A Classic Alfa That Inspired A Modern Supercar Heads To Auction

Alfa Romeo last year unveiled a supercar with a mid-engine layout and a production run limited to just 33 cars. The car didn’t come out of nowhere, however, as it was developed as a modern iteration of one of the most stunning models from Alfa Romeo’s past: the 33 Stradale.

Now, an original 33 built for racing – and with incredible provenance to boot – is headed to an RM Sotheby’s auction running in mid-August during Monterey Car Week. For collectors with pockets deep enough, it presents a rare opportunity to own a significant piece of Alfa history.

The Birth Of The Alfa Romeo 33

Following the absorption of the separate racing company Autodelta in 1966, Alfa Romeo started work on a successor to its TZ, an equally iconic race car that had been successful in sports car racing during the decade. Leading the development of the successor was legendary engineer Carlo Chiti.

Just five were built for the 1967 motorsport season, each powered by a 2.0-liter V8 rated at 270 hp. The cars were referred to as the 33/2, where the 33 stood for the model name and the 2 for the 2.0-liter displacement. This also helped differentiate them from the road-going version launched around the same time, the aforementioned 33 Stradale.

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The early 33/2 race cars managed some wins in various hill climbs but proved uncompetitive in international racing, so Chiti designed an upgraded version with a 2.5-liter engine delivering 315 hp. Later versions of the 33 would bump the displacement up to 3.0 liters.

Raced By Mario Andretti At Daytona

The car up for sale, which bears chassis number 015, features the 2.5-liter engine, and was in fact the first 33/2 to be fitted with the engine. It initially competed under the auspices of Autodelta, with its racing debut taking place at the 1968 24 Hours of Daytona, where Lucien Bianchi and future Formula 1 World Champion Mario Andretti took it to fifth in class and sixth overall. It finished in the middle of two other examples of the 33/2.

It would also compete in prestigious races in Europe, including the Targa Florio, Nürburgring 1000 KM, and Austrian Grand Prix. In 1969, the car was fielded by Belgium’s Team VDS, and in 1970 it was sold to Portuguese driver Antonio Peixinho, who took it to Angola to compete in various events in the African nation.

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At some point, the car passed to Antonio De Santos, a Portuguese national who stored it in Angola together with other rare race cars, including a Ford GT40 and a Chevron B19, after Angola’s war for independence started heating up in the early 1970s. The car would remain there until a French businessman and racing enthusiast, Jean Chambault, managed to persuade De Santos to part ways with it. It then traded hands several times before ending up with its current owner in 2012.

The Modern Alfa Romeo 33

Alfa Romeo’s Modern 33 was developed both as a celebration of the original car and as a way to mark the end of the era of Alfa Romeo cars with ICE powertrains. The automaker had been gearing up to launch only electric vehicles starting this decade, but the slowdown in EV growth has persuaded the company to hold off on ending ICE production.

The modern car is powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 that Alfa Romeo said was developed from the V6 found in models like the Giulia and Stelvio. The engine is rated at 620 hp and powers the rear wheels via an 8-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and an electronic limited-slip differential.

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At last year’s reveal, Alfa Romeo said an electric powertrain with 750 hp would be offered as an alternative. However, the take-up rate was low – rumored to be just two of the 33 buyers – and was thus dropped; it also didn’t help that the Maserati MC20 Folgore was axed, and that would’v been the foundation for the 33 Stradale EV. The version with the ICE powertrain is already being delivered.

Sources: Alfa Romeo, RM Sotheby’s