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By
DAVID PIKE
In the first half of the 1930s in Mussolini's Italy a healthy
industry had high priority, and so did prestige. At this time Alfa Romeo
was in trouble financially (sound familiar?) but money pumped in by a
government agency kept the company afloat. Although priorities were
changed to concentrate on aero engines, some effort was spared to
develop prestige cars for the late 1930s.
The result was the most brilliant of Alfa Romeos - fast and
sleek thoroughbreds which embodied all the company stood for in
the world of performance cars. Only a handful were built, and in
competitions their performance was matched, or eclipsed, by some
less ambitious cars, in part because times were changing.
Introduced in 1935, the first of these used the chassis of the
8C 35 racing car and its independent front suspension, and for a
power unit the proven straight eight used in the P3 Grand Prix
cars. This was mildly detuned, and in its 2905cc form it delivered
a useful 164kW at 5300rpm.
It drove through a normal single propeller shaft with a
straightforward differential and half shafts arrangement. The
car's dimensions were exactly the same as the GP single-seater,
and in the two-seater the driver was on the right, as was
customary for both competition sports cars and high quality cars
of the period. In this form, the 2900 was capable of 225km/h. Six
were built in 1935 and a further five sports-racing bodied 2900As
were built in 1936.
In 1937 a longer series of 2900Bs was introduced, in two forms:
the Corto, a short wheelbase version, and the more spacious Lungo.
The engine was detuned again for the production car and power
dropped to 134kW at 5200rpm. This reduced the top speed to
185km/h, still highly creditable for a road-going sports car of
the 1930s. The Lungo version had a chassis which was 20cm longer
and weighed another 100kg in road trim, but thanks to its
magnificent long straight eight engine with the twin blowers
driving its rear-mounted four-speed gearbox it could still manage
a top speed of almost 177km/h and carry a variety of sumptuously
styled bodies.
The 2900 summed up the unmatchable Alfa blend of performance
and style, perhaps better than any other car the company ever made
and although only 10 long-wheelbase versions of the 2900B were
made, coachbuilt in open, closed and cabriolet bodies by
Pininfarina and Touring they rightly earned classic status.
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