1963 Alfa Romeo Giulia 1600 Sprint Speciale
The Sprint Speciale traces its lineage directly to the three Berlinetta Aerodinamica Tecnica (B.A.T.) concept cars that Franco Scaglione drew for Bertone between 1953 and 1955, some of the most aerodynamically radical shapes of the decade.
The production Sprint Speciale distilled those ideas into a road car: pronounced wheel arches, a steeply raked windshield, a domed roofline, and a drag coefficient of around 0.28 to 0.29, among the lowest claimed for any production car of the period.
Originally introduced in 1959 as the Giulietta Sprint Speciale with the 1,290 cc twin-cam engine, the car became the Giulia 1600 Sprint Speciale in 1963 when it received the larger 1,570 cc unit with twin Weber carburetors, producing 112 horsepower at 6,500 rpm and a top speed of approximately 124 mph.
A five-speed gearbox (notably specified for the period) sends drive to the rear axle. The body’s demanding compound curves, exceptionally difficult to execute consistently in production, kept output of the Giulia SS to 1,366 cars across its entire run, making correct panel alignment on surviving examples a meaningful indicator of care and quality.
Source
