RE: Unique Alfa 155 GTA Stradale under the hammer

[Digga]

Ares said:

Digga said:

Reminiscent of the dash in the contemporary 145. Mrs Digga had one - the last Alfa to run their boxer four cyclinder engine IIRC - and it was a lovely car. She'd have kept it forever, but when the mileage got too high it was time to move it on. The last straw was the water pump packing in on the M40 where, fortunately, she managed to coast up the sliproad to the Oxford services and got the AA to fix it.

I am smitten with both 155s and 75s in equal measure. So underrated in their day.

I had a 145 Cloverleaf, 1996 - 1998. Brilliant car.

Yes, that was the more expensive model with the larger (2 litre?), conventional four-pot engine, wasn't it? The boxxer was only 1.6 and you had to thrash the plums off it, keeping it up the rev range, in order to get the best form it, but it seemed to love it.

My wife switched from that to a BMW 325i. Her right foot needed a fairly swift re-calibration!

[Maldini35]

Love it.
Would love to see the 155 get the modern update treatment like the new Integrale.

[Ares]

Digga said:

Ares said:

Digga said:

Reminiscent of the dash in the contemporary 145. Mrs Digga had one - the last Alfa to run their boxer four cyclinder engine IIRC - and it was a lovely car. She'd have kept it forever, but when the mileage got too high it was time to move it on. The last straw was the water pump packing in on the M40 where, fortunately, she managed to coast up the sliproad to the Oxford services and got the AA to fix it.

I am smitten with both 155s and 75s in equal measure. So underrated in their day.

I had a 145 Cloverleaf, 1996 - 1998. Brilliant car.

Yes, that was the more expensive model with the larger (2 litre?), conventional four-pot engine, wasn't it? The boxxer was only 1.6 and you had to thrash the plums off it, keeping it up the rev range, in order to get the best form it, but it seemed to love it.

My wife switched from that to a BMW 325i. Her right foot needed a fairly swift re-calibration!

Yes, early TwinSpark engine. 155bhp and saw off all the Golf GTi and 118i Compact variants in the company car park

[Loplop]

I wonder if Davide Cironi is still gonna get a chance to drive this?..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZerBxjeBBFc

[Motorsport3]

matrignano said:

Other than the bodykit, how is this any different/better from the regular Q4?

+1 , i don't see why this is considered so special. Clearly has a 4 pot turbo so very Q4.

[Michael Woolford]

Motorsport3 said:

matrignano said:

Other than the bodykit, how is this any different/better from the regular Q4?

+1 , i don't see why this is considered so special. Clearly has a 4 pot turbo so very Q4.

A few reasons. The GTA badge alone holds a very important place in Alfa's history. Think of the Giulia GTA of the 60s and the 156/147 GTA of the early 2000s.

Add on to that the significance of the 155 in motorsport through the mid early to mid 90s, and the fact that this is a one off prototype that managed to survive. That makes for a very special car.

How much is a Mercedes 190E Evo for comparison?

[soad]

Turbobanana said:

Looks alright, doesn't it?

[davebem]

I find the 155 so appealing even if its probably the most Fiat based like Alfa you can get. Certainly has some Alfa DNA though as they managed to turn the 155 into a succesful touring car (remember the 94 btcc where they came from nowhere to take the season) and the super touring 155 was one of the most advanced racing cars of its time. This is worth a read, and it covers how the GTA came to be:

Edited by davebem on Monday 8th October 19:04

[Digga]

davebem said:

"They all do that sir."

[Pooh]

I had a “wide body” 155 2.5 V6 and absolutely loved it. The engine was brilliant and the handling was fantastic with beautifully controllable lift off oversteer, I have fond memories of sliding it sideways round Knockhill and I did not crash it unlike Tarquini above.

[rtz62]

Some years ago I had a drive of a 155 Q4 and approached it with eager anticipation
After the drive I felt.... slightly deflated. It was nowehere near as good a steer as the Integrale I had driven 2 days earlier, and felt it was a missed opportunity by Alfa.

[anonymous-user]

Crumbs that's lovely. Can I borrow £200k from someone please?

[T-bagger]

No thanks. But then i’m not an Alfa Romeo fan.

[thunderace887]

Oooh ooh quick tissues....

Damn, another pair of undies in the wash.

[ZX10R NIN]

That looks really good.

[cobra kid]

Looks like a Dacia from the side.

[CharlieAlphaMike]

s m said:

Turbobanana said:

s m said:

Lol

Not one comment about the awful plastic dashboard or crazy price tag


Ah yes, It's Italian ....all is forgiven!

Possibly because it's not relevant and people are just enjoying a rare car for what it is?

Yes, although that is true for all the stuff featured on these Spotted threads

If this was a Metro Turbo with a one-off bodykit however ......

And if it was a Ford, it would be worth double that...probably

[VitorioVeloce]

Digga said:

Yes, that was the more expensive model with the larger (2 litre?), conventional four-pot engine, wasn't it? The boxxer was only 1.6 and you had to thrash the plums off it, keeping it up the rev range, in order to get the best form it, but it seemed to love it.

My wife switched from that to a BMW 325i. Her right foot needed a fairly swift re-calibration!

The 1.6 boxer was a bit of an odd engine, IIRC it was a combination of 1.7 block with 1.5 crank or something to that effect. Also, with the 145 gaining quite a lot of weight over the 33, and emissions starting to strangle performance, the boxers were a bit out of their depth in the 145 compared to the sud/33 where they started life. Still, 100+ bhp from an NA 8v boxer in 1995 was quite good.

There was also the 1.7 16v boxer which churned out ~136 bhp, that is absolutely THE engine to have if you want a cool 145 imho, the 4 inline TS cars are faster, but the boxer sounds better, and 136 bhp is not slow..


On topic of this 155 GTA, i absolutely adore fast 155s, the 155 v6 Ti DTM (although obviously not road legal) is the stuff of dreams to me, and a unicorn car like this... if i won the lottery this would absolutely be in the collection, 200k seems like a bargain for such a unique car as well, if you see what 8Cs and the like are fetching.

[viggyp]

I'd have this if I was a Euro lotto winner and it'd be parked next to the Amos Automobili Integrale & F40

A popular mod is putting a Fiat Coupe 5cyl turbo motor into the 155 which got me thinking, if that lump fits and as the Q4 has the Integrale 4wd system then together that may be

[matrignano]

Michael Woolford said:

A few reasons. The GTA badge alone holds a very important place in Alfa's history. Think of the Giulia GTA of the 60s and the 156/147 GTA of the early 2000s.

Add on to that the significance of the 155 in motorsport through the mid early to mid 90s, and the fact that this is a one off prototype that managed to survive. That makes for a very special car.

How much is a Mercedes 190E Evo for comparison?

Yes but the GTA badge implies racing heritage/pedigree, and in more recent models like 156/147 it brought some unique changes and spec that was featured nowhere else in the range.

This just looks like a Q4 with an aero package and a heavier rear diff?

It also doesn't have any racing heritage. The 155 supertouring was a FWD 2 litre NASP, the DTM was a AWD V6. The drivetrain in this was only every raced, very successfully so, in the Delta Integrale.

I just don't see it having any historical value, the price is crazy purely because it is a one-off...