Alfa Romeo Giulietta

Released in 1977, the Giulietta, named after the original Giulietta, was Alfa Romeo's answer to the compact executive car sector. While a radical change from traditional designs, the Giulietta '77 was rather successful, selling 380,000 units in total, before production ended in 1985. The Giulietta was well powered, light in weight, and equipped with state-of-the-art brakes and suspensions, and proved to be a pleasure to drive.

The exterior of the car was heavily influenced by aerodynamic performance. While "boxy" by modern day standards, the low, flat front fascia with rectangular headlamps, and the squared off rear is classically iconic of the 80's. Meanwhile, many artistic nuances may be observed. The gradual slope of the bonnet shows great elegance. Meanwhile, the car has been detailed with the classic, triangular Alfa Romeo grille, trimmed in chrome. The door handles also show quite a unique design. The side crease is worth noting. We see a smooth, continuous line, softly broken by the front wheel arch. Very tasteful, and indeed, emulated by many modern designers. The gentle wheel arches are also a nice, subtle touch.

To the modern eye, the interior is bittersweet. At first glance, it's ugly. Once you look carefully though, it's quite nice. The vibrant red contrasts with the black. Meanwhile, the red sports seats are a welcome addition. While the sumptuous wood in the older cars have been eliminated, the new car is also better lined. All the frames and panels have been neatly covered up. By the way, look at that armrest and door handle, how cool does that look? Meanwhile, the centre console and tunnel are very neat and tidy. The instrument cluster is perhaps the most fascinating. The Giulietta possessed the classic 80's anti-clockwise tachometer as well as horizontally moving needles for the liquid stats. A series of openings to the right of the cluster are for indicator lights. Cool touch.

Oh, and look at those brake pedals. How posh! I don't see those on an entry level C-Class!

In 1982, a special edition, tuned in-house by Autodelta was made. This was known as the Turbodelta model. This model was equipped with improved brakes, suspension, as well as a turbocharged engine, powering the car from 0-100km/h in only 7.5 seconds! This is sporty even by modern day standards. With only 361 units produced, this was an extremely rare collectible.

Model Lines:

1.3L I4
1.6L I4
1.8L I4
2.0L I4
Turbodelta 2.0L Turbocharged I4
Turbodiesel 2.0L I4

Photos: Courtesy of AutoExpress.com