[Paul-Bracq-BMW]

The legendary Alfa 33 Stradale just turned 50 on August 31. It was presented prior to the 1967 Italian Grand Prix and shocked the world by it's beauty, but also it's price. at over 9.7 Million Lire it was more expensive than a Lamborghini Miura and was, at that time, the most expensive production car in the world.

Imagine taking an innovative racing chassis and drivetrain from a legendary racing engineer (Carlo Chiti) and make it suitable as a street car. Then have a genius designer (Franco Scaglione) create one of the most sensuous shapes ever created and you have the 33 Stradale.

Only 2 prototypes (1 in the Alfa Romeo museum) and 11 production cars were made. The production cars are now worth above $10 million and rarely exchange hands on the open market.

Specs and Performance were staggering in 1967 and more than respectable today:

2-liter 90 degrees V8, DOHC, twin spark, dry sump, fuel injected. 240+ HP at 9,400 RPM! More than 100 Hp/Litre!
6-Speed manual (in 1967!!!)
4-wheel independent suspension with double wishbone up front.
Fully laden weight of 840kg (1852 lbs).
0-100km/h in 4.9 seconds (measured)
Standing KM in 24 secs (measured)

Below except from a nice page about the genesis of the Stradale and about Autodelta (the racing arm of Alfa Romeo and maker of the legendary GTA racers).


http://www.robertlittle.us/stradalehistoryenglish.html



The 33 Stradale


Vladimir Pajevic
Special Contributing Editor
Awarded - "Alfa Romeo Champions Award 2016" from Scuderia del Portello


"From the moment of the first T-33 victory at the Fléron hillclimb in Belgium to support the growing success of Alfa Romeo racing cars on the circuits of the world and to contrast against other competing European “dream cars”, President Luraghi (CEO of Alfa Romeo S.p.A.) absolutely wanted to start small production of a high performance road car.

He appointed Ing. Chiti to accomplish his desire, and Chiti in turn approached Franco Scaglione, the genial Tuscan car body designer...and probably the most talented car design artist in the world of automotive design at that time.. Speaking about Scaglione, one must remember his impeccable sense of beautiful, artistic "design language", his low tolerance for compromise and his driven fury to transform anything into a perfect artistic shape. (Note: Franco Scaglione was also a pioneer in aerodynamics). Of noble origins and an extrovert, Scaglione was considered a kind of arbitor in car design circles. Observing Mr. Scaglione's preliminary drawings laid before him, Luraghi chose just one of extraordinarily rare beauty and proclaimed;

“Let us produce this one”.

The proposed car was an amazing design achievement for those days, and the initial proposal was to build 50 units based upon the winning “Fléron” chassis. The Fléron chassis was based on the large diameter, riveted magnesium tubes, connected together with the same diameter-sized tubular cross member at the rear of the cockpit, forming an irregular H shape perimeter frame of the car. Another peculiarity was its fuel tank situated inside those huge tubes that ensured the 'roll center' and perfect balance of the chassis would always be maintained...regardless of remaining fuel weight.

The steering, double wishbone suspension and engine were mounted on magnesium-alloy subframes. The chassis was produced by a small aircraft factory "Aeronautica Sicula" located in Palermo (riveted magnesium tubes) and "Campagnolo" from Vicenza (front and rear subframe).

The “Stradale” road version featured a number of differences from the race version. The mainframe tubes were produced of steel, and the extended wheelbase (+10 cm) allowed substantially more cockpit space while the two magnesium subframes were reinforced with steel to afford major impact protection. Even in that road version, the chassis was not so different from the one used for racing. Scaglione demanded and was granted full freedom in designing this dream car with the outcome resulting in an uncompromised layout of stunning proportion. The engine was slightly detuned for road use, with the redline set at 10,000 rpm. Compression was reduced to 10.0:1, yielding 230 bhp at 8,800 rpm with Italian SPICA fuel injection.

The car followed Alfa Romeo President Luraghi’s edict that the specifications must not be inferior by more than 5% than its competition version. While everything else was conceived at extreme Spartan levels, the cockpit was sufficiently comfortable and had its own slick, sexy racing appeal. The major problem for the extremely low Scaglione design of the car (99 cm) was the difficulty in accessibility (getting in and out!) . To resolve that inconvenience Scaglione conceived and produced a vertical opening of the doors along with part of the roof. That solution gave an absolutely stunning appearance to this already exotic design.

