Keith’s Blog: There’s Overspray on the Duetto

The SCM 1966 Alfa Romeo Spider Duetto is currently up for auction on Bring a Trailer.

Part of what I like most about the BaT experience are the questions that get asked by the auction watchers.

Several have commented about the overspray (from the long-ago respray) on the underside of the car, under the hood and in the door jambs.

I’ve been aware of these “flaws” since I bought the car. But I chose not to do anything about them.

First, my cars are for driving and not for showing. It was more important to me that the suspension be dialed in just right than the striker plate on the door jamb be detailed.

Also, part of what attracted me to this car was its sense of “honesty.” When it was repainted many years ago (probably at the same time the upper nose sheet metal was replaced, but I’ll never know for sure), the car was not taken completely apart. It was just given a respray to a decent standard.

I very much like the fact that it has never been “blown apart” with the doors and hood and trunk removed, or the windshield taken out. It has a very solid feel that I think only comes from cars that have never been disassembled and put back together.

In the end, it’s just a good old used car that has covered 112,000 miles and been properly maintained and taken care of its entire life. When you look at the paint, you know exactly what went on with the car. No welded floor panels or rockers, just a fresh coat.

I’ll leave it to the new owner to decide what level they want to take the car to. As I mentioned in the auction, when I was behind the wheel I couldn’t see the overspray in the door jambs anyway.

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