Alfa Romeo 1966 to 1994 Spider Faq page 23

car, it has a substantial appeal to the general public beyond what it holds for the enthusiast. The
Spider, particularly Series 1 cars, was also fortunate that it actually WAS featured prominently in
an extremely popular, very distinctive movie (The Graduate, Mike Nicols" first film).
To illustrate an example, the 105 series was produced in four major variants, the Spider, the
GTV, the Berlina, and the Montreal (and no fewer than nine "special body„ sub-variants
one
wonders how Alfa stayed in business as long as it did). Of the major variants, the Montreal was
produced in small numbers, had a very high price tag when new, was and is a very handsome car,
and contains a large number of very unique mechanical features. Not surprisingly, it is easily the
most valuable 105 variant today.
The Series 1 Spider was produced in moderate numbers for a limited time, is considered very
pretty by just about everyone, has mass appeal both because it is a convertible and also because it
was featured in a major motion picture, and is mechanically sophisticated enough to get just
about any enthusiast"s attention. It is the second-most valuable car type in the 105 line.
The GTV was produced in moderate numbers for a limited time, is a very handsome car, shares
the mechanical sophistication of the entire 105 line, and, because of its stiffer chasis, is actually a
better performer than the Spider. It holds little appeal outside enthusiast circles, but through
enthusiast appreciation alone is the third most valuable car in the 105 line, typically only a few
thousand dollars less than a Series 1 Spider.
The Berlina was produced in large numbers, has styling that can only charitably be called "plain„,
and while it does have sophisticated mechanicals and performance that can match a GTV"s, as a
four-door sedan its broader base target would mainly be people with families. Unfortunately,
people with families, even enthusiast people with families, tend to be more interested in modern
amenities like air conditioning, power windows, and cruise control, as well as the greater
reliability that modern electronics provide. Because of these factors, the Berlina is and probably
always will be by far the least valuable (in monetary measurements, at least) of the 105 series. (It
should be noted, however, that the 105 Berlina is a damned fun car to drive, and has a tightly-knit
group of owners whose devotion to the car approaches levels that cause Scientologists to take
notes. These enthusiasts, coupled with the ravages of time making the cars rare, may yet cause an
increase in their monetary value.)
Unfortunately (or not, depending on which side of the ownership fence you are standing on right
now), the Spider experienced one of the longest post-war production periods of just about any
sports car in history. This is one of the biggest factors holding the value of Series 2 and later cars
back. Also, because the cars" appearance differs only in the details, the non-enthusiast perception
is that they are all the same car, and this too causes the value to stay low, and surprisingly
homogeneous.
This is beginning to change. The Series 2 cars are finally hitting the twenty-five year mark, a time
when most good to fair cars have been destroyed through the various ravages of time, leaving
only the superb and those eligible for "project„ status (which quickly become superb or evaporate
into the parts bin). People who once owned early spiders are now in their late forties to early
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