1966 Alfa Romeo 2600

The Alfa Romeo Series 106 was the company's six-cylinder flagship and in production from 1961 to 1968. It was the last Alfa Romeo to have been equipped with an inline six-cylinder engine having twin overhead camshafts. Alfa Romeo had used this engine configuration since the 1920s but replaced it with four-cylinder engines as the factory oriented its production towards more economical mass-produced car models after the Second World War.

The Alfa Romeo 2600 was introduced in 1962 at the Geneva Motor Show wearing a design similar to the 2000 range (which had been penned by Giorgetto Giugiaro), with minor styling updates and a new engine, as this was all the factory could do with the resources available. The 2000 was basically a 1958 restyling of the 1900, meaning the 2600 had running gear that was a dozen years old at introduction.

The new all-alloy 2.6-liter engine replaced the earlier four-cylinder engine with its cast-iron block and alloy head. The Berlina (saloon) had two carburetors giving it 130 horsepower. The Spider (convertible) and Sprint (coupe) engines were equipped with three twin-choke horizontal carburetors and developed 145 bhp. The OSI De Luxe was available with either the two- or three-carburetor setup. The Sprint Zagato came with three carburetors and developed 165 horsepower.

The engines were backed by an all-synchromesh five-speed manual ZF gearbox. The suspension was independent with coil springs at the front and live axle and coil springs at the rear.

The Sprint was the most popular with 6,999 examples built, followed by 2,255 of the Spider, 2,038 of the Berlina, and 105 examples of the Sprint Zagato. The 2600 De Luxe was the most exclusive with a mere 54 examples built.

In 1968, the 2600 range was replaced at the top of the Alfa range by the 1750 models which came equipped with refined versions of the Giulia 1600cc engine. The Alfa Romeo 2000 and 2600 family of spiders, coupes, and saloons never achieved the success of the smaller 101 and 105-series Giulias and Giuliettas, but succeeded in offering opulent styling, a comfortable interior, and a potent drivetrain. Its refined and sporty persona catered more towards fast touring rather than sporting driving, combining agile and balanced handling with stability and smoothness.

Two concept cars were built based on the 2600, with the two-seat spider (known as the 2600 Cabriolet Speciale) shown in 1962 at the Turin Motor Show and the two-seat coupe (known as the 2600 Coupe Speciale) displayed in 1963 at the Brussels Motor Show. Both of these were designed by Pininfarina and were planned for mass production, but the designs never left the concept stage.

by Daniel Vaughan | Jun 2021