1964 Alfa Romeo Giulia Series 101

The 1900 was Alfa Romeo's first successful post-war model, but it was the company's next offering, the 1.3-litre Giulietta, that would set the company down the path of 'small car, big performance' which would define the Milanese marque's offerings from that point forward. With the arrival of the Giulietta in 1954, Alfa Romeo was forced to rethink its production strategy and become, for the first time, a high-volume manufacturer. Initially offered as the Giulietta Sprint Coupé, the Berlina and Spider versions soon followed. The elegant and sporty coachwork of the Giulietta Spider, courtesy of Pininfarina, attributed greatly to the model's success and continued virtually unchanged in 1.6-litre Giulia guise when the latter joined the Alfa line-up in 1962.

The Alfa Romeo Giulia was introduced at the Monza Autodrome on June 27th of 1962 and was the work of a design team headed by Italian automobile engineer, Dr. Orazio Satta Puliga, who had been responsible for all the post-war Alfa Romeos. This new model was distinguished from its predecessors by the air scoop on the bonnet, necessary to clear the larger engine's taller block. with the increase in displacement, Alfa's classic twin-cam four-cylinder output rose from 80 to 92 bhp and the car's top speed to 109 mph.

The Giulia model name was used for a line of four-door compact executive cars, known as the Type 105, produced from 1962 to 1978. It was also applied to the Spider, Sprint and Sprint Speciale introduced with the Giulia sedan in 1962. They were essentially rebadged and updated versions of the earlier Giulietta models (Series 101) with the bonnet bulge. The Giulia Sprint 1600 (Tipo 101.12) arrived in June of 1962 and the Sprint Coupe arrived with the 1.3-liter engine as the Sprint 1300. Sprint Coupe equipped with the 1.6-liter engine wore a '1600' badge just behind the rear wheel. Production of the Sprint Speciale continued until 1966 and the Giulia Spider through mid-1966. Of the 10,341 Giulia Spiders produced, 8,850 were Giulia Spider 'Normale'. The Spider Veloce had been introduced in 1964 (Tipo 101.18) using the engine installed in the Giulia Sprint Speciale and Giulia TI Super, offering 110 horsepower.

More recently, the Giulia name was revived for a compact executive car, the 2015 Alfa Romeo Giulia (952).

Alfa Romeo produced the Berlina sedan, while Bertone produced the Sprint Coupe to a design by Giorgio Giugiaro (albeit, Alfa Romeo completed the assembly). The dimensions of the Giulia were similar to the Giulietta, resting on a 92.5-inch wheelbase for the Sprint while the Spider's measured 88.6 inches. The front suspension used single lower A-arms and separate upper links, while the rear incorporated a T-shaped device, a rigid axle, and coil springs. Disc brakes at all corners provided the stopping power, however, the original Giulia used drum brakes with the front units being of the three-shoe type like on late Giuliettas. In August of 1963, the four-wheel Dunlop disc brakes and a brake servo were adopted.

The inline, dual-overhead-camshaft four-cylinder engine had an aluminum block and head, a 1,570cc displacement, five main bearings, solid valve lifters, a Solex carburetor, Bosch ignition, and a compression ratio of 9.0:1. It was backed by a five-speed manual transmission with all fully synchronized gears. The steering was a recirculating ball.

The styling of the Giulia T.I. sedan was unique and rather boxy and upright, with a narrow horizontal grille that stretched beyond the outer round headlights. In the center was an Alfa Romeo emblem. IN the back were rectangular parking lights that projected outward and positioned between the outer headlamps and the bumper. One of the few features that the Giulia T.I. shared with the other Giulias was the forward hood line's slope, and the shape of the front fenders.

The Alfa Romeo Giulia T.I. was classified as a six-seater since it used a column-mounted shifter and a split-bench front seat. The upholstery of the early models used mottled cloth and vinyl. The instrumental panel was grey and trapezoidal shaped and included a strip speedometer. The steering wheel was black with a chrome half horn ring and ivory-colored spokes. A floor shifter became available in May of 1964 and when ordered included separate front seats. Also around this time, a right-hand drive version entered production with a floor shifter only. The floor shifter became standard in February of 1966, new seats installed, new door cards, and a new dashboard with three round instruments. The exterior updates were minimal, distinguished by L-shaped chrome strips around the tail lights replacing the previous C-shaped units.

While the styling of the Giulia T.I. sedan was 'squarish,' the Giulietta Sprint Speciale was curvaceous and streamlined, with a hood line that swept forward, gently dropping to a narrow horizontal grille and full-width air intake. The wraparound windshield complimented the shape of the body with a sharp rake. Most of the bodies were built from steel with aluminum used for the engine bonnet, boot lid, and doors. Some were all aluminum and intended for competition. The early examples breathed through Weber 40 DCO3 carburetors, while later examples switched to 40 DCOE2 carbs.

by Daniel Vaughan | Jan 2022