The Alfa Romeo Alfetta

The Alfa Romeo Alfetta (Type 116) is an executive saloon car and fastback coupé produced by the Italian manufacturer Alfa Romeo from 1972 to 1987. It was popular due to its combination of a modest weight with powerful engines, selling over 400,000 units until the end of its production run.

The Sedan had a body designed by Centro Stile Alfa Romeo, and the Alfetta GTV coupé (not to be confused with the more recent 1995 Alfa Romeo GTV, or the classic Giulia GTV), was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro. The Alfetta introduced a new drivetrain layout to the marque. Clutch and transmission were housed at the rear of the car, together with the differential for a more balanced weight distribution, as used on the Alfetta 158/159 Grand Prix cars. The Gold Cloverleaf (Quadrifoglio Oro) model was actually sold as the Alfetta 159i in some markets. The suspension relied on double wishbones and torsion bars at the front and a de Dion beam at the rear. The Alfetta was renewed in 1979 with a revised frontend, new wheel rims and new lights, as well as a diesel version.

It was available with two four-cylinder DOHC engines with two valves per cylinder and a turbodiesel engine supplied by VM Motori. The 1.6 and 1.8 L base models had two double-barrel carburettors, while the 2.0 DOHC received fuel injection in 1979.

The diesel, Alfa Romeo's first passenger car thus equipped, was initially of 2.0 litres, but was increased to 2.4 L in 1982. The diesel added 100 kg (220 lb) over the front axle, but for some reason it did not originally receive power steering as standard.[4] Nonetheless, respecting Alfa Romeo's sporting heritage, it received a tachometer - very unusual in diesels of this era.[4] The diesels were mostly sold in Italy and in France, as well as a few other continental European markets where the tax structure suited this model.

The four-door Alfetta was sold in the USA from 1975 through 1977 under the name Alfetta Sedan. From 1978 to 1979 a mildly restyled version was sold under the name Sport Sedan. The four-cylinder coupé was available from 1975 to 1977 under the moniker Alfetta GT, renamed the Sprint Veloce for the final two years of production in 1978 and 1979. Finally, the V-6 version was marketed from 1981 to 1986 as the GTV-6.

The Alfa Romeo Alfetta became well known throughout the world since it was Italian Prime Minister Aldo Moro's official escort car, when, in 1978, he was first kidnapped, then killed, by the Italian Terrorist left-wing organization The Red Brigades. A fictionalised account of these events was produced as a critically well regarded Italian film, The Advocate, which also heavily featured Alfettas of all types, from Carabinieri 'Short Nose-Round Light' through to the Prime Minister's own 'Long Nose-Square Light' 2000 Super Saloon.

A special semi experimental version of CEM (Controllo Elettronico del Motore) was developed in 1981 in collaboration with the University of Genoa, it was made 10 examples derived from the "2.0", this engine could use two- or four-cylinder as needed in order to reduce fuel consumption. The cars were assigned to taxi drivers in Milan, to verify operation and performance in real-use situations. After the first trial, in 1983, was produced a small series (991 examples), which were entrusted to a select clients. Despite this second experimental phase, the project had no further developments.


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