Alfa Romeo to reveal a Ferrari-fighting supercar

As a last gasp of the petrol era, Alfa Romeo will reveal a Ferrari-rivalling supercar, a modern take on its iconic 33 Stradale model from the 1960s.

Alfa Romeo is reviving the 33 Stradale model from the 1960s.

Alfa Romeo is set to end 113 years of petrol-power with a banging exhaust from a new, Ferrari-rivalling supercar.

The famous Italian brand is set to reveal a modern take on its iconic 33 Stradale model from the 1960s, with a mid-mounted twin-turbo V6 engine and Formula One-style carbon fibre chassis.

Speaking to Australian media at the recent Le Mans Classic event, Alfa Romeo design director Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos confirmed the long-rumoured plans to revive the 33 nameplate.

“Yes, we’re doing it,” Mesonero-Romanos said, with some glee.

His confirmation came after Alfa Romeo CEO Jean-Philipee Imparato teased that something “special” is in the works for a 2024 reveal.

The company has been hinting that such a car will happen for some time, with the 6C badge (another historic nameplate for the brand) previously attached to this secret project. However, it now appears that it will instead carry the 33 Stradale name, which is taken from the racing-inspired model that was produced in limited numbers between 1967 and 1969.

The V8-powered coupe is considered to be one of the world’s first supercars and was a direct evolution of the brand’s Le Mans racing machines of that era.

While there are no official details for this new supercar we do have a good idea about what to expect. It’s likely to be built around a central carbon fibre monocoque - or ‘tub’ - similar to an F1 car, which will form the “backbone”, either an evolution of the one used for the Alfa Romeo 4C or the newer and truly sensational Maserati MC20 (which falls under the same parent company, Stellantis).

Behind the cabin will be Alfa Romeo’s final internal-combustion engine, the 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6 unit used in the current Giulia and Stelvio Quadrifoglio models. This engine has already proven capable of making up to 402kW of power and 600Nm of torque, so it should provide ample performance. It will be mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission and send power to the rear wheels only.

It should be a fitting swan song to more than a century of building petrol-powered cars before the Italian brand begins its transition to an all-electric future by the end of the decade. Imparato has already confirmed that Alfa Romeo will launch its first all-electric model in 2025, a replacement for the Giulia sports sedan, with another to follow each year until 2027.

It’s part of his strategy to make Alfa Romeo a major premium brand around the world again by 2030, with the line-up expected to consist of a variety of electric SUVs and sedans to take on the likes of Tesla and Mercedes-Benz, after years of inconsistency from the Italian firm.

“Going up,” Imparato said, when talking about the key to the brand’s future success. “The only way out for Alfa Romeo is up, I cannot go into the battle for €35,000 [models], this is not my job… This will be the battle with the Chinese. But this is not my point, I have to go up.

“For that I must be stable, renewing the cars, switching to electrification and being top in terms of quality.”