Alfetta Turbodelta Sedans

[JHertzman@xxxxxxx]

In AD7-403 Bill Magoffin adds to the Turbodelta 116 thread, questioning the
inferences I had drawn from my notes on the relative numbers of (Alfetta) GTV
Turbodeltas and Giulietta Turbodeltas. My sourcebook for the numbers was the
d'Amico-Tabucchi "Production cars" book which I had mentioned was out on loan,
so I cannot recheck that data. However, Bill wrote that "the (Alfetta)
Turbodelta came in both sedan and GTV form. Certainly in Australia the sedan's
outnumbered the GTV's at least 10-1. The d'Amico-Tabucci figures for the
"Alfetta turbodelta" could be for the combined sedan and GTV. If the
Australian ratio was common then this would make for approximately 50
Turbodelta GTV's and henceforth comparitive rarity to the Nuova Giulietta"
(turbodelta). 

Getting interesting! To the best of my recollection there was no mention of an
Alfetta Turbodelta sedan in d'A-T, but a small chapter on the Alfetta
Turbodelta GTV which was said to have been built in 500 examples, which I
understood was the base number for homologation as a production car for rally
competition. Bill's proposal isn't the way I understood homologation worked;
to homologate a particular combination of equipment for an Alfetta GTV rally
car, the requisite number of so-equipped Alfetta GTVs would have to be built,
and the number of so-equipped Alfetta sedans would be irrelevant for the
homologation of the Alfetta coupes. If I am wrong on this, I will accept
correction. 

The most complete and most comparable sources for material on the various
Alfetta models which I have at hand are the twin books "Alfa Romeo Alfetta" by
Giancarlo Catarsi and "Alfa Romeo Alfetta GT e GTV" by Fabrizio Ferrari, both
published in 1994 by Giorgio Nada in the series "LE VETTURE CHE HANNO FATTO LA
STORIA". The "GT e GTV" volume does not give production numbers, but does have
a chapter on the competition record which seems to agree with my understanding
on homologation: "L'Alfetta turbo era derivate dalla versione stradale, creata
per avere il numero sufficiente di vetture per l'omologazione" and goes on to
discuss the further refinements of the competition version (fiberglass doors
and decklid, plexiglas windows, etc.) No mention of the sedans. 

The volume on the sedans also makes no mention whatsoever of a Alfetta
Turbodelta sedan, but does give data on twelve basic variants and production
numbers by type and year range broken down into twenty-six models, broken down
into fairly small numbers, e.g. 529 2.0 L catalizzata in '78-'80 beyond the
USA catalizzata cars. 

So, there seems to be a puzzle. It is conceivable that the relatively large
numbers of Australian Alfetta Turbodelta sedans were elaborated by the
Australian distributor, I suppose, by buying Turbodelta parts and adding them
to standard Alfetta sedans. A partially comparable case existed in England
where (according to David Owen) a British agency developed a Turbo version
"when Alfa announced that they would not be making the Autodelta-developed
version of the GTV, already on sale in the German market, available in
Britain".

If anybody knows more about Alfetta Turbodelta sedans- either in Australia or
elsewhere- at least two of us would be interested in more.

Cordially,

John H.

Raleigh, N.C., USA

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End of alfa-digest V7 #404
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