RE: Unique Alfa 155 GTA Stradale under the hammer

[pits]

I have such a soft spot....hard spot.... for the 155, wish I bought one years ago but was never in the position to own one, young, high insurance, cheap car to buy but it was the inevitable repair work that would have been needed on my budget of car, it just wasn't worth it as I would have been buying bottom market car and trying to use and fix it.

But a 155 2.0 TS Widebody sportpack, Rosso Red, anthracite speedlines, with the grey and red stitched interior, beautiful car, would I own now? Sadly it wont happen, shame I always loved my dads one he had from brand new.

[1974foggy]

Love cars from this era, and this is just awesome. They looked so good as DTM cars too, these Alfas.

[Ares]

cobra kid said:

Looks like a Dacia from the side.

Which Dacia?

[woody33]

Love the 155. Had a 2.0 TS Wide Body for 5 years. I really couldn't fault it in any way. Never really sold well in the UK despite the motorsport success...... and the 156 slinky lines suddenly made it extremely dated with it's boxy shape. I have to say those square lines have come full circle and are beginning to look pretty cool again 20 years later !

[bobo79]

matrignano said:

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...

Actually the GTA stradale does have direct racing provenance, just not in the BTCC or DTM. The 155 GTA raced (and won) the 1992 Italian touring car championship driven by the same all star line up Alfa took to DTM in 1993. It was a 4wd 4 cylinder turbo and looked very much like a forerunner of the DTM 2.5 V6 machine from the following year. And rather like the road version, in fact.

The car was basically a Delta Integrale with Alfa bodywork on top. Kind of like the road car

[AussieFozzy]

viggyp said:

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

Really when you think about it this is the only sensible solution. You are going to need the 4 door saloon for shopping trips and taking mates out.
If anything it would be stupid NOT to buy it.

[dinkel]

matrignano said:

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

I thought the same:
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[ambuletz]

Have to be careful with those photos as it shows them driving around with no front license plate, everyone knows how much that sets of the keyboard warriors of PH.

[cobra kid]

Ares said:

Which Dacia?

The Logan saloon.

[Agent XXX]

cobra kid said:

Ares said:

Which Dacia?

The Logan saloon.

[bobo79]

Here's the racing version of the 155 GTA the article completely fails to mention. From 1992 it raced in the Italian Touring car championship. In the photo above it's competing in a round of the Italian Hillclimb Championship - Alfa Corse entered two rounds that year.

The ITCC was run to Group A rules like the DTM was in those days and the main rival to Alfa was BMW. The driver line up in the championship that year was pretty amazing, with Ravaglia, Winkelhock, Pirro, Soper, Tarquini, Nannini, Larini, Tamburini, Zanardi all competing that year for Alfa or BMW. It also had a secondary class running to super tourer regs.



For 1993 the organisers switched the italian championship to super touring regs to Alfa switched to 155s in both Class 1 and 2. It's not hard to see where the inspiration for the DTM entry in 1993 came in the above photo. After putting a V6 NA engine in the car it became the basis for the class 1 DTM car from 1993, and the rest is history.

[cobra kid]

Agent XXX said:

[Ares]

cobra kid said:

You're right. They've BOTH got wheels.

And three window on the side....oh no, the Dacia only has two.

And both have a long overhang front and rear. Except the Dacia.

[Agent XXX]

Quite.

[arguti]

matrignano said:

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...

This is so accurate

(I have a 155 Q4, 2.0 16v and 2.5 V6 amongst my other Alfas)

[bobo79]

arguti said:

This is so accurate

Except it's not. The non-Stradale 155 GTA was a successful racing car. With 4WD and a 2 litre 4 cylinder based on Lancia Delta mechanicals. Just like the Stradale. It's just the author of the article presumably was not aware of it.

The development of the racing (and Stradale) 155 GTA is covered in some depth in this book (which I can recommend to fans of Alfa and touring cars generally):

https://www.veloce.co.uk/shop/products/productDeta...