To fabricate the body Ing. Chiti and Designer Scaglione adopted Peraluman H350 lightweight alloy, and it was mutually decided to build the first prototype car directly inside the Autodelta premises at Settimo Milanese. The working space was allocated in the same section of the building where racing engines were assembled. The shortage of experienced technicians capable of shaping Peraluman obliged Scaglione to loan skillful workers from Zagato, and to start traveling daily from Torino to Settimo Milanese to supervise building progress on the car.

Two genius' hardly coexist together comfortably...and sure enough...problems arose between Ing. Chiti immersed in his racing world, and Scaglione compelled to resolve the growing technical and assembly problems by himself. That silent war was flavored with numerous embittered letters that Scaglione sent without effects to all pertinent addresses. Years later, Scaglione would describe his permanence at Settimo Milanese as “the worst period of his life”. However, with proverbial Tuscan obstinacy, he finished the first prototype in a relatively short time... from January to September 1967.

The finished product was proudly presented to the public at the occasion of the Sport Car Show in Monza. Some remaining testing were finished up just before the point of its official presentation at Turin Car Show in November 1967. The car shocked the public with its aggressive appearance, its appeal and its price... that was at the top of almost every automobile pricelist at the global level. After the initial example was completed under the huge, expansive cathedral-like Autodelta ceiling, Scaglione left Settimo Milanese and Alfa Romeo forever. After a few attempts to create his own design structure, this solitary genius retired from public life, and died almost forgotten, corroded by lung cancer, in his Tuscany apartment in 1993.

It was Carrozzeria Marazzi from Saronno near Milano, who was appointed to produce bodies and assemble the rest of the Stradale production. Counting first the two four headlight Prototypes produced by Autodelta, Marazzi finished 11 (Not 13 cars, two were Prototypes produced at Settimo) known cars through March of 1969. The five remaining chassis, of the 18 total produced and delivered to Autodelta, were granted to various famous Italian car design studios and realized into exotic Alfa Romeo concept cars for major world automobile shows. Despite its astronomical price, all production Stradale cars were sold, and it was the Alfa Romeo management decision to invest in the new Montreal model that spelled the premature end of the Stradale.

The T-33 Stradale was produced over steel-based chassis with 750.33.1xx code, except the first two Prototypes delivered in semi-finished shapes by Scaglione’s suppliers Saracino & Lingua from Turin... that were numbered as 105.33.01 and 105.33.12.

The first, almost surely aluminum body, with number 105.33.01 (that is the correct VIN of the first Prototype) had been sold to a Japanese Gallery Abarth collection. The second Prototype, 750.33.012, a four headlight version again, was started at Settimo Milanese, but finished only in 1968 at Carrozzeria Marazzi, with small, insignificant different details (wiper moved to the base of wind screen, apertures for ventilation on the rear fenders etc.) as that car was initially intended for competition use. This is the car on current exposition at the Alfa Romeo Museum at Arese, and those were the only two models with a four headlight nose. All the others (11 produced in the shape designed by Scaglione) were two light versions assembled by Carrozzeria Marazzi at Saronno near Milan.

During the succeeding years, a strange urban legend and aura was born surrounding the car at the Alfa Romeo Museo Storico. For long time, there was the conviction that only one car with four lights was assembled at Settimo Milanese under direct Mr. Scaglione’s supervision. As that car had been sold years ago to the Abarth collection in Osaka (Japan), the existence of other, similar cars provoked suspicion and generated the theory of sister replica car, produced to replace original one! Even the chassis type and number were found for that story, and already used, a magnesium-racing chassis with number 750.33.012 became the basis for this hypothetic replica. The story spread worldwide as the one and only true one. The Alfa Romeo official structure remained in silence, and that just confirmed the general opinion that the story was true one. Only recently however, accurate analysis and the blatantly false impossibility of building a Stradale replica over a 10 cm shorter chassis revealed the invented nature of this, long time accepted theory. Today it is sure and confirmed that two lights versions were produced as Prototypes, and that the legality requested for minimum height of lights and direction indicators had pushed designer Scaglione to modify his design for further, serial production.

With its unique shape and fantastic design, the T-33 Stradale of Franco Scaglione ...is to this very day....undoubtedly one of the most stunning automobiles ever created by mankind. Michelangelo would indeed have been proud of this creation."




Prototype 02 (Chassis 105.33.112 is in the Alfa Romeo Museum near Milan.













