Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale
Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione
Only 18 of these chassis were built and they are based directly on the 33 sports prototype. The racing car was extended by 100 mm and a steel central tunnel was added to increase strength, the chassis proved a godsend for the carrozzeria and a multitude of designs were produced on this chassis, one of the most stunning was the Stradale.
The 33 Stradale or road-going 33 was designed in Turin by Franco Scaglione and its swooping styling shares a lot with the Ferrari Dino. There are some very nice features in the design with the doors opening upwards and outwards, while both the bonnet and boot are of a clamshell design and open to give very good access to both engine and suspension.
First shown in Monza in September 1967 the Stradale has a mid-mounted engine of only 2.0 litres, but the engine is a slightly de-tuned racing engine and its specification is very impressive. It produces 230bhp at 8800 rpm achieved from a 90 degree V8 that is fuel injected with narrow-angle cylinder heads that have only 48 degrees between inlet and exhaust valves. The compression ratio is 10:1 and the charge is fed into the combustion chamber through a 33mm diameter inlet valve and to improve the speed of combustion, it is of a twin spark design with two 10 mm spark plugs on either side of the valves. The exhaust valve is 28 mm and is sodium-cooled. To reduce the effects of friction the engine has a dry sump and separate oil tank. The clutch is a single plate with hydraulic operation and it takes the power to a 6-speed synchro racing gearbox from here the power is fed forward again to a limited-slip differential mounted in the gearbox casing between the engine and gears.
The suspension copy's the 33 racing car with double wishbones both front and rear, the settings being obviously softer than the racing car while the tyres are 5,25H/13 front and 6,00L/13 rear and the car has powerful unassisted disk brakes all round.
The cabin is luxuriously equipped with sports seats and very sporty styling with the rev counter being the central instrument, however, this car was never designed to be a GT as there is very little room for anything except the driver and passenger but with a top speed of nearly 160 mph the deficiencies in luggage capacity can easily be overlooked.
When the Stradale came out in 1968 it cost 9,750,000 Lira four times as much as a 1300 GTA and five times as much as the Spider, exotica indeed.
JP
Related Links: Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione | Carrozzeria Italian Design Houses