Alfa Romeo GTV, GTA, and GTA Junior

Dana Loomis

Introduction

The Alfa Romeo Giulia coupe and its derivatives-the GT Veloce (GTV), GT Junior, GTA, GTAm, and GTA Junior-has enjoyed one of the most successful racing records of any production car of its era. The Giulia (sounds like "Julia") was an evolution of the 1300 cc Giulietta, the first car Alfa Romeo produced for the post World War II mass market. The Giulia was introduced in 1962 in the form of a space-efficient, aerodynamic four-door sedan with an all-aluminum, dual overhead cam 1600 cc engine, four-wheel disc brakes, and a five-speed transmission. Like its predcesssor, the Giulietta, the Giulia had dual wishbone front suspension and a live rear axle. At the time, Giulia was considered to be an advanced design that marked Alfa Romeo's re-entry to the middle-class car market.

A coupe version of the Giulia, with dual side-draft Weber carburetors and other performance-oriented mechanical improvements, followed in 1963. The Giulia coupe's elegant bodywork was a product of the well-known Bertone design studio, but the actual design work was done by Giorgetto Giugiaro, who went on to produce other classics including the Maserati Bora and the original Volkswagen Golf (Rabbit in the US).

Production History

The Giulia coupe was produced from 1963 to 1975. The styling and mechanical design remained essentially the same, but progressive changes throughout the production period produced variations in engine displacement and other mechanical specifications, in addition to minor changes in appearance and in the car's name.

The coupe originally had a 1600 cc engine and was known as the Giulia Sprint GT. In 1966, a few minor mechanical improvements were made and the name was changed to Giulia Sprint GT Veloce ("fast"). More substantial mechanical changes, including a new 1.8 liter engine, were made for the 1968 model year, and the coupe was renamed the 1750 GT Veloce, better known as the GTV. A 2.0 liter engine was introduced in 1972 and the coupe became the 2000 GTV. For economy-minded Europeans, a 1300 cc version of the Giulia coupe, the GT Junior, was introduced in 1968. US versions of the 1750 and 2000 GTVs used Alfa Romeo's own proprietary mechanical fuel injection system in place of the European model's Weber carburetors.

In 1966, a special, limited-production variant of the Giulia coupe was developed specifically to enhance the car's prospects in international touring car competition. This car, which was hand-fabricated with lightweight aluminum body panels, was officially named the Giulia Sprint GT Alleggerita ("lightened")-the GTA, for short. The GTA used the 1600 Giulia engine with a special cylinder head with two spark plugs per cylinder that allowed it to produce 170 HP in full-race form. It also had a special, close-ratio transmission, a unique sliding block device to laterally locate the rear axle, and a host of other race-bred parts.

The ultimate evolution of the Giulia coupe, introduced in 1970, was the GT America, usually shortened to GTAm. The GTAm was derived from the steel-bodied, production, US-model 1750 GTV. In this sense it was different from the GTA: the GTAm was not a production model, but a pure race car. It used many of the special components developed for the 1600 GTA. However, it had a purpose-built, fuel-injected 2 liter engine producing over 200 HP. The GTAm was also visually distinct from the GTA; it had wide, plastic fender flares and 9 or 10x13 inch alloy wheels that had originally been used on Alfa Romeo's Tipo 33 sports racer. Ironically, the factory never raced GTAms in the United States, despite the name.

The popular 1300 cc GT Junior was also given the GTA treatment and offered for sale as the GTA 1300 Junior. Although the GTA Junior had the same 1290 cc engine displacement as the standard production GT Junior, and the Giulietta before it, that displacement was achieved with a unique engine with a shorter stroke and larger bore than the standard unit. The Junior was produced for a longer period of time and in a wider variety of configurations than any other Giulia coupe. Early versions of the GTA Junior were essentially identical to the original 1600 GTA except for the engine displacement, but by the 70s, Juniors began to be fitted with the GTAm's wide wheels, fender flares, and fuel injection. Some late GTA Juniors even had motors equipped with an exotic twin-plug, four-valve-per-cylinder head.

In compliance with FIA rules for Touring Car racing, roadgoing versions of the GTA and the GTA Junior were available for purchase by the public. The GTA was produced from 1966 to 1969, and the GTA Junior from 1969 to 1975. More potent versions of both cars were prepared for the factory racing team by Alfa Romeo's own racing shop, Autodelta. Private owners who were racing their cars could buy any of the special competition parts developed for the factory team and could even have their cars prepared by Autodelta. As a result of these combined efforts by the factory and private owners, large numbers of Alfa coupes competed worldwide in the 1960s and '70s.

Alfa Romeo Giulia Coupe: models produced, production years, engine displacement and major competion classes in Europe and the USA

International Competition History

Alfa Romeo's factory racing team campaigned the Giulia coupes aggressively in the European Touring Car Challenge from 1966 to 1972. The Alfas indisputably dominated the sport during those years, winning first place titles in six of seven years: 1966, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1971 and 1972.

Private teams also entered many GTAs, GTA Juniors and GTVs in national and regional races from the mid 1960s through the late '70s. Alfas were so popular that period photos often show fields crowded with GTAs. Adding to their spectacular success in Touring Car competition in Europe, the Alfa coupes appeared in circuit races in such venues as South Africa, Australia, South America, and the United States, and could also be found in rallies, hill climbs, and the equivalent of showroom stock races.