Alfa Spider v MGB

Looking for a two-seater sports car for some summer fun this year? We don’t blame you. And, as Paul Guinness discovers, this particular twosome takes some beating…

Both MG and Alfa Romeo were no strangers to the world of two-seater open-top sports cars back in the Fifties. Since 1955, the British firm had enjoyed worldwide success with its handsome MGA range, while the Italian sporting specialist launched its stunning Giulietta Spider the same year. But, of course, here in Britain it was the MG that dominated, with the Alfa being more of a rich man’s plaything thanks to its higher pricing and more upmarket approach.

The Sixties saw this situation continue, albeit with two brand new models. BMC replaced the MGA with the logically named MGB in 1962, a model that proved impressively popular throughout its 18-year career. But although Alfa phased out its Giulietta Spider in the same year that the MGA disappeared, the Italians didn’t get round to producing a true successor until ’66, when the now legendary Giulia Duetto (later known simply as the Alfa Romeo Spider) went on sale.
Both the MGB and Spider went through innumerable changes throughout their long lives, the earliest being in 1967, when the Duetto was re-engined and transformed into the 1750 Spider Veloce. And by the early Seventies, this had become the 2000 Spider Veloce, by which time the MGB was in Mk III guise – with various useful enhancements and trim updates but the same 1798cc B-series twin-carb engine as before.

It’s easy to look at the two cars photographed here (both UK-spec, both on 1971/72 ‘K’ registrations) and assume they were natural rivals when new. But back then you’d have paid £2636 for the 2000 Spider in the UK, compared with a mere £1414 for the MGB Roadster – a remarkable difference. And now? These days their values on the classic scene can be remarkably similar to each other, making this Twin Test particularly fascinating.

For the full story pick up your copy of the June 2010 issue