Owning an Alfa Romeo 1750 Veloce Spider

‘Make sure they’re maintained and they’re used,’ says Kevin Rawson, whose Southwood Car Company (southwood.co.uk) is offering this fetching Glasurit Pine Green 1750 for sale. ‘The Spider is mechanically simple and shouldn’t be expensive to run – an annual service will be between £250 and £300. Buy the best car you can and it’ll be as reliable as a 50-year-old car can be.’

‘Focus on everything below knee height when looking at a car – that’s where the expense is. A car with structural issues can cost its purchase price again to resolve fully, depending on how far you want to go. People have different ideas of what a restoration is, so check what work has been done.

‘Colour is a strange thing. There’s an almost equal split between buyers who want red and those who don’t. The 1750 is the most popular engine, though. It’s smoother than the later Kamm-tail 2000 but freer-revving than the earlier Duetto 1600, and it would be my choice without a question.’