Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint, Spider, SS, SZ and ti: glory days

By Richard Heseltine

| 2 Sep 2024

Classic & Sports Car – Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint, Spider, SS, SZ and ti

With the power of political patronage, there is every chance that things could get messy.

A state-backed car manufacturer is in desperate need of cash for its vital new model, so it devises a fiendishly clever way of raising funds.

A lottery scheme attracts punters into parting with large amounts of money for the chance to win one of these new cars.

A date is set for the draw, but then it all goes very quiet.

The 750-series Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint arrived just in time for the cash-strapped Italian marque

The press gets whiff of a story and a scandal slowly brews: it transpires that the promised prizes are still in bits.

To save face, a coachbuilder is persuaded to create another new car – an altogether sexier one – from the parts to appease the aggrieved ticket holders.

Everyone – or at least the winners – goes home happy. Job done.

Sounds fanciful? It happened. And it comes as no great surprise that the manufacturer was Alfa Romeo, routinely driven to the point of extinction yet hanging on in there even today.

The Giulietta Sprint’s 1290cc twin-cam was derived from the Alfa Romeo 1900’s unit

Without the Giulietta, the marque wouldnʼt have seen out the 1950s.

At the end of WW2, Alfa Romeo was in dire straits, its Portello factory lying in ruins.

If it was going to survive, it needed a volume product.

The first ʻrealʼ post-war model, the 1900, failed to deliver in terms of numbers, but the Giulietta changed all that.

The Berlina, a four-door saloon with a strong family resemblance to its predecessor, inherited the 1900ʼs basic engine configuration but with a block cast in aluminium and its capacity reduced to just 1290cc from near to 2 litres.

Inside the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint it’s comfortable and stylish

Underneath the staid skin, it followed 1900 practice of coil-and-wishbone independent front suspension, worm-and-roller steering and a live rear axle on coil springs, located by radius arms and an A-bracket.

With a history of bespoke sporting machines, Alfa needed an enormous amount of money to renovate and re-equip before it could build the car, hence the unusual method of financing.

Due for release in 1954, the Berlina was still some way off. Enter the Giulietta Sprint.

In an effort to counter mounting bad press about non-existent prizes, Alfa Romeo recruited Nuccio Bertoneʼs tiny carrozzeria to create a new coupé in time for that yearʼs Turin motor show.

The legend that he and his team managed it in just 10 days is just that.

This Alfa Romeo Giulietta Berlina ti is right-hand drive and one of the few in the UK

In the autumn of 1953, test mules had left the factory with styling houses being asked to quote for a prototype sporting model.

Felico Mario Boano, then of Ghia, produced an ambitious design, while Bertone stylist Franco Scaglione created an elegant shape that won the toss, even though Bertone was in no position to build the mooted 1000 units.

A compromise was reached by which Ghia would make the production bodies, while Alfa Romeo was responsible for the final assembly.

The Sprint was a sensation. It was clear that, lottery winners aside, Alfa Romeo had grossly underestimated demand.

Then Boano and Ghia split amid much rancour, and the deal to produce shells came to a juddering halt.

‘Our’ Alfa Romeo Giulietta Berlina ti has later Giulia upgrades, including a 1570cc twin-cam and five-speed gearbox

Bertone was pressed to up its capacity, which it managed largely through state funds, making the switch from wooden formers to steel dies in a much larger workshop.

In 1955, the belated Berlina finally arrived, joined by a further variation of the 750-series theme: the Spider.

The influence behind the new topless model came from America.

Max Hoffman imported Alfas in the immediate post-war years, but it wasnʼt a happy relationship.

In a bid to woo him back, the entrepreneur was invited to view the Sprint.

Preferring an open car, he had a look at some Pinin Farina mock-ups and remarked that it would sell much better with wind-down windows. And thatʼs how the Spider arrived.

The Alfa Romeo Giulietta Berlina ti has a comfy, if not particularly plush, cabin

Sitting on a much shorter wheelbase than the Sprint and Berlina (86.5in against 93.7in), it shared no body panels with its siblings.

All that was lacking was more power.

