Welcome New Member Mark Kriebel
There really is a place called Nameless,Tennessee nestled in the foothills of the Cumberland Mountains 75 miles east of Nashville. I started a fireworks display company here over 25 years ago.
However, my history as an automotive mechanic and diagnostician is much longer. I started building and repairing engines and getting cars ready for the drag strip on Little Torch and Big Pine Keys, in the south Florida Keys, where I grew up, over 40 years ago.
I met Marvin Smith several years ago through my fireworks display business. You might not know this, but Marvin is a pyrotechnician too. In the course of our doing business, he came to my shop out here in the woods. When he saw my automotive skills, he brought me his favorite Alfa to check out. We rebuilt his engine got everything back up to snuff for him and I fell in love with Alfas. They’re a joy to work on with their simplicity (pre-computer everything) and small size. Through Marvin I’ve also had the opportunity to meet Bo Richardson and get his precious Alfa running the way it should. I guess I’m a bona fide Alfa Romeo mechanic these days.
My wife, Sheila, and I have had some fun times cruising with Marvin and Peggy in one of Marvin’s Alfas, ‘Little Al’ ,that Marvin has graciously left here for me to drive when I can.
Fireworks take up a lot of my time from spring through fall. But I have to admit I am also the “go to guy” my mechanic friends in the Upper Cumberland (Cookeville) area call when they have an auto that’s stumped them. Rarely a day goes by that I don’t get a consultation call. My motto has always been, “I can fix anything from a broken heart to the crack of dawn,” just ask me how. And now Alfa Romeos are the latest entry on my resume.
Congratulations to John and Laura Greason
Had a wonderful time at Spring Fling with St Louis, Kansas City, Oklahoma and Tennessee Alfa Romeo clubs! There are some really wonderful people in AROC! And look! We won trophies in the rally! Now that’s amazing!
Laura
Welcome to New Member Shelby Smith
Greetings, with the purchase of a 1993 Alfa Spider Veloce, I am finally back as an Alfa (part) owner. I was fortunate to grow up around Alfas during the 1960s. My father, Madison Smith was a dealer from 1961(?) until 1977. During that time, I was in and out of Alfas regularly. I remember flying up to Baltimore with Bill Andree to pick up one of the first two Alfettas we received in the fall of 1974(?). It was a new generation for Alfa and a fun ride home. I later went to the west coast to pick up two Alfettas that had suffered smoke damage. On the boat ride over a car broke loose and caught on fire. It was just smoke damage, but Alfa only sold them for off road (racing) use. So, off and on I would and did have access to almost all of the cars sold during this period. Madison sold the Alfa dealership to his employees, Andrew Ewing, Bill Andree and Wayne Barnett in 1978.
After a few transitions, the dealership became available in the late 1980s and I applied for it. I think it was about 1988-89. At this time, I was operating a single point Peugeot store and my father was retired. I felt Alfa would be a great compliment to Peugeot’s offerings. Unfortunately, when I got to Lyndhurst, the dealer “parts package” was changed, besides not having the money, I felt like there just weren’t enough cars in the market to justify almost doubling the inventory in order to take it on. We parted on amicable terms, and looking back, with Peugeot pulling out of the market and ultimately Alfa, it was probably, while difficult at the time, a lucky decision. Following this, I did buy and sell a few Alfas and one of the last I bought was for my wife, Sonya. We didn’t have children and it seemed a good option. As luck would have it, and maybe the Alfa had something to do with it, we got pregnant. Lots of challenges business wise during this period so for a variety of reasons we couldn’t keep the spider.
Over the years, I’ve tried to keep up with what was going on with Alfa around the world and was hopeful they would re-enter the U.S. market. But, like a lot of the things we experience in our younger years, I always hoped for another lap around the Alfa track. I have not been happy with a VW Beetle Sonya has been driving for the last couple of years and when I would complain about it she would say, “this is my favorite car next to the Alfa Spider.” So, a few weeks ago I met with an auction company and lo and behold, they were selling an Alfa Spider.
