The
Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ and TZ models are well documented in Marcello Minerbi’s
1985 study, published by La Mille Miglia Editrice. In the book’s foreword, Giuseppe Busso
outlined the somewhat tortured gestation of the TZ, from initial concept in
1955, through the ‘exploratory,’ but flawed, Abarth collaboration known as the
750 Competizione/Sport, on to the 1961 spider prototype.
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| Courtesy
Alfa Romeo Automobilismo Storico |
Despite
the disappointment of the 750, Alfa Romeo design chief, Orazio Satta Puliga (Satta)
and Busso determined that Alfa Romeo should create a lightweight, (tubular
spaceframe chassis), sporting GT, with serious racing potential. Power would come from the four cylinder
engine that was such a distinctive feature of the Giulietta saloons and coupes
with which Satta had achieved much commercial and reputational success for the Marque. The model and its engine had enabled Alfa
Romeo to gain a foothold in the mass market.
Necessary as this was, both Busso and Satta remained true to Alfa’s
romantic sport/racing heritage, the latter saying:
Alfa Romeo is not merely a make of automobile, it is truly something more than a conventionally built car. There are many automotive makes, among which Alfa Romeo stands apart. It is a kind of affliction, an enthusiasm for a means of transport. What it resists is definition. Its’ elements are like those of the human spirit which cannot be explained in logical terms. They are sensations, passions, things that have much more to do with a man’s heart than with his brain.
So,
in 1960, Busso’s team built a prototype chassis, which, on completion, was
shipped to Zagato. (Minerbi’s text is
ambiguous, suggesting that there were two examples involved). The body fabricated by the carrozziere was a spider
with removable targa-type hardtop.
Progress was not especially rapid and it was not until the autumn that
testing was begun. On track, at Monza,
the car’s aerodynamics were soon found to be flawed. This consideration, coupled with handling
issues – mainly related to the new (independent) rear suspension, saw the car
turning disappointing lap times – unable to match those then being achieved by
the established, but lower engine capacity (1300) Giulietta Sprint Zagato. I took nearly twelve months for a full
solution to be found in regard to the rear suspension, but the drag problem was
sooner resolved by the adoption of a fully closed, streamlined roof – a TZ now
looked like a TZ! However, further
experimentation with points of detail, such as the nose length/profile, delayed
the emergence of the definitive TZ1 form until March 1963, after presentation
at the Turin Motor Show in the previous October. Designated as tipo 105.11, series production
was organised on a dispersed basis: chassis by SAI Ambrosini, a now defunct
aircraft constructor, then seeking to diversify; body by Zagato; engine
upgrading and suspension build was entrusted to Auto Delta, the business set-up
by Carlo Chiti and Lodovico Chizzola after their departure from Ferrari
following the infamous Night of the Long Lives saga of October 1961. Subsequently restyled as Autodelta SpA and
integrated with Alfa Romeo SpA, Chiti’s enterprise also took responsibility for
further development of the car together with its racing participation and
evolution. In this role, Autodelta can
be seen as a precursor to operations such as Porsche’s Weissach facility and
BMW’s M Division. And an excellent team
it was too, with many touring car (especially with the Giulia GTA/GTAm) and
prototype sports car (Alfa 33) championship successes.
An
account of the ‘birth’ and initial problems of the TZ1 appeared in the March
1992 issue of Autocapital magazine – it can be read here.
The
number of TZ1s built from 1963-65 has been variously reported, with most
estimates being close to the figure of 100, as was required for FIA
homologation purposes. Based on the
register included in Minerbi’s book, and taking account of some additional
insight by Luigi Fusi, (lifetime employee at Alfa Romeo and the company’s
archive curator), the correct number is 109.
(The aspect which gives rise to most doubts is the period during which
the TZ2 model emerged, with chassis numbers previously thought TZ1-related now
attributed to TZ2s, and a few TZ1s physically converted to TZ2 specification.)
