The Alfa Romeo Alfetta (Type 116) is an executive saloon car and fastback coupé produced by the Italian manufacturer Alfa Romeo from 1972 to 1987. It was popular due to its combination of a modest weight with powerful engines, selling over 400,000 units until the end of its production run.

 

The Alfetta name (Little Alfa in Italian) came from the nickname of the Alfa Romeo Tipo 159 Alfetta, a successful Formula One car which in its latest 1951 iteration paired atransaxle layout to De Dion tube rear suspension, like the modern saloon.The Alfetta introduced a new drivetrain layout to the marque. Clutch and transmission were housed at the rear of the car, together with the differential for a more balanced weight distribution, as used on the Alfetta 158/159 Grand Prix cars. The suspension relied on double wishbones and torsion bars at the front and a De Dion tube at the rear. When leaving the factory all Alfettas originally fitted Pirelli Cinturato165HR14 tyres (CA67).

 

The rear de Dion transaxle found on the Alfetta and derivatives- GTV, 90 and 75- provided these cars with excellent weight distribution. The advantages to handling were noticed in contemporary commentaries by motor testers such as Vicar.The transaxle design, in combination with a Watt's parallelogram linkage, inboard rear brakes and a well-located de Dion rear suspension, resulted in excellent traction and handling. The front suspension design was also unusual in that it incorporated independent longitudinal torsion bar springs acting directly onto the lower wishbones and with separate dampers.

 

Racing versions of the Alfetta GT and GTV were built by Autodelta, initially with the normally aspirated engines from the earlier GTAm racer based on the 105 series coupé, for homologation under FIA Group 2. There were some variations ranging from the Alfetta GT 1800 cc engines with 8 plugs heads or even 16-valve heads to the powerful 2-litre GTAm engine. In this form they were rallied with moderate success in 1975, winning the Elba and Costa Brava rallies overall, as well as winning the Group 2 category in the World Rally Championship's Corsican event. The next year Autodelta shifted its focus to circuit racing the Alfettas, which won the under 2.5-liter Group 2 division of the European Touring Car Championship, scoring a remarkable second place overall at the 24-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps, as well as an overall win in the ETC race at Vallelunga. Despite such results, Autodelta's efforts with the Group 2 Alfetta were desultory and ended prematurely due to Alfa's budgetary constraints and heavy commitments to Formula One and the World Championship for Sports Cars.