Bo Richardson went out and looked at it with me and I did a little research on what folks were asking and decided to give it a go. Thanks to a friend I didn’t know was bidding against me, I paid too much. But, if you are going to pay too much, it should be for a nice one. I believe it to be a one owner, 32,600 miles, was purchased at Paul Spruell in Atlanta. Interestingly, I bought an almost identical car to this for a friend in 1994-95 from Paul’s son, Todd. It is not perfect, but it is a solid car. Most important, Sonya and I both love it. Anyone want a VW Beetle? There was an ulterior motive you know.
One last bit of info on me and the dealership. I still operate Madison Smith, primarily as a broker and to maintain zoning on our property downtown. Things are changing though and I’m in the process of liquidating all or almost all my accumulated junk and equipment. Our dealership website, which is www.neatcars.com may morph into something else but for now you may find some interesting Alfa pictures. Some of you may remember Andrew Ewing, an almost lifelong friend of my father who is pictured in some of the photos. They rallied, raced and worked together for roughly 20 years and remained friends long after that. I talked to Andrew almost weekly after my father died and until he passed away as well. Sonya and I are looking forward to attending Alfa get-togethers in the near future—exciting times!
Alfa Romeo Showcase at 2017 Targa Florio
April 25, 2017 by Sports Car Digest
Alfa Romeo demonstrated its racing heritage at the 2017 Targa Florio, the 101st edition of the world’s oldest automotive race. The Italian marque has an almost unrivalled success record in the Targa Florio; sitting second in the medal table with 40 podium finishes.
Starting at the Piazza Verdi in the capital, Palermo, the three-stage race held 20-23 April in Italy passed through 305 kilometres of Sicilian countryside, including Caltavuturo, Castellana Sicula, Petralia Sottana, Geraci Siculo, Castelbuono, Termini Imerese and Trabia.
A title sponsor of this year’s event, Alfa Romeo provided cars from its extensive collection at the Museo Storico Alfa Romeo in Arese for the Classic race. Some of Alfa Romeo’s most impressive racing models from the 1960s joined the line-up of historic cars, including an Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ, Giulia Sprint GTA, Giulia Sprint Speciale and 1600 Spider Duetto.
Driven by Roberto Giolito, Head of the FCA Heritage Department, the Giulietta SZ features a distinctive ‘cut-off rear’, disc-type front brakes and tapered nose, offering efficient aerodynamics that allow it to reach 200 km/h. Under the bonnet, a 1290 cc four-cylinder engine is capable of generating 100 HP.
The Giulietta Sprint Zagato has its roots in racing. In 1956, Dore Leto di Priolo, one of Italy’s best known gentleman drivers of the time, badly damaged his Giulietta Sprint Veloce during the Mille Miglia. When he took it to Zagato for repair, Dore requested that the weight was reduced as much as possible, even if it proved complex and expensive.
In response, Zagato removed the panelling from the chassis, fitted it with a lightweight tubular steel structure and covered it with an aluminium body. The result was the SVZ, a more rounded, contoured car with greatly improved aerodynamic prowess that lent itself to success of the race track.
Alfa Romeo transformed Zagato’s design into a ‘standard’ production model, based on a shorter chassis, and production began on the Sprint Zagato in 1959. The model taking part in the 101st Targa Florio is the second version, produced in 1960.
Known for its racing prowess, the Giulia Sprint GTA is similar to the standard production ‘GT’ cars with bodywork by Bertone. However, the ‘A’ in the name stands for ‘Alleggerita’ or ‘lightweight’. The steel bodywork of the standard Sprint GT was replaced by ultra-light alloy panels and 14″ magnesium wheels, cutting the car’s original weight by more than 200kg. A modified 1570 cc twin camshaft engine could produce 115 HP and a top speed of over 185 km/h.
The Giulia GTA was piloted by Fabrizio Curci, Head of EMEA Alfa Romeo brand and Giorgio Zivocci, grandson of Ugo Sivocci, who won the Targa Florio race in 1923 behind the wheel of an Alfa Romeo RL. Ugo Sivocci was responsible for the iconic four-leaf clover on Alfa Romeo cars; his car in the 1923 Targa Florio race was adorned with the green four-leaf clover and his victory cemented its status as a lucky charm.
