1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Touring Spyder Epitomizes The Elegance at Hershey

January 21, 2016 by Elegance at Hershey

HERSHEY, PA - The theme for this year's Elegance at Hershey is Celebration of Speed. After deciding upon the overall theme, 'One of the first decisions we made was to choose an automobile that epitomized that concept,' stated Steve Moskowitz, Elegance Vice Chairman. After much deliberation, it was concluded that the logical choice would be the Alfa Romeo Touring Spyder.

A call was made to Mr. Oscar Davis of Elizabeth, NJ - the owner of a number of fabulous classic automobiles. Last year, Mr. Davis presented his 1938 Alfa 6C 2300B Mille Miglia Superleggera Coupe by Touring at The Elegance. That car garnered the coveted Jack Rich Award for 'the car that The Elegance founder would have most wanted in his collection.' Without hesitation, Mr. Davis agreed to present this year's theme car - the 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Touring Spyder. The 8C 2900B is the car that graces all of this year's Elegance advertisements and promotional materials.

The Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Touring Spyder is an elegant and timeless aggregation of styling and engineering. It is a perfect example of form following function. Vittorio Jano, an Italian automobile designer of Hungarian descent, engineered the project. The body was developed by Felice Bianchi Anderloni, founder of the Carrozzeria Touring coachbuilding firm in Milan. Together with chief designer Aqino Gilardi, Mr. Anderloni advanced the state-of-the-art superleggera, or super light, construction. Replacing conventional and much heavier body-on-frame construction, the team used lightweight but rigid steel tubes to form the framework upon which the body panels were attached. At the time, the automotive wind tunnel was still under early development by Germany's Wunibald Kamm, but the team recognized the immediate need to devise an aerodynamically efficient envelope for the Touring Spyder. Body panels were fabricated and shapes were refined by analyzing photos of the car in motion, using strips of cloth attached to the car to capture the effects of wind on the various design considerations. Measuring just forty inches at the cowl and forty-seven inches at the steeply raked windshield top, the result is the beautiful, flowing rolling sculpture we enjoy today.

Mechanically the Touring Spyder is powered by a 2.9 liter dual cam straight eight with dual 'Roots type' superchargers, a four-speed manual rear transaxle and four-wheel independent suspension.

The Alfa 8C 2900B Touring Spyder will be prominently displayed at this year's Elegance at Hershey. Please come to enjoy this and the seventy other stunning examples of automotive history as we commemorate the Celebration of Speed.

About The Elegance at Hershey

The Elegance at Hershey, a 501 (C) (3) organization based in Hershey, PA, was established in 2010. In its first five years, The Elegance at Hershey has donated more than $800,000 to its three charities, JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation), the AACA Museum and the AACA Library & Research Center. Contributions are facilitated by significant sponsor support. We're excited to host our first-ever world-class automobile auction at The Elegance this year. Together with a great team of volunteers and donors, The Elegance is excited to move forward with the 2016 event. The event will be held on June 10, 11 and 12, 2016. Visit www.TheEleganceAtHershey.com for more information.