At one with a 75

I stumbled across this excerpt from when I owned an Alfa Romeo 75 Twin Spark. It feels like a perfect story to share, given our community and intent. Enjoying the drive, the scenery, the interaction with the car... my writing might have been verbose back then, but I can still relive the drive as a result.

***

"I discover a yellow sign not so far from home that I am now particularly fond of.?On it, a big, bold ‘T’ is printed.?For many, it signals another junction to stop at; to look right, left, and right again before proceeding cautiously forwards.?For me, it signifies something different... the ‘T’ apparently code for ‘Twisty roads next 20km, whichever way you turn.’

It is here that I click the 75 into first gear and head left.?Ahead of us there is hint enough of a straight to get into the meat of second gear (it's notoriously long-geared) before a feeder kink to the right reveals a tighter right another hundred metres up the road.?

Third gear snatched, the clear sight lines and flat grassland backdrop allow perfect vision to pick the apex and exit trajectory.?Double the clutch back to second, turn and apply throttle almost immediately, unwinding lock as the balance transfers weight to the rear wheels, the transaxle and limited-slip diff combination doing wonders for traction.

This little stretch is only a taster, a few hundred metres long, before a crossroad arrives.?Straight ahead reveals a chance to discover more about my recent acquisition’s handling repertoire.

The gradient ahead is immediately steep - you have to be quick on your first to second up-change to gather the necessary momentum.?Tarmac leaps over swooping countryside, giving wonderful views of the vine producing paddocks below.?No time for sightseeing now, my thoughts instead immersed in the enjoyment of driving, developing a feel for how the Twin Spark reacts to my inputs and the ever-changing surface of the bitumen beneath.?For me, this is where road driving sparkles above its track equivalent; it’s all in the variables.

This particular section is stitched over four kilometres and reminds me of a mini Targa style stage - narrow, mostly second gear, myriad cambers and compressions, the odd ghostly gum tree jutting inches from the apex.?But it’s the patches of moisture hiding in the shadows that most focus the mind.?

Of course, the driving is brisk but within the limits of the law (and myself), which along with being responsible allows me to really concentrate on picking out these inconsistencies of grip and adapting as required; it’s an education on being prepared through maximising your long vision and keeping inputs as smooth as possible.

The road widens again on the downhill, where you can brush fourth if you like, and as we wind further away from the traffic centres the road remains slick as we drop between the vines we were above minutes before.?The 75 and I are starting to bond; what were once muddled (possibly Italian) messages through wheel and seat are now being understood and adjusted for accordingly.?Its basic balance and character were the two key attributes that convinced me it was the right ‘cheap daily’ car for me after my 105, but on these greasy roads the limitations imposed by mismatched rear tyres show themselves.?The thought that I can finish them off at Winton makes me grin.?

Compounding the tyre issue is the feeling that the rear shocks are in need of replacement, particularly in the right side.?The front end feels tight as a drum, however when the suspension is loaded mid-corner, any reasonable bump sets a bounce in motion at the rear, the body bobbing a couple of times before settling once more.?Another post-Winton fix up, then.

Still, as familiarity increases so does the fun, and I am at the same time happy (more performance!) and frustrated (less funds) that my modification list is growing."