Long-term relationship

1969 ALFA ROMEO SPIDER VELOCE SAM CHICK

IT WAS CLEAR from the outset that for me to buy this car was ridiculous As a young man I deeply admired cars ‘of a certain age ’ but knew nothing of the craft and engineering that brought them into existence A lack of money also meant I didn’t learn to drive until my early 20s, and I lived in central London with no parking and no mechanic contacts; therefore, despite my eventual profession as an automotive photographer, I was a late adopter

Despite these severe shortcomings, I didn’t hesitate when, in 1993, a colleague asked if I was interested in buying his old Alfa ‘It’s the Dustin Hoffman one, but silver – you know the film? Left-hand-drive Veloce, so a bit exotic’ I interrupted the words osso di seppia with an abrupt ‘ yes ’ I’m not sure I even asked about provenance, condition or price, but a brief visit to a run-down Acton garage ensued where we shook hands, cleared an outstanding repair bill as payment and I drove away my (mostly) silver 1969 Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce 1750

I bought this car because of my deep love of film: in this case Mike Nichols’ coming-of-age movie The Graduate It was a movie star, born in the Pininfarina studios to a Simon & Garfunkel soundtrack What could possibly go wrong?

It turned out that pretty much everything didn’t work, including the petrol gauge Like Benjamin Braddock in the film, I came to a dead halt, except that I wasn’t in California but in Knightsbridge during the evening rush hour Patched and quickly repainted, the Spider proved to have heavy steering (perhaps due to the sheer weight of filler), shuddered fearfully on acceleration and was slightly alarming at speed But it coped as a burdensome daily driver and was stored for a spell until the winter of 1997, when my life took a dramatic twist Returning from the US with career burn-out and nowhere to live, I threw a toothbrush in the Alfa and escaped to the warmth of southern Europe A few weeks became a few years on the road, criss-crossing Europe from

Right, below and opposite Considering its reliability, the Alfa was a bold choice for snapper Chick’s wedding car; career burn-out in 1997 prompted Alfa Romeo and owner to take an extended Grand Tour of Europe country to country, friend to friend and job to job I slept on sofas, in the car, in hostels and the occasional palazzo or château

Joined on this grand tour by friends – most notably a dear American for a formative back-road tour across the Alps and on to Tuscany – the Spider morphed into a close companion It eventually starred in my own marriage scene, driving my wife away from a Somerset chapel –albeit with radiator trouble – to our honeymoon But then, as family and responsibility took over, the car was neglected for many years Restoration was constantly stalled by house repairs, financial crises and the pandemic, but my wife, as wise as she is generous, would always defend the little Alfa and declare it was not to be sold

After many false starts, a chance meeting with a bloke in our local pub has now seen the first glimmer of hope for my Alfa in a decade After much pointing, teeth-sucking and muttering, it has been declared worthy, if not financially viable, of restoration by the wonderful Ian Turner and his team at turnerclassicscouk

Buying this car was ridiculous but, as the filler and paint are stripped away, its next journey has started and Tom Wolfe’s alluring evocation of the automobile comes to mind: ‘Freedom, style, sex, power, motion, colour –everything is right there’

OCTANE’S FLEET

These are the cars – and motorbikes – run by the magazine’s staff and contributors

ROBERT COUCHER

International editor

● 1955 Jaguar XK140

Andrew English

Contributor

● 1962 Norton Dominator

● 1965 Aston Martin DB5

● 1967 Triumph GT6

Glen Waddington

Associate editor

● 1989 BMW 320i Convertible

● 1999 Porsche Boxster

Sanjay Seetanah

Advertising director

● 1981 BMW 323i Top Cabrio

● 1998 Aston Martin DB7 Volante

Mark Dixon

Deputy editor

● 1927 Alvis 12/50

● 1927 Ford Model T pick-up

● 1942 Fordson Model N tractor

● 1955 Land Rover Series I 107in

● 1966 Ford Mustang 289

James Elliott

Editor-in-chief

● 1965 Triumph 2 5 PI

● 1968 Jensen Interceptor

● 1969 Lotus Elan S4

Robert Hefferon

Art editor

● 2004 BMW Z4 3 0i

John Simister

Contributor

● 1960 Singer Gazelle conv

● 1961 Saab 96

● 1972 Rover 2000 TC

● 1989 Mazda MX-5 Eunos

Matthew Howell

Photographer

● 1962 VW Beetle 1600

● 1969 VW/Subaru Beetle

● 1982 Morgan 4/4

Massimo Delb

Contributor

● 1967 Mercedes-Benz 230

● 1972 Fiat 500L

● 1975 Alfa Romeo GT Junior

● 1979/80 Range Rovers

● 1982 Mercedes-Benz 500 SL

● 1985 Mercedes-Benz 240 TD

Sam Chick

Photographer l 1969 Alfa Romeo Spider

Richard Heseltine

Contributor l 1966 Moretti 850 Sportiva l 1971 Honda Z600

Peter Baker

Contributor l 1954 Daimler Conquest

DAVID BURGESS-WISE

Contributor l 1903 De Dion-Bouton l 1911 Pilain 16/20 l 1926 Delage DISS

Matthew Hayward

Markets editor l 1990 Citroën BX 16v l 1994 Toyota Celica GT-Four l 1996 Saab 9000 Aero l 1997 Citroën Xantia Activa l 1997 Peugeot 306 GTI-6 l 2000 Honda Integra Type R l 2001 Audi A2

Samantha Snow

Advertising account manager l 1969 Triumph Herald

13/60 Convertible l 1989 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL

Jesse Crosse

Contributor l 1968 Ford Mustang GT 390 l 1986 Ford Sierra RS Cosworth

Martyn Goddard

Photographer l 1963 Triumph TR6SS Trophy l 1965 Austin-Healey 3000 MkIII

Delwyn Mallett

Contributor l 1936 Cord 810 Beverly l 1937 Studebaker Dictator l 1946 Tatra T87 l 1950 Ford Club Coupe l 1952 Porsche 356 l 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL l 1957 Porsche Speedster l 1957 Fiat Abarth Sperimentale l 1963 Abarth-Simca l 1963 Tatra T603 l 1973 Porsche 911 2 7 RS l 1992 Alfa Romeo SZ

Evan Klein

Photographer l 2001 Audi TT

Harry Metcalfe

Contributor l 20 cars and 15 motorbikes

To follow Harry’s adventures with his cars andbikes, searchfor Harry’s Garage on YouTube