From 1956, Veloce versions of the Sprint and Spider were offered with raised compression ratios and a brace of double-choke Webers meaning 90bhp at 6500rpm, while a column change gave way to four-speed floor shifters.

The hotter Sprint model gained Perspex side glazing and lighter doors, boot and bonnet, which all helped the Sprint reach an impressive 112mph from 1.3 litres.

Not that the Berlina was left out in the horsepower race.

In 1957, there was the option of a 65bhp engine (and later 74bhp) for the ti – enough to shave 3 secs off the 0-60mph time, taking it down to 11.5 secs.

Famous five: the Giulietta family meet to celebrate Alfa Romeo’s brilliant line-up

Further revisions aside – with the regular sporting models getting 80bhp and the end of ʻlightweightʼ Sprint production from 1958 – there were few changes until the arrival of the 101-series Alfa Romeo Giuliettas in 1960.

The enduring twin-cam engine received a raft of detail improvements aimed at strengthening the unit, accompanied by a sturdier ʼbox, although specific output remained the same.

The Giulietta started making a name for itself in competition.

The Sprint Veloce took on the big guns, winning its class everywhere from the Mille Miglia to the Sebring 12 Hours, while taking the odd overall win such as the ʼ57 Tour de Corse.

It didnʼt take long to appreciate the potential of a proper racer. Step forward Bertoneʼs Sprint Speciale.

The Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider was produced at the behest of US importer Max Hoffman

Unveiled at Turin in ʼ57 and based on a Spider platform, the SS was a study in streamlining – Scaglioneʼs outline later recorded an astonishing drag coefficient of 0.29Cd.

The shape was refined for production – a couple of inches were removed from the nose and added to the roofline – but the SS was welcomed into the Alfa Romeo family from June ʼ59.

With a claimed top speed of 125mph, it was the worldʼs fastest 1.3-litre production car.

The initial batch of 101 cars, built to satisfy homologation requirements, had lightweight aluminium panels.

The problem was, Zagato had already beaten Bertone to the punch by building its own competition Giulietta, albeit not officially sanctioned.

This Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider has a fetching red-leather interior

The SZʼs roots grew out of a one-off order by brothers Carlo and Dore Leto di Priolo.

Having crashed their Sprint Veloce on the ʼ56 Mille Miglia, they approached Elio Zagato to reclothe the crumpled remains. Thus the SVZ was born.

In this form, and when driven by third brother Massimo, this ultra-lightweight (785kg) car beat Jo Bonnierʼs Sprint Veloce in the Coppa Intereuropa GT race at Monza by 22 secs.

Before long, drivers were queuing up for replicas.

From 1957 to ʼ59, 19 were made and, with a hot Virgilio Conrero-tuned engine, little could touch it. Certainly not the SS.

Aside from class honours on the ʼ59 Targa Florio, the ʻflying saucerʼ was shown up so much that, with the switch from 750 to 101 series, it was sold purely as a road car, with the SVZ becoming a production model (as the SZ, with Kamm-tailed ʻCoda Troncaʼ bodies from 1961).

‘You can really use the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider’s fabulous steering. Its limits are a lot higher than you rightly expect of a car of this age’

The Giulia saloon arrived in ʼ62 and spelled the beginning of the end for Alfa Romeo’s Giuliettas.

The base Berlina was dropped that year, but the ti lingered another two.

From ʼ62, the Sprint and Spider received Giulia upgrades such as the longer-stroke 1570cc motor and five speeds, plus disc brakes from ʼ64.

That year, the entry-level 1.3-litre Sprint was dropped; it reappeared briefly as a home-market tax-break edition, then was canned again.

Similarly, the SS was discontinued in mid-ʼ62, reappearing the following year with a bigger engine.

By ʼ65 it was all over for the Giulietta, although one Sprint Speciale was built the following year.

This Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider is a transitional model with 750- and 101-series features

Seeing the whole family reunited, the shared DNA is obvious, even if there is little real physical similarity barring wheels and corporate grilles.

The Berlina ti looks the most out of place, but itʼs a splendid thing.

