1960 Alfa Romeo 2000

Alfa Romeo returned to automobile manufacture fairly quickly after World War II, but it was not until 1950 that they introduced an all-new design. It was called the 1900 and it was a unit-body sedan powered by a twin overhead cam 1,884cc four-cylinder engine. This was the first Alfa Romeo built on a real production line. The prior vehicles had been largely hand-built. These were also the first Alfa Romeos built with left-hand drive. With the production line, annual production rose from 400 units annually to an increase of nearly tenfold.

A larger 1,975cc engine was introduced in 1958, called the 2000. The engine had duplex-chain driven twin overhead camshafts, hemispherical combustion chambers, and a pair of side-draft Solex carburetors. It delivered 131 horsepower and gave the Touring-bodied roadster a top speed that exceeded 100 mph. Braking was controlled by large Alfin drum brakes. Body styles included a 2000 Spider designed and built by Touring, and a 2000 Sprint Coupe done by Bertone (introduced in 1960). Spider and Sprint production comprised nearly half of all 2000 sales – 3,443 examples of the Spider were produced, and 700 of the more expensive Sprint Coupe.

The 2000 Sedan had a column-mounted shifter for its five-speed transmission, while the Sprint and Spider had the floor-mounted gear shift.

In keeping with Alfa Romeo's tradition, the 2000 was a comfortable, long-distance touring car that successfully combined style and performance. They served as a more luxurious companion to the Giulietta Spider with coachwork by Pinin Farina, prior to the introduction of the updated, six-cylinder 2600 model introduced for 1962.

by Daniel Vaughan | Sep 2019