Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale.
24-09-2023 15:11 - CAR NEWS
To turn a dream into reality you need, first of all, a good dose of courage and a pinch of healthy madness. The same ingredients with which the car considered by many to be among the most beautiful ever was born in 1967: the 33 Stradale. Today, with the same audacity and vision, the Alfa Romeo team has designed and developed the new 33 Stradale, an authentic work of art in motion, generated by the perfect combination of beauty and technique. Its goal is to give the most exhilarating driving experience and the immortal charm of an icon to a very small circle of enthusiasts, who believed in the project from the beginning. The new 33 Stradale, in fact, was born in the newly created Alfa Romeo "Bottega" where designers, engineers and brand historians first listened to potential buyers and then created it together.
Fruit of the Alfa Romeo Style Centre, the new 33 Stradale is inspired by the historic 1967 model, enriching its sculptural beauty with some design elements from Alfa Romeo's new stylistic language. The exteriors are characterized by a perfect balance between proportions, volumes and surface treatment, representing the epitome of Alfa Romeo's "necessary beauty". The front part presents a powerful and muscular volume, on which the iconic shield and complex-shaped light clusters on an elliptical base stand out. The side line is dynamic and slender, with "elytra" opening doors and two large side air intakes. The car body is projected forward, with surfaces modeled according to the typical criteria of Alfa Romeo's formal expression. Furthermore, thanks to the angled opening of the doors and the large wraparound glass of the roof, the driver enjoys a unique view, very similar to that which he would experience in the cabin of a jet. The overall image offered by the opening of the bonnets and doors enhances the scenographic appearance of the car. The "brutal" rear is balanced by the sinuous front and the maximum height is not at the height of the windshield, as on any other sports car, but in the center of the roof. In particular, the rear area expresses the strength of the car thanks to the truncated tail, a "V" graphic and the round rear lights. The aerodynamic efficiency is confirmed by a Cd of 0.375 at zero Cz (downlift) - by precise choice without the use of active systems.
With project 33 the Alfa Romeo "Bottega" was born, a team of professionals who worked closely with customers to design 33 unique and exclusive examples. The "Bottega" is inspired by the Renaissance workshops and the coachbuilders of the 1960s, creating works of art of pure beauty and following the instructions of the clients. The clients were involved in the creative process from the beginning of the project. The first meetings with some of them took place during the 2022 Monza Grand Prix, and they had the opportunity to express their wishes about their car. Within a few weeks all 33 examples were sold. The headquarters of the shop is in the Council Hall of the Arese Museum, where the 33 Stradale project was approved in 1967. Finally, it is up to committee 33 to approve customer requests, ensuring respect for the history and iconic nature of the car. This is a specific committee chaired by the CEO of Alfa Romeo and made up of the managers of various departments of the brand.
The Alfa Romeo team has set itself the ambitious goal of offering a driving experience of a track car, but suitable for daily use on the road, without compromising on comfort and ease of use even in daily use. For this reason, the new 33 Stradale boasts the best of Alfa Romeo engineering, as demonstrated by the double-arm suspension with active shock absorbers and the evolution of the V6 engine. The new "custom-built" Alfa Romeo can be equipped with a V6 biturbo engine of over 620 HP or in a BEV configuration of over 750 HP. Performance is excellent in both versions. The maximum speed is 333 km/h while acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h occurs in less than 3 seconds. The double-arm suspension with active shock absorbers and the front-end lift ensure smooth handling and comfort. The Alfa Romeo Brake-By-Wire braking system and Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes offer high-level performance. The aluminum H-frame and carbon fiber monocoque guarantee rigidity and lightness. Again to ensure high levels of rigidity and safety, a roof structure in carbon fiber and aluminum was engineered with hinges to secure the butterfly doors. The glass frames are also made of carbon while the rear window is made of polycarbonate. The car's set up will see the support of F1 driver Valtteri Bottas on the legendary Balocco track, thus bringing F1 experience into daily driving and ensuring unmistakable Alfa Romeo handling.
The new "custom-built" will be produced in just 33 examples through a dedicated program which has allowed customers to develop functional stylistic elements together with the Alfa Romeo development team: air intakes, wheels, and even the distinctive front shield. This means that there will never be two identical cars in the world, making them de facto "four-wheeled" masterpieces, which will have the ambition of rightfully entering the history of Alfa Romeo. Uniqueness that is also demonstrated with an exclusive registration procedure that allows the customer to "sign" the chassis number. The specific VIN in fact includes 8 digits chosen by the customer and is also shown on the central tunnel. With consolidated experience in the field of the most exclusive automotive tailor-made, Alfa Romeo will make use of the craftsmanship of Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera for the construction of the cars, thus guaranteeing sartorial quality standards that guarantee obsessive attention to detail.
The 33 Stradale of 1967 derived directly from the Tipo 33, queen of world motorsport in those years. Project 33 marks Alfa Romeo's return to competition, led by the then President of the brand Giuseppe Eugenio Luraghi and Carlo Chiti of Autodelta, the newly formed racing department. The Fléron hillclimb, near Liège, was chosen for the debut; driving the car is Autodelta's chief test driver, Teodoro Zeccoli. It was on 12 March 1967 that the 33 entered the world of competitions. And he wins immediately. It is the first of a long series of successes on the most prestigious circuits that will take her to the top of the world, with victories in the Marche Championship in '75 and '77. In the wake of sporting enthusiasm, Alfa Romeo decided to produce the 33 in a very small series for private individuals, a "custom-built" that combined the performance of the racing Tipo 33 with the comfort and driveability suitable for everyday use. The design was entrusted to Franco Scaglione, who put all his technical expertise and creative audacity into the 33 Stradale project, creating a masterpiece in which style innovation merges with the search for aerodynamics and functionality. The design of the 1967 33 Stradale, the quintessence of beauty in a car, is almost impossible to describe: it is expressed by the balance of forms, the purity of the lines, the elegance of every single detail. Only 18 examples were produced between 1967 and 1969, one of which is now kept in the Arese Museum, making it extremely rare and coveted by collectors. Six of these chassis were used to create as many prototypes, which anticipated two decades of automotive design: the Carabo (1968), the P33 Roadster GS (1968), the 33/2 Coupé Speciale (1969), the Cuneo (1971) and the 'Iguana (1969) the Navajo (1976). In short, the 33 Stradale is a legendary model that has marked not only the history of Alfa Romeo, but also that of Italian design.