Alfa Romeo S3 Spider

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Alfa Romeo has been producing pretty little roadsters endowed with the 'Spider' name since the launch of the Giulietta in 1955.

The most famous is probably the model that was launched at the Geneva Salon in 1966, the Duetto. Beautifully styled by Pininfarina and overflowing with Italian brio, the car was a huge success from the outset but was immortalised by its starring role in ‘The Graduate’ in 1967, sharing the limelight with Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft.

The original 'boat-tail' design of the Duetto was dropped in the late sixties in favour of a more aerodynamically efficient Kamm tail which also greatly improved luggage space. The underpinnings were effectively the same as the superb Giulia saloon, so beloved of the Italian Carabinieri, comprising independent front suspension, coil-suspended live rear axle, servo-assisted disc brakes all round and the most communicative steering you could ever wish to experience.

Initially only available with a 1.6-litre double-overhead-cam four, it was later also offered with a 1,750cc or a 2-litre engine. “It is difficult to put into words the sheer charm of this open sports Alfa Romeo,” wrote Autocar’s John Bolster of the Spider in 1969. “It is the kind of car that even an experienced test driver will take out for the sheer fun of handling it… yet it is just as easy to drive as the most unexciting family hack.”

Dating from 1988, this right-hand drive Series 3 Spider is fitted with the 104bhp 1.6-litre twin-Weber carburettor engine driving through a 5-speed manual gearbox which gave the car a top speed of 112mph. Originally registered in Germany (possibly to a British soldier stationed there) it has been in the UK since early 1990 and comes with its original Lombarda service booklet which is stamped 7 times up to 86,500kms in 1993, the first two services being carried out in Frankfurt.

Now showing some 193,300kms (120,800 miles) on the clock, it has been in the current ownership since 2011 and has been well-maintained throughout that time and used in fine weather only, being stored in an air-conditioned underground garage in London during the winter months. In very smart condition throughout, it comes with a good history file stretching back to the early 1990s. Within the last five years it has been treated to a new hood, new carpets, retrimmed seats with new foams and covers, a gearbox overhaul plus numerous other items.

MOTd until May 2016, the car is said to drive very well with everything working as it should apart from the oil pressure gauge which has never functioned correctly. It comes with the original owner's handbook still in the original wallet but you will need some knowledge of German to understand it! Driven up to the sale from London, it is only reluctantly for sale due to the purchase of a newer Alfa convertible and lack of space in which to store both cars.

AMENDMENT: Please note that the vendor has advised us that this car has a noisy differential.