The Pininfarina-designed Alfa Romeo GTV and Spider entered production in 1993; The convertible Spider came first, with the hard-top Gran Turismo Veloce (or ‘Fast Grand Touring’) following a year later.

Initially only available with either a two-litre Twin Spark (148bhp, 0-60mph in 8.4 seconds and 134mph) or the turbocharged two-litre V6 engine (197bhp, 7.4 secs and 146mph) , the GTV was eventually blessed with what many consider to be Alfa’s best and most charismatic motor, the three-litre, 24-valve Busso V6 engine in 1998.

Driving the front wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox, the Italian firm claimed a 0-60 time of 6.5 seconds and a top speed of 150mph for the 218bhp, 199lb/ft V6 GTV.

Two facelifts, in 1998 and 2003, tweaked a few of the details and added a 1.8-litre engine but left the basic recipe unchanged, which is hardly surprising as the first full year of production saw it sweep the board with titles such as ‘The World’s Most Beautiful Automobile’, ‘1995 Car of the Year’ and ‘Best Car to Drive’ being bestowed upon it.

The GTV was finally laid to rest in 2005, with the Spider dying a year later. Much missed, most will have returned to their mineral components with the usual Italian alacrity, making survivor cars like the one you see here hugely sought-after…