Driving on the left side of the road is normal.
With Italian blood running through his veins this UK born auto enthusiast has loved cars since the age of five. His bedroom walls as a kid were decorated with the best Italian exotics, the Lamborghini Countach and the Ferrari 288 GTO. He loved the lines and colors of both of them, dreaming that he would one day own them. They weren’t his number one choice however, because that spot was for the Ford Capri MK2. A rather unconventional choice by many standards, but it was his first car love. Many still consider the Capri MK2 a great car, including us, so we can’t say we blame him.
Not to be confused with a shamrock!
The design, engineering and the heritage of exotic vehicles have always interested Tony but its the four leaf clover that he fell passionately in love with. You may officially call him an Alfista on many accounts. To begin he owns six of them. (yes, you read that right, it isn’t a typo). He owns three Alfa Romeo 1750 GTVs, one being a MK1 car from 1970 and two MK2 vehicles from 1971. Then we have a somewhat newer Alfa Romeo 155 2.0 TS – Carabinieri Replica from 1997 (Carabinieri is the Italian police), an Alfa Romeo Spider (916) 2.0 TS from 1997, as well as an Alfa Romeo 156 2.0 JTS (2002). He loves them all for different reasons, but mainly because of their gorgeous design, excellent engineering, superb handling, amazing noise and out of this world performance for their time. Then there’s the small matter of Alfa’s rich history and the passion they bring with them. This does beg the question however: what does Tony decide to take for a drive when he’s in the mood for one?
Coffee, Cameras & Cars.
Tony has had a few memorable automotive moments, the first one being the fact that he had the opportunity to drive a Ferrari Dino 246 GTS at just 21 years old one. He’s also driven a Lotus Elise around the entire Silverstone GP track for a staggering 45 minutes and he’s taken the newest Alfa Romeo 4C for a test drive at the Millbrook proving grounds. We suspect the latter was his favorite. As for regular drivers, you can mostly find him on any open road with great scenery, particularly the highlands of Scotland and the Cote D’Azure, but only when there aren’t a lot of people.
A sense of humour, but with style
His pick of car for a first date would be the Fiat 600D with suicide doors. It’s unconventional, again, but it will really test his partner. If she still goes out with him without knowing what the car is, then she’s interested in him and not the car. If she, on the other hand, recognizes what a truly legendary motor it is, then he struck gold.
Open roads and great scenery with no traffic.You can't beat it.
Tony Serpini