Intriguing eBay Alfa Mystery

I have been watching a Belgian eBay auction lately for what is described as an Alfa Romeo Barchetta Sport, from 1954.  I was quite taken with the car's lovely, voluptuous lines, but perturbed because I had never seen a car quite like this before, and was sort of shocked at the lack of detailed information in the eBay listing considering the rarity of this vehicle:

"Rare Alfa Romeo Barchetta Sport, Totally rebuild over the past 2 years, Aluminium body, Freshly rebuild 1900cc engine, 120hp, 4-speed gearbox, Renewed brown leather interior, Black wirewheels, Adjustable suspension,.. Outstanding condition!  FIA regularity passport available."

I emailed the seller for more info about the car's provenance but received no reply yet. Does anyone know what this car is, or if it is even real??  The only similar car I can find is the "flat sided" Disco Volante also known as the C52 1900.  I don't know how many were made, but one is in the Schlumpf museum (see below). If this is a sister car, wouldn't it be worth a hell of a lot?? Anyone share to shed any light on this puzzle? Replica or Real??

-UPDATE: I received this reply from the seller regarding the car's history:

This is a car that we bought it this current condition. No racing history found on this car.  We suppose this car was build somewhere in the 60’s by a private coachbuilder and never really raced in the past. We have imported this car from South America. During it’s restoration the car received some modifications regarding it’s suspension and chassis has received some modifications too to adopt this body. The complete technical aspect of this car has been rebuild or restored to new. It is really a great joy to drive. A FIA passport was also obtained for rallying the car in Europe if the  new owner would consider.

Automobiliac Video of the Week: Alfa Romeo Montreal Tribute

This amateur video is surprisingly well done, and features some really cool sounds and camera angles. If only the driver would quit it with all the unnecessary short shifts and let the car have its head! Enjoy that sonorous small displacement V8, and Gandini-penned sheet metal!

Hat tip to Rob for the link!

"Il Segno Alfa" Exhibition at the Milano Triennale

Every time I go to Milan on business, I always try to get in at least one Alfa Romeo-related activity. This year being the 100^th anniversary of the marque, there is currently a fun exhibition installed at the Milano Triennale called “il Segno Alfa,” or “the Sign of Alfa.”  The exhibit charts the history of the Milanese automaker as both a vessel and reflection of Italian culture in the 20^th century.  Each room of the show has one or two cars from a given era, surrounded by newspaper headlines and artifacts from that time period.

This exhibition is free to the public, and brings together some of the best cars from the Alfa Romeo Museo Storico into the heart of the city where more people can see them and enjoy them.  Automotive highlights from the exhibit are the incomparable 8C 2900B Aerodynamic coupe from Le Mans 1938, an Alfetta 159 GP car, as well as a Giulia Sprint GTA, a Montreal, and even the new 8C Competizione, among others.  There are some truly wonderful original vintage posters on the wall, including an original 1932 Monaco GP Poster by Falcucci – an image so often reproduced that seeing a real one in person produced that almost anti-climactic response you get from the Mona Lisa or any other over-exposed masterpiece.  Each room also had a small selection of design objects from each decade, as well as monitors showing the enormous amount of TV and cinema presence Alfa has had over the years.  It’s a fun exhibit to browse, and will be a lot easier on wives and girlfriends than going to the Alfa Museum (aka the fortress of Alfisti Geekdom).

On the negative side, I found the exhibit overly nostalgic and rather lacking in depth, and I was sort of hoping to find more genuine academic effort in tying the automobile to cultural and industrial developments in Italy in the 20^thCentury, rather than just juxtaposing various objects from the same era together.  To put this in American context, it is as if they put a ‘57 Chevy in a room with Elvis records and pictures of drive-ins, but they failed to really explain what the car meant to people at the time, how it changed their lives, or to go beyond the superficial nostalgia effect.  However, I think this exhibit might have more emotional impact for the intended home-grown Italian audience, as a reminder of what Alfa Romeo has meant to Italy over the years, and maybe as a foreigner I missed out on a little of that.

 As a collection of compelling cars and really cool artifacts, the exhibit is definitely worth seeing if you are in Milan in the next few weeks, especially for those who don’t have the time to go out to the Alfa Museum.  I couldn’t help but think, though, that this exhibit was like walking into a really tastefully done car commercial more than a serious intellectual discourse (befitting an institution like the Milano Triennale) on how the car irrevocably changed the face of Italy just as it did the USA.  But looking at special cars is always a treat, no matter what the context!

FULL GALLERY HERE.

The exhibit runs through October 10, so hurry over!  Admission is FREE.

Paddock of legends

I think words are unnecessary here. Just drink it in.

via the Chicane

Milano at Speed

My friend and sometime driving partner Rob sent me these pics of him hustling his Milano track car around Michigan's Waterford Hills course. I couldn't resist sharing them with you!

Photo Credit: Ed Frank