1972 Alfa Romeo Junior Zagato 1600

Production of the Alfa Romeo 1600 GT Junior was brief, lasting from 1972 to 1975 with just 402 examples built. It was positioned above the GT 1300 Junior and below the 2000 GTV. The 1.6-liter Twin Cam four-cylinder engine was essentially the same used in the discontinued Giulia Sprint GTV and the final drive ratio was the same as the 105 Series Coupes with the 1290 CC and 1570cc engine.

The elegant design was courtesy of Carrozzeria Zagato and the first example made its debut at the Turin Motor Show in November of 1969. Ercole Spada, the famous Zagato chief designer, considers it one of his best designs. It had modern 'wedge-shaped' styling and came in both a long and short tailed version. Using the base of the Giulia, the chassis was shortened by 10cm, clothed with Zagato coachwork, and first offered as a 1300. In 1972, it became a 1600. Unlike most Zagato-bodied Alfa Romeos, the Juniors were steel rather than aluminum. It did have a lightweight aluminum hood, ultra-lightweight bumpers, unique lightweight Zagato seats and a special lightweight dashboard without a glove box door.

For customers seeking even more performance, the high performance 'S' engine received double twin choke Weber carburetors and a unique Zagato 'Ram Air' induction system fed by eight openings in the front clear headlight cover. Other bespoke Zagato features included an electrically elevating rear hatch for low drag flow through ventilation and construction taking place at both Alfa Romeo and the Zagato coachworks.

Of the 402 produced, it is believed that 106 exist worldwide with just 12 residing in the United States.

by Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2019