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An Alfasud 1200 has to be one of the most popular choices for the ‘How Many Are Left” lists of cars. In fact, they were never especially common sights 45 years ago, as the compact Alfa Romeo was the choice of those who regarded themselves a cut above your average family saloon

The origins of the Alfasud date back to 1967 when Alfa’s CEO Giuseppe Luraghi mooted the idea of a small car; the company had not produced a small-mass market vehicle since the demise of the locally assembled Renault Dauphine in 1964. The Italian government loaned the company a not inconsiderable 360 million lire on the condition the new model was built at the former Alfa Romeo Aviation factory at Pomigliano d’Arco near Naples.

The famed Austrian engineer Rudolf Hurska commenced work on the project in 1967 and the Alfasud – “Alfa South” - debuted at the 1971 Turin Motor Show. Some visitors were amazed by its 1.2-litre four-cylinder “Boxer” OHC engine, while others were impressed by the smart Giorgetto Giugiaro-styled four-door bodyshell. Plus, this was the first Alfa Romeo with rack and pinion steering and the first FWD car to bear the famous badge.

Production commenced in April 1972, but British motorists had to wait until July 1973 for official imports. The price was a very steep £1,399, with brake servo costing an additional £15.49. Motor Sport referred to the Alfasud as “An Alfa Romeo for the proletariat” (no comment). The scribe also complained that ‘its appointments are cheap and tasteless and its performance is most un-Alfa-like’ while his conclusion was quite startling:

Take, for example, the 2.3-litre Vauxhall Magnum four-door which offers over 100 mph., 0-60 in around 10 sec., similar fuel consumption to the Alfasud, vast torque and tractability and every interior comfort except radio for £1,318. Then decide whether you can afford to pay the price of individuality.

Fortunately, Motor of 22^nd December 1973 was far more positive when they tested the Alfasud opposite the Citroën GS Club – ‘both models are remarkably fine cars’. The Alfa Romeo offered transmission that was ‘quite outstanding in the ease and precision of its action’, and it was ‘one of the few front-wheel drive cars with almost no understeer’. In the following year, Car tested the Alfasud and the Citroen alongside the Allegro 1750SS. They concluded that while the Austin appealed to the practical-minder driver, the Italian and French cars were ‘exceptional cars’, with the first place going to the Alfa Romeo.

And for those who craved yet more performance, there was the TI (tourismo internazionale), with its Weber twin-choke downdraft carburettor, a five-speed gearbox and 102 mph top speed. Richard Hudson-Evans was clearly very taken with the latest Alfasud on Thames TV’s Drive In: the gearchange was ‘one of the very best we have tried’, and the handling  was ‘a delight’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl24AzYUP2M

The great motoring historian Keith Adams makes the excellent point that it pre-dates the Golf GTI by three years. In December 1974, Car preferred the Ti to the Audi 80 GT and the Ford Escort RS 2000 Mk. I. ‘There is little to fault in its dynamic qualities nor in its comparability with the final component in its concept – the driver’.

Production of the Alfasud saloons ceased in 1983 – the Sprint coupe remained available until 1983 - and surviving examples are about as common as a watchable edition of Emmerdale. One challenge was, as Martin Buckley put it in an Evo article of 2009 – ‘a government-sponsored car factory ‘hundreds of miles away from established manufacturing bases in the north of the country had certain built-in problems’.

Further issues were the lack of quality of the reclaimed steel and Alfa’s unwise habit of storing the unpainted body shells on the open air.  The company’s solution to rust issues was to fill the box-sections with a synthetic foam – which trapped moisture, resulting in yet more corrosion.

Yet not even the reputation for tin-worm can detract from the Alfasud’s reputation. It was Alfa Romeo’s first model that brought all of the marque’s traditional abilities within reach of the average motorist. That is why it deserves to be remembered.

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We have links with some of the top classic car clubs around the country and some of our policies even offer discounts of up to 25% for club members.

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