Photo: Via The Smoking Tire
Matt Farah proves once again that he's an enthusiast of many facets in the automotive community, including this vintage Alfa Romeo GTA racer.
Vintage racing is gaining popularity all the time, but often it's the classic muscle cars or the super-fast endurance racers that get all the attention. That makes this new video from Matt Farah driving a 1.7-liter Alfa Romeo GTA a refreshing change of pace, literally and figuratively.
This particular car is what's called Superleggera (Superlight), meaning that it was always meant for competition as it was built with lighter materials like fiberglass doors. However, that lightness ends up being a huge advantage for the small car too.
As Farah rips it around the Thunder Hill racetrack, it's clear from the very beginning that this car doesn't sound like it's rocking a measly 1.7-liter four-cylinder. The sound is something far more powerful and emotional.
That's in part due to the twin-plug head on this engine. Farah points out in the video notes that the head has just been reworked. Original GTA's sported a 1.5-liter engine and made around 160 horsepower. We suspect this one is right around 200 hp.
That's not much, but as we watch Farah at the controls, it's clear that Alfa Romeo didn't build this car for passing on long stretches of straight-away road. No, it made it to cut corners faster than anything else on the track.
Matt repeatedly makes mention of just how light and effortless all of the controls are. He says that the brake pedal is so quick and easy to engage that heel/toe shifting is actually quite hard to get the hang of.
By the end of the drive, he's smitten and explains that drivers coming from muscle cars to the GTA must have felt like the lightness was a revelation. "I get it... it makes me want to buy an old Alfa for sure," he says. We do too, Matt, we do too.
This particular car is what's called Superleggera (Superlight), meaning that it was always meant for competition as it was built with lighter materials like fiberglass doors. However, that lightness ends up being a huge advantage for the small car too.
As Farah rips it around the Thunder Hill racetrack, it's clear from the very beginning that this car doesn't sound like it's rocking a measly 1.7-liter four-cylinder. The sound is something far more powerful and emotional.
That's in part due to the twin-plug head on this engine. Farah points out in the video notes that the head has just been reworked. Original GTA's sported a 1.5-liter engine and made around 160 horsepower. We suspect this one is right around 200 hp.
That's not much, but as we watch Farah at the controls, it's clear that Alfa Romeo didn't build this car for passing on long stretches of straight-away road. No, it made it to cut corners faster than anything else on the track.
Matt repeatedly makes mention of just how light and effortless all of the controls are. He says that the brake pedal is so quick and easy to engage that heel/toe shifting is actually quite hard to get the hang of.
By the end of the drive, he's smitten and explains that drivers coming from muscle cars to the GTA must have felt like the lightness was a revelation. "I get it... it makes me want to buy an old Alfa for sure," he says. We do too, Matt, we do too.
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