re: Dare I take the plunge?

[Joe Elliott <jee@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I suppose I should weigh in on this one...

At 12:51 PM +0000 4/17/03, alfa-digest wrote:
> Date: Thu, 17 Apr 2003 01:01:53 -0700
> From: Benjamin Kaupp <bkaupp@domain.elided>
> Subject: Dare I take the plunge?
>
> Hi there...
> My name's Ben and I'm an Alfaholic (a har har... oy)
> anyway, I have officially fallen in love with your ladies (specifically
> the 70's Spiders) and I was wondering a few things before I put my soul
> on eBay...
> 1) I am a college student. I can only afford one car, but I do have a
> bus pass. Am I completely stupid to even consider a Spider as my only
> mode of transportation? I would be switching from a 1987 Audi 4000CS
> quattro, so I'm used to complex engineering. My car before the 4kq was
> a 1970 BMW 2002, so I'm also used to old cars.
The only car that I have at school, and the only intact, running car 
I own, is my '82 GTV-6.  The parking situation restricts my use of 
the car much more than my choice of car.


> 2) I am a college student. I think I mentioned that. As this will be my
> only car, will I truly hate it in winter? I currently drive my Audi in
> driving rainstorms with the windows down, so a little water doesn't
> bother me... My girl may be another story. Do we have to take her Focus
> on dates?
The Spider may be a handful in the snow (I don't know, but I can say 
that my GTV-6 great), but I'm guessing you don't see a lot of that in 
Santa Cruz.  Driving rainstorms shouldn't be a problem if you don't 
mind rusting your car.  The convertible top and roll-up windows on an 
Alfa Spider (unlike some other classic convertibles I can think 
of...) should be entirely adequate to keep you and your girl dry.  If 
you really need a proper all-weather, all-season, all-climate car, 
have you thought about some sort of Alfa that would include a roof?


> 3) I am a college student. Gee this is getting repetitive. I like
> music. Is it possible to stick four speakers, an amp, and a single DIN
> deck in a Spider and have none of it show?
I have no idea, but I know that there's more space behind the front 
seats (for boxed speakers, perhaps) than in some popular modern 
convertibles I can think of.


> 4) Guess what... I'm still a college student. I work in retail. Can I
> realistically expect to get a nice Spider for under $4000? I'm willing
> to drive a car that will be a bit of a work in progress, as long as
> it's mechanically stable.
Well, if you can, it would probably be in southern California, so 
you're already ahead of the game by virtue of living there.


> Lastly, if anybody has any advice, wants to buy my Audi, or has a
> Spider available within a few hundred miles of Santa Cruz, CA, then
> please email me. I can't wait to enter a new money pit, and I apologize
> for my newbieness.
Good luck,
Joe Elliott
'82 GTV-6
Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA
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