An evolution of the Giulietta version, the Giulia Sprint Speciale was designed by Franco Scaglione to be an extremely low, streamlined coupe with sleek, curvy lines. The Giulia Sprint Speciale is distinguishable by its absence of bumpers and large ‘shark mouth’ radiator and achieves an impressive performance; 113 HP and a top speed of 191 km/h.
The 1600 Spider Duetto features an unconventional design with a low nose and tapered ‘cuttlefish bone’ tail. Boasting 109 HP and a maximum speed of 182 km/h, the Duetto became iconic thanks to its appearance in the film ‘The Graduate’, driven by Dustin Hoffman.
New York Auto Show
Alfa Romeo will present the 2018 Stelvio lineup at the 2017 New York Auto Show.
The all-new SUV will be available in three trim levels: Stelvio, Stelvio Ti and Stelvio Quadrifoglio. All three models have a near perfect 50/50 weight distribution, class-leading power and performance, as well as an eight-speed automatic transmission with available steering-column-mounted aluminum paddle shifters that knock off gear shifts in less than 100 milliseconds.
The Stelvio and Stelvio Ti models feature the Q4 all-wheel-drive system, standard leather seats, bi-xenon headlights and are powered by a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with 280 horsepower and 306 pound-feet of torque. Both those models accelerate to 60 mph from a standstill in approximately 5.4 seconds and have a top speed of 144 mph (232 km/h).
The Stelvio and Stelvio Ti will also be available with a Sport Package that adds larger wheels (19 inch for Stelvio, 20 inch for Stelvio Ti), 12-way power high-performance leather seats including four-way lumbar and power bolster (Ti Sport exclusive), steering-column-mounted paddle shifters, sport steering wheel, gloss-black window trim surround, black roof rails, aluminum sport pedals and footrest, colored brake calipers (red, yellow or gloss black) and more.
2017 New York Auto Show Coverage
There’s also the Stelvio Ti with Lusso Package that adds Luxury Pieno Fiore Italian leather seats with Cannelloni inserts, 12-way power front seats including four-way lumbar, leather-wrapped dash and upper door trim with accent stitching, genuine wood trim in dark gray oak or Lusso-exclusive light walnut, luxury leather-wrapped steering wheel, aluminum pedals and footrest and more.
At the top of the range is the Alfa Romeo Quadrifoglio, sporting a 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6 engine with best-in-class 505 hp and 443 lb-ft of torque. It also comes standard with Q4 all-wheel drive and has unique styling compared to the other Stelvio models. Standard are 20-inch wheels with high-performance Brembo brakes, Alfa DNA Pro with Race Mode and adjustable performance suspension, torque-vectoring differential, high-performance leather and Alcantara seats, Formula One-inspired steering wheel with red push-button start and steering-column-mounted aluminum paddle shifters. Options for the Quadrifoglio model include ultra-lightweight carbon-fiber-shell Sparco racing seats and an ultra-high-performance Brembo carbon-ceramic material brake system.
Pricing for the 2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio models has not been announced.
“The 2018 Stelvio lineup marks Alfa Romeo’s venture into the second fastest-growing premium segment and an important next chapter of the brand’s rich 105-year heritage as we continue to grow in North America,” said Reid Bigland, head of Alfa Romeo. “From the new Stelvio and Stelvio Ti models, to the ultra-high-performance Quadrifoglio model, each of our Alfa Romeo SUVs delivers class-leading power and driving dynamics, standard all-wheel drive, next-level technologies and race-inspired performance, plus gorgeous design and breathtaking style that could only be from an SUV born in Italy.”
Mark your Calendar for December
Please mark your calendars for December 9, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. (CT). Our Quarterly/Holiday Meeting will be held at the home of John and Laura Greason at 8771 Chimney Rock Blvd, Cordova, TN 38016. Email for John and Laura is: jpgreason@comcast.net
Laura tells me the main dish is Memphis BBQ. You may let her know what you would like to add to compliment this fare.
It would be nice if Laura knew before or by December 1st if you will attend and what you are bringing.
Hope to see you there!