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Collector Studio
There
is particular uncertainty about the very first production chassis number, #750001
– although Minerbi records it as ‘Restored. Showroom car. Present owner: M. Hayashi, Japan,’ it is
elsewhere stated that it was destroyed during the production run, and,
alternatively, assigned to a car not built until 1965. However, it is not unexpected for there to be
a measure of vagueness and conflicting reports about such specialised cars
built now so long ago. Mostly, the first
dozen cars are described as race versions, initially owned/run by Alfa Romeo
itself and/or factory-supported teams including Milan-based Scuderia St. Ambroeus. Both #750003 and #750006 were prepared for
and run in 1964 high profile events such as the Le Mans 24 Hours, the Targa Florio
and the Nurburgring 1000 kms. At Le
Mans, several drivers were involved, including, Roberto Bussinello, Jean Rolland,
Fernand Masoero, Giampiero Biscaldi, Giancarlo Sala and Bruno Bonini. #006 finished in 15th place. Even better, #011 was 13th and
winner of the GT1.6 class, driven by Bussinello and Bruno Deserti. At the Nurburgring, Scuderia St. Ambroeus
again ran three TZ1s, and although one suffered engine failure, #028 was the
GT1.6 class winner, finishing 13th overall, with #011 next up in 14th. The team was also successful at the Targa
Florio, #006 and #031 coming in 3rd and 4th, 1st
and 2nd in class. From this
selection of results it will be seen that the TZ1 was immediately a highly
competitive race car at major events. Indeed,
it had achieved its first class win – with Lorenzo Bandini at the wheel -
before the close of 1963 at the (admittedly less prestigious) Coppa F I S A
(Monza), with examples driven by, Bussinello, Giancarlo Baghetti and Consalvo
Sanesi, finishing in overall 3rd, 4th, and 5th.
In 1965
the TZ2 entered competition and took the class honours in the Monza 1000 kms
event. However, TZ1s continued to
achieve consistent success in the GT1.6 class at several significant meetings –
at that Monza race, for example, taking 2nd to 5th places
in class. Lucien Bianchi and Jean Rolland
drove a TZ1 to 7th overall and 1st in class at the Targa Florio, with 2nd
to 5th places also claimed by the model. In the Mugello round of the World Sportscar
Championship, Carlo Zuccoli and Guido Rava took the GT1.6 class victory. At Enna, Guido Rava won the GT1.6 class in the
Coppa Citta. There were Hillclimb class
victories at Stallavena, Bologna Raticosa, Coppa della Sila, Bolzano-Mendola
and Desana-Sestrieres. Beyond Italy, the
TZ1 was also racking up class victories in Germany – at the Avus DARM meeting,
(Jochen Neerpasch), in England – at Donnington, (Boley Pittard), and was being
campaigned in SCCA events in the U.S.
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#108. Class winner,
1965 Targa Florio ©MotorsportImages
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The
results of the following year’s Targa Florio were salutary – an Autodelta TZ2
managed 4th overall and the class victory, (with team cars also 2nd
and 3rd in class,) whilst TZ1s were no higher overall than 24th
and 4th in class. For the
1966 Le Mans 24 Hours, 2 cars were entered, but, as was the case with several
TZ2s, they did not run. Broadly, the
season was a disappointing one for the TZ1 – it was not matching the pace of
the TZ2 or its direct competitors such as the MGB and the Lotus Elan. But as the TZ1’s achievements diminished, the
TZ2 scored good results and, subsequently, the Giulia GTA became Autodelta’s winning machine
through the latter half of the decade.
Minerbi’s
register suggests that 9 cars were constructed as TZ2s, the final chassis
number being #750117, built in 1967. The
model had been launched at the Geneva Show in March 1965. Significant changes from the TZ1 and which
were instrumental in how quickly and comprehensively the TZ2 displaced the
superseded model’s race competitiveness, were the body’s fibreglass construction,
general lowering of engine/suspension/body and adoption as standard of the Conrero-built
165 bhp twin spark, dry sump version of the 1.6, 4 cylinder engine. The body materials revision had been presaged
by the use of fibreglass in the manufacture of the final three TZ1s, (#107-8
and #110). These bodies were made by Balzaretti
Modigliani SpA. The kerb weights were:
658 kgs, TZ1; 630 kgs TZ2. Improved
aerodynamics resulting from the lower body form were further enhanced by a
switch from 15” to 13” (light alloy Campagnolo) wheels.
The
significance of the TZ1 stands above and beyond its own performance and
competition results. At one level, it
provided the substance for Autodelta’s consolidation/development and accumulation
of experience in preparing cars for, and running them on, the track. Perhaps even more importantly, it served as
the basis for the development TZ2 model, which itself would inform the creation
of both the legendary touring car successor, the Giulia GTA, and the sports
prototype 33, which would, in 1975, enable Alfa Romeo to reclaim the accolade
of ‘world champions’ for the first time since 1951.
An account of the 'birth' and initial problems of the TZ1 appeared in the March 1992 issue of Autocapital magazine - it can be read here.
