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Racing Heritage: 1962 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Ti Corsa

While its actual Italian racing background is not clear, this 1962 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Ti appears to have the makings of a great track day or historic racer. Barn Finder Roger referred the great little Alfa to us, so thank you so much for that Roger. The car sports a few bumps and bruises, but it looks like it is fairly solid. It was only recently imported from Italy and has made its way to Bayview, California. It is listed for sale here on Craigslist with a price of $11,975 OBO.

While this car might currently be set-up as a track car, there is no reason why it couldn’t be returned to road duties. The body sports its share of minor dings and marks, but this looks like it might that rarest of older Alfas, one without rust issues. The floors look good, and with the battery relocated to the trunk, we can also get a good look at the engine bay. There are no signs of rust in that area, while the floors sport a pretty heavy coating of rust-proofing paint on the inside. The Alfa would need a number of external items such as bumpers, a grille, and headlights, but the transformation from track to road shouldn’t be a major undertaking.

Interior refurbishing for a return to active road duty may be a bigger task, depending on the new owner’s ultimate aim for the car. With no interior trim, carpets, and only a single Sparco race seat, this is an out-and-out track car. The roll cage looks to be fairly sturdy, although I would want to check the rear attachment points to ensure that the welds were solid. The easy to reach switch-box is a great idea, while the whole idea of racing a car fitted with a column change really fascinates me. The interior is utilitarian, but perfect for racing duties.

Powering the Giulietta is the 1,290cc DOHC 4-cylinder engine, which sends its power to the rear wheels via a 4-speed manual transmission. These engines produce reasonable performance in standard form, but it isn’t clear what modifications, if any, have been performed on the inside of the engine. While it might be a racing car, the retired racing driver in me is not thrilled by the filter set-up for the downdraught Solex carburetor. That mesh might be fine for stopping stones and gravel, but an off-track excursion would see the engine potentially ingesting copious amounts of dust, and that’s never a good thing. The owner does say that the engine is strong, with good compression and oil pressure. Relocating the battery to the trunk has both improved weight distribution, and provided better access around the engine. He says that the Alfa has had a recent tune-up, and it feels like it has been built by a crew who knew what they were doing, as the Alfa is nicely balanced.

What a great little car. Alfa Romeos have a personality all of their own, and this one does look like it’s a good one. It seems like a bit of a shame to see such a solid example transformed into a track car, but you wouldn’t want anything else for that purpose. If it all goes horribly wrong out there, then you need everything possible running in your favor if you are going to walk away from it. If you were to buy the Alfa, would you return it to the road, leave it as a race car, or try to reach some compromise that would allow it to fulfill both roles?

Comments

  1. Avatar Kevin Harper

    These can be a lot of fun as witnessed by some of the events at goodwood

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9_EWFwE5HY

    Having said that the 11k is just the starting point. This car needs a lot before you can get it back onto the track. The roll cage just to start with and probably everything else. How expensive can it get? Well if you want to play at the front end of the grid at Goodwood it is over 200k for just the car. That figure was given to me by Jon Dooley and he is probably pretty accurate. Obviously you can do it for less but racing one of these is not the cheap way to go racing.

    I think it should stay a racer though. I know a a few Ti’s that are in great shape and you could not turn this back to a street car for the cost of just buying a nice street car.

    Good luck with it and I hope to see it on the grid.

    Like 1
  2. Avatar Willowen

    Correct about putting this back on the street. Concentrate on its track capabilities and make whatever improvements you want. This wd include converting to floor change for me, since the floor-shift mechanism for these gearboxes is readily available and much simpler. Not to mention very nice to use. If I were ten or so years younger I could happily consider taking up track driving with this as my beginner’s car, Alfas being about as honest in their behavior as a car can get. Never gonna be the fastest, but a good one is a great learning tool and very sturdy.

    And if that really IS a four-speed box (????), the five-speeds are easy to come by!

    Like 0
  3. Avatar Martin Horrocks

    If you wanted to race at the front at Goodwood, you wouldn´t start here. Saving money wouldn´t be your first thought.

    As a running Giulietta Ti, this is cheap at the asking price. I like it. Carrera Panamericana build, perhaps?

    Like 1
    • Avatar Willowen

      Martin: Since I was daydreaming more of Willow Springs time trials than Goodwood racing, I’ll stick with my version … but I think Carrera cars need full road gear too, so all the lighting would need reviving. I could be wrong about that …

      Yes, at under $20K this is at least cheapish for nowadays. Even yesteryear’s Free Berlina is no longer even cheap, unless it’s rusted beyond salvation.

      Like 0
  4. Avatar t-bone Bob

    looks quick

    Like 0

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