December 7, 2022 Update – The high bid did not meet the seller’s reserve price, so we’ve moved this vehicle to our “Rides Still Available Page.”  Click the blue button above or below to navigate to this ride’s bid page, where you can either select the green “Buy Now” button or place a realistic counteroffer in the “Bid” box.

Guys With Rides is pleased to offer Lot 166, a 1997 Alfa Romeo 916 Spider, in an online, reserve-style auction format on behalf of the current caretaker.

Bidding opens Wednesday, November 23 at Noon and will continue for fourteen (14) consecutive days ending at 5:00 PM Eastern on Wednesday, December 7, 2022.

Not originally offered in the United States, this Alfa Romeo 916 Spider spent all of its life up until earlier this year in the Netherlands.  The U.S. Federal Government’s 25-year exemption rule now applies to 1997 and newer models, so the current caretaker successfully imported and titled this car in Pennsylvania early this fall.

This 1997 Alfa Romeo 916 Spider resides in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, less than one hour’s drive from Philadelphia International Airport.

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The Deets

High Bid: $13,250

By 1995, Italian automaker Alfa Romeo decided to cease importing its cars to the U.S.  By that point, the company’s Spider was out of production, leaving the 164 sedans as the sole import.  Sadly, Alfa decided to exit the U.S. market just as they were gearing up to produce several what would become stunning automotive designs.

The first examples of Alfa Romeo’s efforts were the Pininfarina-designed GTV 2+2 coupé and the two-seat Type 916 Spider. Between 1995 and 2006, Alfa Romeo produced approximately 39,000 Spiders and 41,700 GTVs.

The Spider and GTV were based on a heavily-modified version of the then-current Fiat Group compact car platform, called “Tipo Due” (or Type 2). While the new pair of sports cars featured an all-new multilink rear suspension, Alfa’s 1992 155 sedans supplied front suspension and front-wheel-drive, transverse-engine powertrain.

Quite striking when first launched, the wedge-shaped pair featured a low nose with four distinctive headlights separated by a traditional Alfa grille.  While the rear of the GTV coupé features a “Kamm-back” design for improved aerodynamics, the Spider features a more rounded rear. The Spider featured a folding soft top with five hoop frame, which disappears under a flush-fitting tonneau cover.

Details included a rear lamp/fog lamp/indicator strip across the rear of the body and minor instruments in the center console being angled toward the driver. At its launch, many journalists commented that Alfa had improved overall build quality considerably and that it came close to equaling its German rivals.

As part of a 1997 update, the interior received pleated leather seats supplied by MOMO in a choice of either white, red or tan. These seats came with matching colored carpet, pleated leather door card inserts, optional color-keyed stitching around the hand brake, gear lever, and an all-new three-spoke steering wheel.

Although written in Dutch, the seller provided the following documentation: his Spider has been properly maintained. The critical timing belt service has been completed.  Once imported, the seller had his mechanic perform a thorough Pennsylvania safety inspection. The mechanic only noted the lack of a rear license plate light, which is not required in the Netherlands.

While photographing the car in person on November 21, 2022, Rudy completed a visual inspection of the car.  Please click on the picture below to review his findings. When finished, click your browser’s back button to return to this listing page:

Recent maintenance since importation includes an oil and filter change and a new battery.

To help you make informed bids, we’re providing access to Classic.com, the analytics and search engine for the Classic Car market, that provides an interactive graph of recent comparable sales year-to-date. By clicking on the green dots, you can navigate to each comparable car sold as a way to help you make an educated bid on the car we are featuring for auction here:

Exterior Gallery

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Interior Gallery

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Underhood And Undercarriage Gallery

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Tires And Wheels Gallery

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Windows & Mirror Gallery

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Documentation Gallery

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If you have any questions about this 1997 Alfa Romeo 916 Spider, please comment below or call Rudy directly at 877-468-6497.  Thank you for looking, and happy bidding!