6
Busso engine wants me to keep
pushing it, I do need to keep an
eye on the speed and fuel
consumption. It’ s a joy to drive.
See you at some of the meetings.
Simon
Alfa Romeo 179 - Donington Collection
OK, not strictly a member’s car but one right on our doorstep. I enjoyed a trip
over to the collection before Christmas with my 11 year old nephew and was
impressed by the
F1 machinery as
always, not least
this Alfa that was
’nearly’
successful!
If you’ve recently
seen the superb
movie RUSH
(Hunt v Lauda)
and feel inspired,
why not pop over
to see the place?
John
Giulietta Veloce 2.0JTDm2 Veloce TCT - Keith Krog.
Keith, picture on the right of Alfa Sales exec Richard Chadwick, has succumbed
again to the dark side in the form of this gorgeous red G TCT at Chris Variava. Paul
Jones and the team tracked down this delightful ‘nearly new’ example that has a
great specification including Bose hifi and 18” 5-hole alloys. Keith traded in his
159 ti 1750 TBI which he
really liked, but its
appetite for fuel and
tyres, not to mention its
95,000 miles, meant a
change was necessary.
After an extensive test
drive in Alan Lathwell’s
similar example, with the
instant’ gear shifts it
finally sold him on it.
(Alan describes the drive
as “eye-opening” - that’s
polite for brown-trouser
creating!) Oh, Keith being
Keith, the car features the
great looking rear diffuser
and ‘extra large’ twin
exhausts. It’s a beauty!!
■
- SCOOP! Unusual news from the world of motoring
Car designer shot after Giulietta GTA rendering
(that looks like a ‘Max Power’ Leon.)
Alfisti’s production is kindly sponsored by Chris Variava Alfa Romeo Nottingham
■
Alfisti no.163 out at end of March