Book Review: Alfa Romeo GT Buyer’s Guide

The Essential Buyer’s Guide Alfa Romeo Giulia GT Coupe
By Keith Booker, Veloce Publishing, Dorset, England
ISBN 1-904788-69-6
$19.95 USD Click here to order

Book Review by Pete Vack

Of all the post war Alfa Romeo Giuliettas and Giulias, the Guilia GT coupe is widely recognized as the most well-proportioned and beautiful of them all.

There were three basic under two liter Alfas in the 1960s; the Satta sedan, heavenly but no beauty; the Duetto by Pininfarina, a landmark as it was, but the proportions were not perfect; and the Giulia GT Coupe. Finding fault with the styling of the coupe was almost impossible.

Successor to the long-lived and also beautiful Alfa Sprint, which dated from the early 1950s to its demise in 1964, the Giulia GT was a stunning bit of one upmanship. As it should be, however, both designs are for the ages, timeless in their shape and function, as shapely and provocative as any female form.

Both constructed by Bertone, the Sprint was largely Scaglione, the GT wholly Giugiaro. But while the earlier Alfa Sprint coupe had refined the artistic gropings of the forties, the GT re-defined the artistic directions of the fifties, establishing an almost perfect symmetry of line which perhaps can be regarded as the final fulfillment of sensible yet beautiful automobile design.
As per the norm for the industry, we find that the most pure examples of Giugiaro’s expression are found in the earliest examples, in this case being the 1964 1600 GT, a single headlight model with reasonably large yet fittingly small taillights, fifteen inch wheels which provided a muscular appearance if not suitable road contact, and a straight, simple grille with an unusual step in the forward lid of the engine hood. Even better was the 1965 GTA, a classic now out of reach for almost anyone and therefore outside the scope of Booker’s Buyer’s Guide. The Giulia lived on well into the seventies, with constantly upgraded or downgraded engine assortments; the 1600 to the 1750 back to a 1300 Jr to a full 2000 and down again to a 1600 Jr.

Thumbing through this very handy new book from Veloce Publishing (our British friends who are not, however, in any way related to VeloceToday or VelocePress) we were reminded of the virtues of the Giulia coupe (the return of the accent mark over the e in coupe will be henceforth ignored). And conversely the foibles of the same lovely Alfa, from rust to brakes to leaks and poorly made interiors.

Measuring 7 ½ by 5 ½ inches and 62 pages long, it can be tucked into a large pocket, for it is designed to be taken along when that special Alfa Giulia Coupe is found. A guide actually meant to be used on site, and as such, offers a long chapter called “Serious evaluation”, in which there are boxes to be checked after looking at the condition of the exterior, interior, mechanicals, etc. Booker does not seem to have missed a trick, covering every imaginable aspect of Alfa troubles from A to Z in a comprehensive and understandable manner.

While this chapter constitutes the majority of the book, there are also other helpful chapters. “Living with a Giulia Coupe” addresses the pros and cons of owning and driving a 40 year old Alfas such a life may not be for everyone. There are chapters on restoration, how to buy at auctions, and how to quickly evaluate if a particular Alfa is worthy of further investigation. There is a list of clubs and key Alfa shops, but unfortunately mostly limited to those found in England. Another chapter provides vital statistics for each model, such as numbers built, the range of chassis numbers, and general mechanical specs.

One of the problems with such a small book is that the photographs, while clear, sharp and in full color, are nonetheless on the small side and a bit hard for old eyes to easily see. Ditto the paragraph headings and captions, which are printed in a light blue color.

In only 60 plus pages, Booker and the editors of Veloce Press have culled the essential information necessary to purchase an Alfa Giulia GT, not too much, not too little, and have left out nothing of great importance. The models covered include:

Giulia Sprint GT, GT Veloce, 1750 GTV/GT Veloce, GT 1300 Jr., 2000 GTV, GT 1600 Jr. Note that the Juniors were not imported to the US, but many made it to these shores before the DOT/EPA declared war on illegal cars.