With its upright stance, thoughtfully used brightwork and vestigial tailfins, itʼs more understated than many more mainstream rivals, but that could be down to unfamiliarity: only 1017 cars – just over 1% of total production – were made in right-hand drive so your chances of seeing one are slim.

At £1928 in ʼ59, when a Sunbeam Rapier cost £928, itʼs even less of a surprise. The Sprint, in comparison, is a vision of loveliness.

This early 750-series edition, an original UK market ʼ56 car, is utterly gorgeous, with a styling purity that was partially lost on later cars once the headlights were recessed and the tail-lights enlarged (a makeover performed by a young Giorgetto Giugiaro).

The late-model Alfa Romeo Giulia SS borrowed heavily from Scaglione’s earlier BAT concept cars

Itʼs certainly a lot less flashy than the Spider, here an interim model with 750- and 101-series features.

Pinin Farinaʼs characteristic dazzle hasnʼt dated: the proportions are spot-on, even if the liberal use of chrome is heavy-handed.

The SS still divides opinion. This late-model Giulia SS, as tested in period by The Autocar and campaigned in rallies by Nick Brittan, is either a styling masterclass or a design hoax, depending on your point of view.

What is beyond question is that it has been cribbed ad infinitum since, especially the glasshouse and gracefully swept-in tail (take another look at the back end of a Series 1 Jaguar XJ6).

Remarkably, considering it isnʼt a big car, the SS dwarves the Sprint Zagato.

This ovular device is typical of the styling house, with function over form being the prerequisite.

In early Giulietta trim the SS could reach 125mph

Itʼs utterly captivating and looks as if it has melted over its tubular frame. Thereʼs nothing to get in the way, no styling trickery, just curves.

Itʼs a pig to get into, though, thanks to the low roofline and its rollcage.

Once inside, itʼs sparse – not least the instruments in a (non-original) crackle-black dashboard.

With the short-backed driverʼs seat mounted directly to the floor so its pilot can wear a crash helmet – no ʻdouble bubbleʼ roof here – line of sight is directly in line with the top of the wheel.

The SS is similarly starved of luxuries, but it is swish.

Enrico Nardiʼs wood-rim wheel fronts a delightful painted dash with little instrumentation, while Lancia Sport Zagato seats replace the shapeless originals.

‘The Alfa Romeo Giulia SS divides opinion. It is either a styling masterclass or a design hoax, depending on your point of view’

Itʼs cosy and, for a competition car, youʼd soon get very familiar with your co-driver, but the overall effect is as comfortable as it is stylish.

The same goes for the Spider and Sprint – the ʻless is moreʼ approach totally in keeping.

In open form, thereʼs more room than you might think, the doors not crowding you, unlike in period rivals.

In the Sprint, you sit high relative to the wheel even if the roofline doesnʼt encroach.

The ti is poles apart, being sparse to the point of austerity save the stylised dash.

Again, you feel slightly perched, the seats not offering much in the way of support.

But itʼs airy and thereʼs decent room in the back, despite the entire car fitting within a MINI Oneʼs footprint.

The Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ was not an official model until the SS proved a flop on the circuits

Meaningful driving impressions are negated by the fact that this rare survivor isnʼt entirely original: at some point it gained a Giulia 1570cc unit and five-speed ʼbox, making it an excellent Q-car.

It ushers keenly off the line, the gearchange with its direct lever being among the best of its type back in the ʼ60s.

Steering is unexpectedly heavy at low speed but loads up beautifully at higher speeds, with real precision on turn-in. And it hangs on in there in the twisties.

Roll is pronounced but adhesion is exemplary. You can feel the back start to shimmy, a characteristic of all Alfas from this period, and the rear wants to step out, but itʼs happy there.

The pedals may take some acclimatisation for the unfamiliar – the accelerator is hinged from the top, the others from the floor.

The clutch demands more respect than youʼd imagine, while the brakes on this example initially lack feel, the nose weaving under even moderate pedal pressure. Otherwise, this is a truly enjoyable car.

‘With an owner-imposed redline of 7000rpm, it sounds as if it’s going to explode long before’

For an aged car of such small displacement, the Sprint is a remarkable machine.

