As a young boy growing up in central Stockholm in the late 70’s-early 80’s, what I saw on the streets were mostly a mix of more or less boring Volvos and Saabs. There was however one memorable exception – a car I would regularly pass on my way home from school. It was a black Alfa GTV that to my young eyes had not only a cool, coupé shape, but was also the only car I had ever seen (still to this day!) that had what looked like fish nets in the center of the headrests. It was love at first and regular sight, and since my father was about to change company car (a common feature in Sweden back then…), I begged and implored him to go for the Alfa. He didn’t and we ended up with a Saab Turbo instead. Given that the winter in Sweden is VERY long and that there were at the time at least 30 Saabs for every Alfa sold, that was probably a wise choice. To me, the Saab could however never compete with the Giugiaro-designed GTV which since that day has a solid place on my 80’s car list. That’s a reason as good as any to have a closer look at it in this week’s post!

The GTV was born in 1974 and was called Alfetta GT for the first two years of production. This was the time when Alfa was still Alfa, i.e. before being taken over by Fiat. Business was however far from good, with the company only managing to scrape by thanks to frequent capital injections from the Italian state, and with limited success seen for its various models. The Alfetta on which the GTV was based, was a 4-door sedan produced since 1972 in a transaxle construction and with the same chassis that all rear-wheel drive Alfas would use until the takeover by Fiat in 1986 – including the GTV. The looks of the Alfetta however had very little to do with the GTV. The former was a very unspectacular family sedan, the latter a cool coupé with a low, four-eyed front and a sloping, hatchback-like design. Giugiaro did an excellent job at the time and the GTV looks as cool today as then, in my own, completely unbiased opinion!

The GTV (“Grand Turismo Veloce (speed)”) from 1976 and onwards was powered by two four-cylinder engines, one 1.6 and one 2-litre, the latter producing around 130 hp and the only engine in many export markets. As Alfa prepared for a face-lift of the GTV in 1981, they had the brilliant idea of adding a more powerful engine and for a while considered the V8 from the Alfa Montreal, before the final choice fell on the 2.5 litre, six-cylinder engine from the limousine Alfa 6 (a big, luxurious Alfa limousine launched in the mid-70’s). The power output in the GTV remained at around 160 hp but there was a small problem in that the engine didn’t really fit the car, so the bonnet of the GTV6 has a “hump” that differentiates it (and makes it look even cooler!) from the 2-litre version. As other popular coupés in the early 80’s the GTV6 had fuel injection, another difference to the smaller engines with carburettors. The transaxle construction with both the gearbox and the battery in the back gave the car a nearly perfect weight distribution, and as mentioned, it was also rear-wheel drive. All in all, a very promising package!

The pre-face lift, four-cylinder GTV’s had a lot of chrome in typical 70’s style, but to keep up with the times, the face-lifted versions after 1981 took on the typical 80’s black plastic look, and the GTV6 was only ever avaiable in the face-lifted version. This makes the styling of both cars rather different, seen with today’s eyes. Pre-face lift, the GTV comes across as more elegant than sporty, with some nice details such as the visible GTV inscription on the left c-pillar. The face-lifted version looks sportier, especially the GTV6 with its hump and (at 15″), at least slightly bigger wheels. Unfortunately many cars today have fallen victim to all kinds of transformations, generally of bad taste. The cool black plastic unfortunately also looks less cool 40 years after, as it tends to become grey with time.

Driving-wise the GTV provides the typical 70’s and 80’s Alfa experience in everything from the mechanics to the seating position. The latter was a constant point of debate, being referred to as a “monkey position” requiring short legs and long arms. Having experienced quite a few Alfas, I never agreed to that as especially on longer drives, that position actually works quite well. Other typical features include a steering that is precise enough but very vague around the center, and a gear change that requires a good warm-up and a precise hand. None of this really matters though from the moment you put your right foot down and hear the lovely engine note both engines put out. This is clearly the highlight of the car, and there is no doubt the six-cylinder in the GTV6 sings more than the still enjoyable, 2-litre four-pot in the GTV 2.0. The general comfort including the suspension also deserves praise, and even though the GTV has a conventional boot rather than being a hatchback, it’s quite roomy which together with the reasonable room in the back makes this a practical GT car. In the 80’s, it was enough for a family of four. Today, its width is almost exactly the same as a modern Fiat Panda…

Altough produced to a total of around 135.000 cars over its 13-year existence, the GTV couldn’t save Alfa from being taken over by Fiat in 1986 and the GTV production stopped the year after. Since then, a chassis and body more prone to rust than most, together with generally poor build quality have quite drastically reduced the number of cars that have survived until this day. As mentioned, many of these have also been tuned, lowered or otherwise modified to something you don’t want. Finding a good car of either engine, pre- or post face-lift can thus be difficult and starts getting expensive. EUR 20.000 will buy you a good car, be it a four- or six-cylinder as the market doesn’t really differentiate between the two, the general condition being more important. The GTV6 will always be the “all else equal” pick, but on the other hand, a well preserved pre-face lift car has stood the test of time better than the face-lift version. Then again the GTV6 that this post is about was only available in the face-lifted version, as were the seats with the fish net headrests!

PS. You may remember my post on the Ferrari FF from a few weeks ago, which you can otherwise find here. This week Doug De Muro featured the FF much under the same tone as me, i.e. that at today’s price-levels, it’s quite a bargain. I’m not saying this because I think Doug’s inspired by the blog (although it would be nice…), but rather as you may want to check it out!