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Although the Busso V6 equipped GTAs are often overlooked, they are quite frankly among the most beautiful, not to mention accessible, the brand has ever produced.
With the production of the latest (and arguably greatest) GTA recently wrapped up, many enthusiasts are looking back on the sensational history of all the cars adorned with these three coveted letters. The famous badge has appeared on some of the most incredible cars, cars that are even coveted by people who have no real affiliation with the Alfa Romeo brand. In the early years, it was reserved for semi-bespoke competition-ready cars that had added performance and lightened bodywork, although these front-drive 00s GTAs didn’t actually get the “Alleggerita'' (lightened) memo. They favored the GT part of the moniker and were brilliant in their own way.
They Are Not Race Cars
One major departure from previous GTA models was the fact that they had no racing connection, as a direct result there was little to no effort put into getting these cars lightened. The 156 already had a touring car version doing duty on track, but they used the twin-spark inline-four engines whereas they decided to rather use the bigger V6 engine for these GTA cars. It was something of a controversial decision at the time, but racing has evolved in such a way that there really isn’t much space for a car genuinely capable on track, unless you go all out and put a price tag on it that is equal to contemporary supercars: see the new GTAm.
It was for that reason that they decided to make these cars more focussed on the “GT” part, just getting in one will quickly remind you of that as the comfortable leather seats envelop you. Being a front-wheel-drive V6, there is also a lot of weight over the front axle. So the car tends to understeer rather a lot for a performance-oriented vehicle, and being Italian, they somehow decided to ship the cars with an open diff. Driving these cars hard will eventually lead to that diff exploding, the upside of that is there is a selection of limited-slip diffs available on the aftermarket.
The Busso V6
One of the most controversial parts of the car, when it was first shipped back in the early 00s, is also easily one of its most glorious. The Busso V6 had been around for quite some time by then and certainly wasn’t their most efficient power plant, but it was the most powerful and it brought an unheralded element of theatre to the cars. The torquey 3.2-liter V6 made 250 horsepower, which back then made it one of the most powerful FWD cars on the market. It was enough power to rocket the car from 0-60mph in just over 6 seconds and will keep going all the way to its top speed of 155mph, which is properly fast.
Although the figures are not nearly as impressive today, these cars are still incredibly engaging to drive, but that is only part of the appeal of the Busso. The real theater it brings to the party is its intoxicating soundtrack that simply has no equal.
Accessible Future Classics
At present these are not classic cars, they are just once exciting production cars that make a lot of power and a rather cool noise. So, for now, they remain accessible, with good examples only selling for around $20,000. That is exceptional value for a car that is going to get more valuable over time, it is certainly going to be a collectible classic one day, especially the gorgeous Sportwagon version.