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| Chassis *01944* competed in the Mille Miglia in '55, '56, and '57. Still going strong! |
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| Chassis *01955* was hot-rodded and re-roofed!. |
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| *01955* no frills cockpit heavily modified for racing. |
From the first time I laid eyes on The Alfatross I was painfully aware of her rarity. I say painfully because in those days, decades before the Internet, no one knew anything about it—not even how to pronounce Alfa Romeo. On the rare occasion when I did run into someone who was familiar with the Alfa name, they would ask if it was a Giulia or a Giulietta. When I said, no, it’s a 1900, all I got was a blank stare.
Following Post #21 from 2013, I thought now would be good time to update the list I started back then and elaborate on what The Alfatross' brothers and sisters have been up to over the last 7 years. At least 9 of them have changed hands since 2014 (exact figures are unknown). As far as I am aware, the US is home to 13, followed by Italy and Switzerland with 4 each. Spain has 2 while France, the Netherlands, England and Belgium have 1 each for a total of 27—but the numbers are constantly changing. Back in 2013 I was under the impression that around 41 Alfa Romeo 1900 SSZs were produced between 1954 and 1957. Those numbers come from lists published in books such as H-J. Dohren’s Millenove and Michele Marchiano’s Le Zagato citing figures derived from legitimate “official” sources such as Alfa and Zagato factory and PRA (Public Register of Automobiles) records.
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| A 1900 SSZ "impersonator", one of many! |
Since 2013, thanks to the Internet and other sources, I have learned of at least 15 “questionable” cars claiming AR 1900C SSZ DNA. Are they really The Alfatross’ relatives or something else? What is the difference?
How
many AR 1900C SSZs were made and how many originals exist? Big question.
Short answer: nobody knows. You can look at the Alfa 1900 Companion
site http://www.alfacompanion.com/alfa1900/ and see photos of cars claiming original serial numbers, but are
they "real"? And what about the all-important "numbers matching"
question? How many of them have their original engines? They were built
to race, and race they did. Racing has a tendency to take a toll on a
vehicle. Off track excursions, rubbing fenders, over-revving engines in
the heat of battle, overwhelming simple water and oil cooling systems in
summer's heat, putting victory ahead of the car's well-being . . . there are many reasons why matching numbers cars
are rare.
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| Chassis *01909*, badly damaged in Venezuela, discarded and resurrected. |
The more I thought about it, the more it seemed to me that The Alfatross’ family is not that different from a human one. At the risk of over-anthropomorphizing, L’Albatro (The Alfatross) is an offspring of the matrimonio di passione between what are now known as the Zagato and Alfa Romeo Famiglie Reali. It is a very private, almost secretive, family. Official birth and death records exist, but some are suspect. Marriage records even more so. Rumors of bambini illegittimi are rife. The Alfatross’ padre, Duca Alfa Romeo, had several dozen liaisons with what contemporaries described as a very seductive, but perhaps somewhat promiscuous, young bella donna known as Za-Za. Because she belonged to the Gatto family, people called her Zagato. Born in the middle of her generation, called Tipo Due, and baptized Esse Esse Zed (SS Zagato), L’Albatro has brothers and sisters but despite considerable effort by automotive genealogists no one knows exactly how many, what they look like, where they are, or even if they still exist. Only a handful of them seem to have stayed in Italy while over the years a great many immigrated to the US.
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| Sequestered in an Italian dungeon for decades, *01845* is now sympathetically restored. |
Regardless of being born into nobility, the family motto seems to have been vivere velocemente e morire giovane (live fast and die young). Encouraged from birth to compete, they travelled widely often participating in a family feud with their half-siblings and arch competitors, il Otto Vu, sharing the same Za-Za Gatto mother but fathered by Duca Fiat. Some ended up in unhappy, abusive relationships, died in obscurity, and were lost to history. Others were better cared for but over the years suffered injuries and endured complicated reconstructive procedures including even heart surgery and extensive skin grafts, sometimes altering the family resemblance.
Still others had near-death
experiences but were resurrected. Some resurrections did not go well and they
became Zagato Zombies. Over the decades, pretenders seeking to cash in on the pedigree
of L’Albatro and her siblings emerged
from the shadows, mistakenly or falsely claiming Esse Esse Zed heritage. Sorting them out has become very difficult.
In the prima serie (1st
Series) of 1900 SSZs there are 14 known “impersonators” using chassis numbers
that, at least at one time, were legitimate.
Automotive genealogists attempting to establish the actual identities of 1900 SSZs must tread a fine line between science, legalities, privacy, and diplomacy. SSZ DNA is not complicated arrangements of AGTC but numbers stamped on their firewalls and engines, certain signature shapes and curves of their bodies, and above all, the svelte, sexy physiques they inherited from their mother, gli Zagato. Yes, there is a strong family resemblance—but with notable exceptions. Nose profiles started to droop as time went on, and fenders morphed into “buns of steel”. Some people liked that, but when doppie bolla (double bubble) roofs appeared it became lust at first sight (automotive historians have pondered where that inspiration came from—perhaps Sophia Loren’s popularity at the time?).
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| No chassis number. Inspiration for doppie bolla roof style? |
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| *01855*(?) In period photo of a proud 1900 SSZ owner with his customized car. |
It appears that each AR 1900 C SSZ was a custom order. With body color, interior features such as upholstery type and color combination, seat configuration, dashboard shape, shifter location, roof profile, and even number of hood scoops all specified by the buyer. Some cars have had at least 8 successive owners, each of which had a chance to indulge in the natural inclination to modify them further with little or no regard for “preserving originality”.
In addition to recognizing the natural and legitimate changes in 1900 SSZ body shape that occurred at the Zagato factory between 1954 and 1957, automotive genealogists must recognize and categorize all the ways in which original cars can change over time. The Alfatross' siblings include 28 chassis numbers that are fairly well-known and verifiable. Another 16 are thought to have existed at one time but are now "missing in action". Finally, there and about 15 “fakes”, some with seemingly legitimate chassis numbers.
The word “fake”
needs nuancing. It implies intention to deceive. My guess is while that is
undoubtedly the case in some (many?) instances, in others it may be more
benign, as with the now common practice of building “continuation” and
“tribute” replicas. I’d like to sort that out for 1900 SSZs, differentiating
between outright “fraud” examples (those that bear false chassis and/or engine
stampings), largely “original” but damaged or worn out cars, and those that
have been “sympathetically restored” and returned to use. It would be a good
real life example of the Ship of Theseus thought experiment (Post #45) . . . but that's for a later post--this one is too long already!
