Alfa Romeo Models in 1950s (Racing cars)

1951 159

The Alfa Romeo 158/159, also known as the Alfetta (Little Alfa in Italian), is one of the most successful racing cars ever produced. The 158 and its derivative, the 159, took 47 wins from 54 Grands Prix entered. It was originally developed for the pre-World War II voiturette formula (1937) and has a 1.5-litre straight-8 supercharged engine. Following World War II, the car was eligible for the new Formula One introduced in 1947. In the hands of drivers such as Nino Farina, Juan-Manuel Fangio and Luigi Fagioli, it dominated the first two seasons of the World Championship of Drivers.

1952 6C 3000 CM

In 1948 a first Alfa Romeo 6C 3000 prototype was built. It was a 5-6 passenger 4-door saloon car of the same class of the 6C 2500, but which could be built using more modern and economical manufacturing processes.

Like its predecessor, the three-litre engine had a cast iron block, an aluminium head with hemispherical combustion chambers, two valves per cylinder, angled 90° and timed by directly acting, chain driven dual overhead camshafts. Fed by a twin-choke carburettor, it developed 120 PS (88 kW), sent to the rear wheels through a 4-speed all-synchromesh gearbox with a column-mounted shifter as on the 6C 2500. The car used unit body construction, had a wheelbase of 3.05 m (120 in) and a dry weight of 1,400 kg.The all-independent suspension was of the double wishbone type with coil springs upfront, and trailing arm type with transverse torsion bars at the rear.

After three prototypes had been made between 1948–49, the project was abandoned when market analysis and product planning suggested the development of a smaller four-cylinder car—the Alfa Romeo 1900. Despite this, the 3-litre engine was developed for competition use and gave birth to a number sports racing cars during the first half of the 1950s: the 6C 3000 C50, 6C 3000 CM and 6C 3000 PR.