The Italian car industry has perhaps come up with some of the most glorious and fascinating road and race machines to date, spanning across a number of iconic brands. Cars from brands like Ferrari with the 250 GTO, Lamborghini with the Miura and across to Lancia with their amazing rally weapons like the Stratos and 037 Stradale - the greatest Lancia of all time.
All the way from the beginning, Alfa Romeo was in the midst of historic events across 20th century car history. It is a brand that every gearhead should adore and admire, and over the course of 112 years, they have produced some truly spectacular cars.
From the original 8C racer from the 1930s, to the Giulia GT Junior, and especially the Montreal, Italy's muscle car, Alfa Romeo has forever been a marque to warm the hearts of anybody who even hints an interest in cars.
Overtime though, Alfa Romeo has experimented with some fairly unusual models, from concept studies to low-volume oddities, here are the most unusual Alfa Romeos ever made.
The Most Unusual Alfa Romeos Ever Made: 40/60hp Aerodinamica
In 1914, the Milanese Count Marco Ricotti commissioned coachbuilder, Carrozzeria Castagna, to build a streamlined version of the ALFA 40/60.
The bizzare vehicle had a top speed of 86mph which was serious business in the early days of motoring. It was powered by a 6.1-liter in-line 4-cylinder engine with 70 hp. The original car appears to have gone missing, but a replica was created in the 1970s which resides at the Alfa Romeo Museum near Milan. A place that should be on this list of automotive museums you should visit!
Another thing to note is that the Alfa Romeo name hadn't been implemented until 1920. Beforehand, it was simply called ALFA. It wasn't until Nicola Romeo, ALFA's biggest shareholder, came along and joined forces, creating the Alfa Romeo name.
The Most Unusual Alfa Romeos Ever Made: Matta
Nope, you're not looking at a Willys Jeep. This is a genuine Alfa Romeo, and it even won its class at the 1952 Mille Miglia. A 1000 km race across the heart of Italy that was fearsome to its competitors.
The Matta was inspired by the Land Rover which had already taken the 4x4 world by a considerable force. But unlike the British bulldog, this Italian off-roader had Alfa's sophisticated twin-cam 1.9 liter engine with 65hp. Other advancements included independent front suspension and a limited slip diff on the rear axle.
Just over 2,000 or so Mattas were ever made, and most saw use with the Italian police and military. Only 150 were sold to civilians, but we suspect that these 4x4s would tackle rough terrain a bit better.
The Most Unusual Alfa Romeos Ever Made: Carabo
This spectacular concept car was designed by Marcello Gandini - who is notable for cars like the Lamborghini Miura, Countach and the BMW E12 5-Series - which eventually paved way to the original M5.
The Carabo represented the wacky concept era of the 1960s and 70s, showcasing shapes that didn't quite make the cut into production. It was based on the Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale, using a 2.0-liter V8 with 230hp and a top speed of 155mph.
Effectively, the Carabo was envisioned as a racecar for the road. But whilst this spectacular concept didn't make full production, we can at least thank Gandini for giving us the Countach, and for Lamborghini themselves giving us a new one.
The Most Unusual Alfa Romeos Ever Made: 16C Bimotore
In 1935, Enzo Ferrari and Luigi Bazzi realized that they had to come up with an answer to the fearsome Silver Arrows racers from Mercedes and Auto Union. The result wasn't to produce a more powerful engine, but to use two of them.
A 3.2-liter supercharged straight eight with 270 hp was installed in the front and the back - making 540hp in total with both engines driving the rear wheels. This was one of the most insane cars of the 1930s, which was a decade that produced some beautiful machines.
Naturally, this caused a few problems. Chief among which was the fact that the Bimotore couldn't really last a few laps before coming into the pits to have its rear tires replaced. The monstrous power of the Alfa shredded through rubber, although at the Avus race in 1935, driver Louis Chiron racked up second place.
The Most Unusual Alfa Romeos Ever Made: SZ/RZ
Based on the Alfa Romeo 75 family saloon, these ultra-rare sports cars were constructed by coachbuilder, Zagato, who by themselves, have quite a strong CV in design.
The SZ was the hardtop variant to which Zagato produced a relatively healthy 1,036 of them. The convertible version, the RZ, was much rarer and planned production of 350 had to be cut short since the factory they were being built in went into receivership. In total, 284 RZs were produced with most exported to Japan.
It was powered by the brilliant 3.0-liter Busso V6 engine with 207hp mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox. It may have been mechanically similar to other Alfas of the time like the GTV6, but the wacky Zagato styling made it an instant icon to petrolheads - and one of the most recognizable Alfas ever made.
Source: Museo Alfa Romeo