Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV

The original prototype and forebear of the Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV was unveiled at the companies new factory in Arese in 1963, and following a subsequent appearance at the Frankfurt Motor Show, the car was put into production, then as the Giulia Sprint GT (or Bertone Coupe).This original iteration came with a 1600cc engine borrowed from the sedan, however twin carbs were used to provide the necessary increase in power to make the car more sporting.Mechanically the Giulia Sprint GT was a little underpowered, however it made up for the perceived shortcomings by providing ample standard kit, such as a 5 speed gearbox renowned for its beautifully slick operation, disc brakes to all four wheels and suspension revisions (such as mounting the shock-absorbers upside down) to ensure a sporting drive.It is testament to the technical innovation incorporated into the car that it was able to give the best of the Italian super-cars a run for their money on roads where suspension, and not straight line speed, were the measure of a great car.In 1965 the Giulia GTC, GTA and GTV were released. It was the Alfa Romeo GTV that, at face value, seemed to have only a few minor changes, but if you looked a little deeper you would see how significant these actually were. For instance, the inlet valve size was increased by 2mm, which improved power and now increased the maximum speed to a whopping 185 km/h.Then in 1967 the ultimate was released, the Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV. Changes to the beautiful Bertone design included smoothing out the step front and moving the indicators down to below the headlamps. The interior was sensational, with hooded central rev counter and Speedo, while the auxiliary gauges were put into the top of the centre console. The seats too came in for revision, now featuring cut outs between the centre of the seat and the side supports.