The Alfa Romeo 75 came out in 1985 as a 1986 model and was designed in-house by Alfa Romeo. It was called 75 to mark Alfa Romeo’s 75th anniversary and was available with a whole host of engines, gas and diesel, including Alfa’s venerable twin-cam. They were appreciated by the police and Carabinieri in Italy. It was imported to the U.S. from 1987 to 1989 where it was sold under the Milano moniker and was available exclusively with a V6. A vast majority of U.S. bound cars were equipped with the 2.5 found in the GTV6 and the Alfa6 but in the Milano Verde, this motor was bored out to 3.0, delivering around 183 horsepower. Alfa’s logs are notoriously unreliable and production figures are iffy but it’s estimated that no more than 900 Verdes came to the U.S. This is one of these cars.

Take a gander at it and right off the bat it’s unmistakably a product of the 1980s. Some say it’s reminiscent of a Jetta: the car is very angular, especially the trunk line which sweeps upwards. This is the kind of car that leaves onlookers with a strong impression either way. It was only available in sedan form though a wagon was prototype that never saw mass production was built. On the outside, the Verde stands out from its 2.5 siblings with specific wheels, fender flares and a subtle spoiler on the trunk.

The driving position resembles something found in a yoga manual- the pedals are offset to the right. The clutch is where the brake normally and so on. On that note, the whole interior is an exercise in Italian ergonomics: the handbrake is U-shaped, the window switches are up above the rearview mirror, there is a tray where the glovebox should be and the actual glovebox is a drawer below the tray, etc. It’s quite odd once you first sit in it but you eventually get used to it and after you spend enough time behind the wheel, some of it may even start to make sense. Some interior differences between the Verde and other models include orange gauges, a 160mph speedometer and comfortable Recaro seats. Instrumentation includes a tach, a temperature gauge, an oil pressure gauge and a fuel gauge. (more…)

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AlfaBB.com has tapped director Darren Thomas of Working Element, LLC to head an automotive concept film to coincide with Alfa Romeo’s return to the U.S.. Thomas’ last film project “For My Country” was the official jury selection of the GI Film Fest in Washington DC. The project is set to begin in 2009 with a fourth quarter release.

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I used to believe that the hottest place I had ever been was located half a world away in the jungles of South-East Asia, or maybe a certain Middle-Eastern country with nothing going for it but sand and lots of oil.  But I don’t believe
that anymore.  As if trying to prove that one doesn’t need to go very far away to experience extremes, the weather gods saw fit to turn up the heat control to 11 as we visited Philadelphia for the weekend of 7 and 8 June.

Being the intrepid types, Kathleen and I decided to kill two birds with one stone and spend a little time visiting my exceedingly long-time friend and fellow ex-pat Canuck, Dr. Jon Druhan who resides near Philly, and also attend the Italian Car Show at Head House Square in support of ‘Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer’ on Sunday, 8 June.  We knew that the weather was going to be warm, but nothing could have prepared us for the humidity-laced heat we encountered that weekend! (more…)

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“Curse you, Red Baron!” I yelled – with fist raised high - from the driver’s seat in Kathleen’s Spider towards the little tomato-soup red Lancia Fulvia Sport Zagato in front of us.  Like Snoopy in his imaginary First World War Sopwith Camel, I was day-dreaming.  The only difference was that my day-dream was about chasing a young Tazio Nuvolari in some long-ago ‘Mille Miglia’!  I giggled audibly as our much more powerful Alfa Spider…and car after car following us, danced a rubber-souled ballet around one of many well-banked 160 degree corners.  These were typical of the ‘twisties’ which peppered the ups and downs of the beautiful Western Virginia mountain roads selected by David and Susan, our planners and hosts extraordinaire.  This year’s ‘Giro di Campagna’, held in the historic and very picturesque wine-growing region near Lexington, Virginia marked the 2nd year for this successful and fun spring weekend event.  And what an event it was!

Beginning with a small group of Alfas and other ‘lesser’ cars gathered at a gas station just to the West of the nation’s capital, our hosts led the way for the long drive out of the city and on towards Lexington.  This particular group of road-trippers included our leaders, David and Susan in their very red, pristine Bertone GTV 2000, Jack and Terry in their newly restored ’69 Berlina, Denny and Trish in Trish’s ’89 Milano Verde and Randy and Josie in their red Series IV Spider.  For a variety of reasons, some of the group used other means of transportation.  Harlan, the Capital Chapter’s President (who apparently changes loyalties as easily as Fangio!) switched into his and Garnet’s patina-plated ’67 Lancia Fulvia Sport Zagato, while Dennis and Beth brought their Porsche Boxster, as their ’71 Spider had decided it didn’t want to play.  Dermott and Lois chose a modern Mercedes sedan because none of their other cars were weather-proof, while Garnet drove her MB convertible solely for the commute, as she had to leave early to return to the city for work on Sunday.  Finally, John and Hillary drove their distinctly Italian Rosso-colored late-model Corvette…John should have known better than to bring a knife to a gunfight!  Making the drive independently from Baltimore, were Bert and Judy in their ’61 Giulietta Spider, and Kathleen and I in her ’82 Spider.  Still later, and sneaking in under cover of darkness in the wee hours on Friday night, Michael appeared in his very clean GTV6.  Eventually settling into our headquarters for the weekend, our group was very well situated in an elegant and historic old Inn called Maple Hall, located conveniently near Interstate 81. (more…)

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Ever wonder exactly what is involved in restoring a car to an award winning level? What kind of attention to detail it takes to get all the bits and pieces correct?