Like the Berlina, the ride is pliant and, with 2.5 turns from lock to lock, the steering is about as precise as it gets, with real feedback.

Anti-roll bar notwithstanding, lean remains pronounced, but itʼs just so faithful with it. You never get the impression itʼs going to do anything untoward.

This gorgeous machine isnʼt fast by modern standards, but will rev its little heart out (the tacho doesnʼt read below 2000rpm) and thereʼs usable torque.

With similar basic architecture the Spider feels much the same, but a shorter wheelbase has a negligible effect on ride quality.

The lower centre of gravity results in a more seat-of-the-pants feel in switchbacks, where you can really use the fabulous steering.

Cornering limits are a lot higher than you can rightly expect of a car of this age.

Later Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZs had a longer Kamm tail

In standard trim the SS has greater stability at speed, although roll is more immediately evident, even if it never threatens to fall off.

This little Alfa Romeo has suspension modifications for competition that have nearly eradicated any vices.

Cornering is eerily flat, despite the modest rubber; you can feel the back end testing your resolve but thatʼs as far as it goes. The warnings are telegraphed but remain just that.

And it has real power, due to the extra capacity, with added refinement thanks to the extra cog.

Anyone new to these cars may be surprised at the amount of pedal travel before you get any feel from the brakes, but they do stop well.

And then thereʼs the SZ, which is barking. With an owner-imposed redline of 7000rpm, it sounds as if itʼs going to explode long before, but thatʼs the illusion of an unsilenced racer.

There isnʼt much below 4000rpm but, by five and a half, itʼs screaming.

The Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ has a tight, focused cabin

Weighing 240lb less than a Sprint Veloce, and with a race-prepared twin-cam, it really is a flier.

Worn synchros make graunching inevitable despite double-declutching, but, like its siblings, you can leave it in top just about everywhere.

With some negative camber at the front, near-zero ground clearance and sharing the Spiderʼs wheelbase, the ride isnʼt exactly supple, but you wouldnʼt expect that from a racer.

Turn-in is rapid and thereʼs the sense that you could really throw this car around.

A view backed up by owner James Wiseman: “Having raced an SS before, you had to be that much more precise, which I think had a lot to do with weight and the overhangs. The SZ is more like a 105-series GTA – itʼs a hooliganʼs car.”

You can understand why these cars were so popular: there was nothing like them.

Theyʼre worth acclaim if only for saving Alfa Romeo. And Bertone. And Pinin Farina. All would have gone to the wall without the Giulietta.

Choosing a favourite is pointless but, if push comes to shove, it would be the SZ for its looks and restless character – like a five-year-old after too much Sunny D.

You just want to spank the SZ to within an inch of its life.

Whether you could live with it on the road is debatable, but the owner often drives this Targa veteran from his Cotswolds home to London.

So, best to have a hotted-up ti as back-up, then?

Images: Tony Baker

Thanks to: John Britton (ti), James Wiseman (SZ), Roger Peirson (Sprint), Russell Ware (Spider) and John Williams (SS), plus Peter Yaxley of the Giulietta Register for sourcing the cars

This was first in our August 2004 magazine; all information was correct at the date of original publication

Factfiles

Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint

Engine all-alloy, dohc 1290cc ‘four’, single Solex carburettor (twin-choke from ’58; twin Webers for Veloce versions)
Max power 65-80bhp @ 6000rpm (Veloce 90bhp @ 6500rpm; Giulia 120bhp @ 6500rpm)
Max torque 79.5lb ft @ 4000rpm (Veloce 90lb ft @ 6500rpm; Giulia 105lb ft @ 4000rpm)
Transmission four-speed manual, RWD; column change until ’56 (Giulia five-speed)
Suspension: front independent, by double wishbones, anti-roll bar rear live axle, trailing arms, upper A-bracket; coil springs, telescopic dampers f/r
Steering worm and roller
Length 13ft 2in (3975mm)
Width 5ft 2in (1537mm)
Height 4ft 4in (1321mm)
Wheelbase 7ft 10in (2380mm)
Weight 1995lb (905kg)
Mpg 29
Top speed 103-112mph
0-60mph 10.5-13.2 secs
Price new £2262