This Alfa has been locked away for 35 years

Soon there won’t be any priceless classics left to find in dilapidated barns/musty basements/forgotten storage units. But thankfully now is not that time, because look here at what’s just been unearthed in suburban Turin. 

It’s a 1962 Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ – surely one of the most beautiful cars ever made. The Internet tells us it was found last November in a chap’s basement, where it had been stranded for more than three decades because of a broken elevator. The unnamed man, a mechanic, sadly died recently and supposedly didn’t leave a will. So with no obvious home, last week the dusty, but remarkably complete-looking Alfa was auctioned by the Italian government for a hefty €547,000. 

The Giulietta SZ was/is a rare thing. It all came about after a man called Dore Leto di Priolo wrecked his ‘regular’ Giulietta Sprint Veloce on the 1956 Mille Miglia. He sent said wreck to Zagato to be mended and equipped with a lighter, more aerodynamic body. After an initial run of 16 cars (called the SVZ) built without approval from Alfa, the two companies eventually decided to team up for the SZ, which was revealed at the 1960 Geneva Motor Show. Around 200 would eventually be built. 

Here’s to hoping the well-heeled petrolhead who bought it gets it back on the road double quick. 

Images: Alfa Romeo Giulia & 105 Series on Facebook