Well recently one of our AlfaBB.com site memebers George Kraus did exactly that. George documented and posted many photos of his restoration process. Recently his 1960 Giulietta Spider Veloce won a “First In Class” at the 2008 Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance.

Here is a link to his wonderful thread covering some of the cars transformations.

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I was riding with my cousin in his Peugeot 306 on a June day when the topic of what car I drove came up. At the time, my daily driver was a 1988 Milano. I started to explain what an Alfa 75 looks like.

“A four door sedan, kind of boxy. You know, the ones the cops used in Italy in the early 90s. Does that help at all?”

“.. not one bit.”

I told him I’d show him a photo and with that, the subject was dropped in favor of us two taking turns pointing out how hot it was. Not five minutes later, I saw a worn out Alfa 75 2.4 TD parked at a shop and pointed it out to him. As we drove past, I noticed more Alfas—a 33, an Alfetta, a Super, a Spider and another 33. The second 33 had a trailer with the remains of a 2000 GTV on it. Thinking that GTV would be worth a look, I asked my cousin to turn around at the next roundabout. (more…)

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1952 Alfa Romeo 1900C Berlinetta by Touring

100bhp 1,884 cc twin cam inline four-cylinder engine, downdraft Solex carburetor, four-speed floor shift manual transmission, coil spring and double A-arm independent front suspension, solid rear axle with longitudinal radius arms and triangular lateral locator, coil springs and tubular hydraulic shock absorbers, four-wheel drum brakes. Wheelbase: 98.5″ (2,500mm)

In 1950, Alfa Romeo introduced its first modern-era car to the public at the Paris Salon. The advanced 1900 model featured monocoque construction and a new, chain-driven, twin overhead cam engine and innovative suspension. Output was 90 brake horsepower at 4,800rpm. The resulting performance and handling were in the best sporting tradition, which was unique at the time in a roomy family saloon.

The higher-performance version of the 1900 engine, known as the 1900 TI (Turismo Internazionale) appeared in 1951. With larger valves and higher compression, the power increased to l00 brake horsepower at 5,500rpm and the maximum speed was elevated from 93 miles per hour to 105 miles per hour. It was this engine, in cars with the shorter wheelbase (2500mm) that produced the 1900C (Sprint). Alfa Sprints performed exceptionally well in competition (capable of 112 miles per hour in race trim), driven by legends such as Juan Manuel Fangio in the 1952 Mille Miglia and notably achieving an impressive overall result along with a 1-2-3-4-5 class win in the 1954 Carrera Panamericana Mexican road race. (more…)

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This year edition of the Master was organized with the partnership of Alfa Romeo’s Styling Center (Arese, Milan).

The theme for the final thesis was “Imagine the new Alfa Romeo flagship model”, i.e. a possible successor for the Alfa 166.

The nine final projects were presented in the presence of Lorenzo Ramaciotti, Head of Design for Fiat Group Automobiles and Maserati.

The project were supported by the supervision of Mario Favilla (Centro Stile Alfa Romeo), and developed by the team of SPD teachers and 15 international students, who tried to combine in every vehicle styling elements from the brand’s tradition with a contemporary design language.

Alfa Romeo Camenae by Ryu Seung-Wook (Korea)

In ancient Roman Mythology, Camene where the goddesses of springs. Fluidity is the chosen design language for the Concept by its author Ryu Seung-Wook.

The car surfaces are crossed by flowing lines that become smoother and smoother towards the rear end.

The vehicle is dynamic and features an elongated front-end which allows for a greater interior space. (more…)

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Concorso Italiano is pleased to introduce a new chapter in the long history of this wonderful event. Earlier this year after learning that the on-going hotel and golf course construction at Bayonet Black Horse would restrict our ability to hold the event in the space it requires, or at the caliber it deserves, and cause our guests to park off-site, we began searching for a new and long-term home.

After reviewing many different sites on the Monterey Peninsula, we are very excited to announce our decision. This year will be the beginning of a wonderful new era, as Concorso Italiano moves to the Marina California Airport – just 10 miles north of Monterey itself.

(more…)

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The Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races are the largest event held during the renowned classic car weekend in Monterey California. More than 40,000 visitors worldwide annually attend the Historic Races.

The Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races are a tribute of motor racing history, historic automobiles and the people who made them. Each year, more than 375 of the finest historic race and sports cars are entered in 14 race groups that span nearly every era of motorsports history. (more…)

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