Press picture of Prototype 01 (Chassis 105.33.01) at the launch of the car in Monza, August 1967. Note that it is the 1st car to have "butterfly" doors, 25 years before the McLaren F1! The car is now in the Galleria Abarth in Japan











Pictures of the 2nd production Stradale, with single headlights and longer wheelbase, chassis 750.33.102. Note the spartan yet beautiful interior and the magnificent small 2 litre V8. The V8 is exactly the same as Alfa's racing V8 except a slightly lowered compression ratio. In racing form the engine developed 280hp at 10,000 rpm


















Picture of the sophisticated "H" shaped chassis derived from the racing Alfas. The chassis for the prototypes were made of magnesium (racing chassis) whereas the production chassis are of steel. Yet they have exactly ths same design. inside the H chassis was the rubber fuel tank that allowed for an incredibly low centre of gravity and optimal mass distribution no matter how full/empty it was.






Beautiful artist rendering of the internals of the Stradale. Note the robust chassis, magnificent engine and extremely efficient use of space. The car is tiny in today's standard measuring 397cm long (153.5 inches), 171cm wide (67.3 inches) and only 99cm high! (39 inches).






Test Drive by Auto Italiana of the production version of the 33 Stradale. The Prova temporary plate means that the car belonged to the factory (and wold be sold to a customer afterwards (!). 0-100 km/h in 4.9 sec and standing Km in 24.19 sec are amazing for the period. For example a Ferrari Daytona's performance was 5.6 secs for the 0-100 kmh and 24.3 secs for the standing Km. The Lamborghini Miura S had similar performance to the Daytona...

[Red Bread]

The world needs more things like 2.0L V8s. I still love the old E34 530i with a 3.0L V8 and a 5 speed manual. Small, high revving motors are so fun. Just the sound of a 3.0L Ferrari V12 is so far removed from anything we have today.

[RABAUKE]

A beautiful car to be sure, like so many from that era that were rolling works of art.

[MalibuBimmer]

My nominee for the most beautiful car is from the previous decade. Not a false line or bump on it anywhere.

[Dackelone]

Back in May when I attended the Concorso in Lake Como, afterward I took a little detour to Milan. I had always wanted to visit the Alfa Romeo Museum and since they just remodeled it - it was perfect timing. I've always loved Alfa's... here are just some of the beauties I saw there. Sorry for photo bombing your thread Paul. But Alfa pron is porn!!

I have more pics of the Alfa Museum... I just didn't think anyone here would appreciate Alfas. ? Maybe I should make a museum thread?

Dackel

[Paul-Bracq-BMW]

Cool you went to Arese! And I don't mind you photobombing with Alfa beauties!

[Alfisti]

Has always been my absolute favourite, what a design, timeless.

[Alfisti]

OK funny Alfa Museum story.

So I am 23 and doing the aussie in europe for 3 months thing. Timed the trip so I could fit in Oktoberfest, Spa F1 GP and Monza F1 GP, of course being in Milan I always intended to go to the museum.

Being 2001 there's no smart phone or what not so I was rather disorganised and just took a train from Milan to Arese. No real idea how I got there as the train system was maddening but I got there, i did not however, have a plan for how to get to the factory. The place is DESERTED, so I flag down a passing motorist and with a thick Italian accent i say "Museo de Alfa Romeo". He swings open the door and i foolishly get in. He drops me at the door and refuses to take any Lira, NFI who he was as he spoke zero english.

So there i am at the Alfa factory and yeah, no one, it's deserted. I wander in and find myself in the employee lunch room just wandering about, still no one in sight. So i go outside and see the museum, the door is slightly ajar and i go in.

NOT A FUCKING SOUL in there. I flick on the lights and have the joint to myself, I mean the entire fucking space. I spend 2 hours in there and take selfies of me SITTING IN THE ALFETTA GP CAR FROM THE 50's! Eventually another guy wanders in and he is as gobsmacked as i am as to how empty it is and how we just wandered in.

So I am ready to leave but have not planned on how the hell i am getting back to the station. Suddenly a big ass coach rocks up, FILLED TO THE BRIM WITH A FEMALE ONLY CLASS OF ART AND DESIGN STUDENTS from Chicago.

Well fuck me eh.

Get to chatting with the professor and she suiggests I wait around as they will also be stopping at the Fiat factory before heading back to Milan and they could accommodate me.

Good times. Good times.