1959 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale Coupe

The Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale was one of the world's first production body designs to be based on the experimental aerodynamic 'B.A.T.' (Berlinetta Aerodynamica Technica) cars that were developed by Bertone and Alfa Romeo in the early 1950's.

To homologate the design racing, production of the Sprint Speciale began with 100 pre-series cars in 1959. To save weight, these racing versions had aluminum hood, trunk and doors, as well as plexiglass rear windows, and had no bumpers. Vehicle weight was less than 1,900 pounds. Compared to the later production cars, these pre-series cars also had a lower, more rounded front end, and are therefore commonly referred to as the 'low nose' configuration.

The Giulietta Sprint Speciales had 1300cc double overhead came engines and 5-speed transmissions, and approximately 1,400 were produced. In 1963 the model was replaced by the Giulia version, which looked nearly identical but had a 1600cc engine.

The car displayed is one of approximately 15 (possibly 14) surviving low nose Sprint Speciales. It is believed that the original owner was an Alfa Romeo mechanic who brought the car with him when he moved to America and raced it here.

The actual number is not known but the serial numbers show that no more than 105 units were produced. These early cars had no bumpers and the hood, doors and deck lid were aluminum. The quarter and back windows are Plexiglas for additional weight savings. The car has a top speed of 112 mph powered by a twin-overhead-cam, in-line 4-cylinder, 1,290 cc (1.3L) engine developing 80-90 hp, coupled to a 4-speed, all-synchronized transmission.