RE: Special Editions

["Michael S. Sweigart" <msweigart@domain.elided>]

My 82 GTV6 has what I was told is a "Maratona Body Kit"- I have never
seen reference of these kits for sale. 
Pictures here:

http://puredealerfiles.dns2go.com/photo/photos/alfa/index.html

It was originally being offered for sale as a Maratona, but there were
no 82 Maratonas...

..also note the Nitrous shifter handle- yeah you know you want it you
boy racer you... This was not standard on any GTV6. =)

-Michael in the homeland of boy racer wannabees (Joizey)
 

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-alfa@domain.elided [mailto:owner-alfa@domain.elided] On Behalf Of
John Hertzman
Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2002 3:13 PM
To: alfa-digest@domain.elided
Subject: Special Editions


There is little (and nothing of importance) to add to what Brian Shorey,
Russ Neely, and Lance Dong wrote about the Maratona, but there is that
little. FWIW, they were less numerous than the Balocco SE, thus
presumably more valuable to those who are susceptible: there were just
150, far fewer than the Balocco SE's 350. The sales brochure refers to
the translucent tea-tray (clear per Russ, smoked grey per Lance, which I
think is correct) as an "Engine view-port located on hood", #1 of the
four numbered and many unnumbered listed features; #2 was "Rear window
louvered sun reflector", #3 "Speedline light alloy wheels", #4 "Sliding
sunroof", then with bullets but unnumbered, Michelin TRX 200/60 x360
radial tires, Aerodynamic trim package, Halogen headlights and
foglights, and Hand-polished wood-grain steering wheel. The longer list
on the last page added some other features which were probably standard
on all the last GTV 6s but not on earlier ones, such as the "Rear filler
panel", and a lot which should have been taken for granted, like the
"Full size spare tire on alloy wheel".

There were some at ARI who took a dim view of "special editions"
generally - a standard half-jest about the cars generally was that 'we
sell you an engine and throw the car in free', and people with those
priorities would not be impressed by gilding what they thought of as the
lesser half of the package. I understand that all the SEs were produced
when either Ernesto Vettore or Aldo Bozzi was C.E.O. at ARI, the USA
subsidiary which executed them for this market, and that a third,
earlier, C.E.O., Arturo Reitz, would have nothing to do with anything of
the sort. One of the like-minded critics referred to a proposed Special
Edition Register as the "Elenco de Stile Italiana Masturbata", and to
one of the SEs in particular as a 'pimpmobile', not intended as a
compliment. On the plus side, people who are drawn to them probably take
far better care of their cars than many other people do, and when the
last of the irreplaceable plastic add-ons falls apart someone will be
left with one of the very best surviving examples of a stock GTV 6 to be
found anywhere. Which isn't a bad thing to be left with.

YMMV. Enjoy yours,

John H.

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