Alfa Romeo stars at 2010 Villa d’Este
The famous Villa d’Este Concorso d’Eleganza, which is dedicated to exhibiting the most beautiful cars of the past, will take place on 23 - 25 April this year. The event was first held in 1929. Ever since then, it has always been staged in the magnificent gardens of the Grand Hotel Villa d’Este and Villa Erba in Cernobbio, on the shores of Lake Como, and this year Alfa Romeo will have an even bigger presence than usual.
With the Italian sporting car manufacturer celebrating its 100th anniversary, the Villa d’Este ‘catwalk’ will be graced by nine superb models from the company’s Centro Storico at Arese. Along with these classics, the public will also be able to admire two latest generation Alfa Romeo models (the new Giulietta and the 8C Spider).
Of the nine Alfa Romeo classics on show, the oldest is a special version of the RL Super Sport, a six seat ‘torpedo’ with aluminium coachwork by Castagna, made in 1925 for an Indian Maharaja, and brought back to Italy in the 1970s.
Then there is a 1931 6C 1750 Gran Sport with coachwork by Zagato, finished in an elegant pastel white and distinguished by an exclusive detail: a radiator logo featuring the word Paris instead of Milano. This solution was adopted for a series of cars sold in France via Alfa Romeo’s French subsidiary.
The 8C 2300 Mille Miglia Spider, also with coachwork by Zagato, was built the following year. This particular model won the Mille Miglia race two years in succession (1932 and 1933) and is the only one among the Alfa Romeo classics on show that has had a racing past.
The prestigious line-up on display in Cernobbio contains the exclusive 8C 2900 B Lungo of 1938, finished in a splendid blue. This berlinetta features Touring’s special Superleggera coachwork, and represents the ultimate prestige in terms of style and technology. Back in 1938, this model was considered the super-car of its day. It won the Mille Miglia in 1947.
The 6C 2500 Super Sport Villa d’Este dates from 1949 and features an elegant metallic champagne livery. This model has already won a Villa d’Este Concorso d’Eleganza, confirming the excellence of its Milan-based Touring coachwork.
Another Touring model is the highly original 1953 1900 C52 Disco Volante Spider, a car with an unusual and fascinating design that always attracts great interest. Though the Disco Volante, or Flying Saucer, never actually raced, it was originally designed for competition use.
Alfa Romeo’s contribution to the event also includes a Pinin Farina styled Giulietta Spider, one of the company’s most popular models. The version on show, a prototype of the America series, dates from 1955 and differs from the production model in a number of details.
The historic Alfa Romeo line-up concludes with a 1954 2000 Sportiva and a 1967 33 Stradale prototype. The 33 Stradale is a supercar, with an 8-cylinder engine, designed by Scaglione. It is considered the stylistic forerunner of the recent 8C Competizione, and in its day, was top of the Alfa Romeo range. The 2000 Sportiva, also designed by Scaglione and with coachwork by Bertone, is an elegant metallic grey coupé: not widely known to the general public.
These precious examples from some of the most significant stages in Alfa Romeo’s long and distinguished history of design and innovation, will be accompanied by the marque’s two latest models, the brand new and already widely acclaimed Giulietta, and the magnificent 8C Spider. Both these models are products of Alfa Romeo’s renewed stylistic and technological direction, which began with the 8C Competizione supercar and is emphasised by a return to Italian names that form a link with the marque’s glorious past, while also pointing to a future based on values of technology and passion.
As the vehicles on display at Cernobbio clearly show, Alfa Romeo cars, past and present, stand out on for their passionate styling, cutting edge technology, superb road holding and unrivalled driving pleasure.
Finally, bearing witness to 100 years of fruitful collaboration between Europe’s top car designers and the Alfa Romeo Style Centre, the Alfa Romeo area at Villa d’Este will also be displaying Pininfarina’s 2ettottanta, a concept presented at this year’s Geneva Motor Show as a homage to 80 years of Pininfarina automobile history, and to the famous Alfa Romeo Duetto spider designed by the company.
