The Alfa Romeo 75 is probably a car that is never going to win any beauty contests and, being a car developed by Alfa in the 1980s, it's probably not what you'd call a low-maintenance proposition.
But as is so often the case with Alfas, there is something ineffably cool about the 75 and, for our money,
this last-of-the-line 1.8i Turbo Quadrifoglio Verde
is surely one of the coolest.
Like all 75s, it gets near-perfect weight distribution, courtesy of rear-wheel drive, a five-speed transaxle and rear brakes mounted centrally on the axle (though that doesn't sound ideal from a maintenance point of view).
Unlike all 75s, however, this is one of the final 1,000 produced (number 713, to be precise). As with all of the final-run 165hp Turbos, this meant it got Recaro seats, special alloys (not the OZs in the picture), leather-covered gear knob and steering wheel, and a numbered plaque on the dash. But while it's obviously a tasty and well-preserved car - and a seriously rare one - we're not sure it's £12.5K rare...
...And we did say 'one of the coolest' 75s, because the same dealer also has
this 1987 Alfa Romeo 75 Turbo Evoluzione
for sale. Around 500 of these oh-so-80s beasties were produced to satisfy Group A touring car homologation requirments.
Sadly, their racing cousins' careers were hardly covered in glory. Although the works Alfa Corse hired such hands as Nicola Larini, Gabriele Tarquini, Alessandro Nannini, Jacques Laffite and even Mario Andretti to compete in the 1987 World touring Car Championship, the team failed to achieve any success, and Alfa withdrew after the European rounds of the series.
But the legacy of that ill-fated programme is one of the more obscure and intriguing homologation specials of the 1980s. You'll have to pay through the nose for it though: the seller wants £24,500 for this one.
Alfa Romeo 75 1.8 Turbo QV limited edition
Engine:1,779cc four-cylinder turbo
Transmission:5-speed manual
Power (hp):165@5,800rpm
Torque (lb ft):167lb ft@2,600rpm
MPG: na
CO2: na
First registered:1992
Recorded mileage:76,000km
Yours for: £12,500