We just released a few new products to help keep your Alfa Romeo GTV6 on the road, or at least looking good while you enjoy it!
First up are the seat release buttons that tend to break at this age. My Alfa Romeo GTV6 was missing one when I bought it, and I figured nobody was ever going to reproduce them. But, thanks to the magic of 3D printing, I was able to create a pair that works well and is close to the original design! I made a pair for my GTV6 and also made some extras, so if you don’t have a 3D printer you can just purchase one of these. Click here if you would like to purchase a pair.
New Hood Support Prop Guide
The second item is one that I am even more even excited about – a new hood support prop guide. Most of them have broken over the years from the under-hood heat, including the one on my car. This is the new reproduction below on my GTV6.
I recently tried a new hood support prop guide that was made from PLA plastic. I was excited to have a hood prop guide again, but after my first drive, the plastic guide warped. The next time I opened the hood I couldn’t remove the hood support from the plastic guide. The only way I found to release it was to break the top of the guide off. You can see the broken version at the bottom of the photo below. Note how the base has warped, the top piece had also warped and shrunk, trapping the metal hood support.
I looked into different materials and learned that PTEG has better stability, and doesn’t deform at the same temperature as PLA. It wasn’t a surprise then that it warped the first time I drove the GTV6.
We are also making these available for purchase. I believe these will hold up better than a PLA version, and are a bit closer to the original Alfa design. I have tested it on my personal GTV6 in summer heat with no issues.
Click here if you would like to purchase one, or click here to go to our shop and see all the products currently available. Please check back as we launch more products to help keep your vintage Alfa Romeos on the road!