1933 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Spyder

This Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 was on loan from the Alfa factory to Luigi Chinetti for the 1933 Monte Carlo Rally, and Chinetti and co-driver Jean Trevaux were in the lead when they crashed on the very last lap. The car was subsequently acquired by Giacomo Brenta who returned it to the factory in 1937. Alfa Romeo then rebuilt the engine and sold the car to Peter Rimoldi. A Londoner, Rimoldi used the car extensively before and after the war. He had the fenders fitted with cargo boxes, installed quilted covers on the radiator and hood, and used the car for continental touring. Additionally, the rear luggage compartments were converted into jump seats for his childer. Photos of Peter and his wife Gladys plowing through the snow in the Alps illustrate their intrepid motoring. Rimoldi kept his trusty Alfa until his death in 1988. The care given to the car is reflected in its amazing original condition and it has never been restored. The car is still in use; in 2021 it participated in the Colorado Grand.

Alfa Romeo began in 1906 under the name of SAID (Societa Anonima Italiana Darracq). The cars they built were unreliable, underpowered, and unsuited to local conditions. Although intended to increase the fortune of the French entrepreneur Alexandre Darracq, within three years the company was on the verge of bankruptcy. It was reorganized under a different set of initials ALFA (Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobil). Along with the name-change, its cars also evolved. In hopes of changing the car's image, the company went racing beginning in 1911.

Designed by Vittorio Jano as a replacement for the 6C 1750, the racing versions of the 8C 2300 had multiple wins at LeMans, Spa, Targa Florio, and the Mille Miglia. Built from 1931 to 1934, the chassis was fitted with stunning coachwork by Touring, Zagato, Brianza, Castagna, Figoni and others.

The 8C 2300 was given some of the most advanced automotive technology available, including the legendary supercharged dual overhead camshaft straight eight. It was arranged as two four-cylinder blocks in tandem with the gear-train drive ascending between the blocks. The Roots-type supercharger was positioned alongside the engine.

188 examples were built during the production lifespan. This Alfa Romeo is known as the Rimoldi Alfa, named after its owner of over 5 decades. It is a Corto, or short chassis. When new, it was delivered to Carlo Felice Bianchi Anderloni's Carrozzeria Touring. It was first registered to the Alfa Romeo Works in May of 1933, with plate number MI 43454. It later raced, and nearly won, the Monte Carlo Rally of 1935 with Luigi Chinetti and Jean Trevaux driving.

The Alfa later returned to the Works for repairs and sold to a Hungarian individual in late 1935. Early in its life it was owned by Giacomo Brenta of Budapest, then sold to Signor Giulio Rimoldi on April 15th of 1937. It was shipped to England on board the SS Tonbridge and left Calais on May 5th.

While in the care of Signor Rimoldi, the Alfa Romeo received a quilted bonnet cover to help protect the car from the elements. It also received large baggage trunks which mounted upon its running boards. In 1950, the rear-mounted fuel tank was reduced in size in order to accommodate additional room for two children's seats to be fitted in a space just under the rear access hatches. The seats were removed by Rimoldi in 1966 and the access doors were re-attached.

The car remained with Rimoldi until his death in 1988. At the time, it had approximately 60,000 miles on its odometer. In 1989, the car was sold at Christie's Monaco sale where it achieved a world record price. Since then, the car has been used on several long-distance tours and events including the Monte Carlo Rally, Mille Miglia, and Klausen Hill Climb.

By Daniel Vaughan | Jan 2019