The Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione is a sports car produced by Italian marque Alfa Romeo between 2007 and 2010. It was first presented as a concept car at the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show. The name refers to the eight-cylinder (cilindro in Italian) engine (8C) and Alfa Romeo's racing pedigree (Competizione, Italian for 'competition'). The company received over 1,400 orders for the 8C after the official announcement that the car would enter production. However, only 500 customers ended up with the 8C Competizione and another 329 with the 8C Spider, bringing the production total to 829 cars.
2003 concept car
The 8C Competizione was first shown to the public at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2003. Designed by Wolfgang Egger at Centro Stile Alfa Romeo, the lines of the twin seater are meant to echo the styling of Alfa Romeo automobiles of the 1950s and 1960s, and the "Competizione" name is a reference to the 1948 6C 2500 Competizione, which competed in the 1949 and 1950 Mille Miglia race and secured third position both times. It was in the latter of these two races that the car was driven by Juan-Manuel Fangio and Augusto Zanardi. It won the 1950 Targa Florio. A 3.0-litre prototype was built but not produced. These 6C 2500 models were among the last vehicles with links to the pre-war cars. The concept was purely meant to be a styling exercise with no drive train.
2007 production version
During the Mondial de l'Automobile 2006, Alfa Romeo announced the production of the 8C Competizione (500 units). The production version is very similar to the concept; the biggest difference to the exterior being the rear-hinged hood. Other minor changes included the front lights, which used Xenon lamps, a standard wiper system, a mesh side vent, and the wheels, which had a design that mimicked the cloverleaf logo. The car came standard in Alfa Red or Black colours. Pearl Yellow and the Special Competition Red were also available as an option. Paint-to-sample colors were also available for an additional charge, and so, the cars were produced in a wide range of colours, such as white, with a Maserati range (Fuji White, Blue Avio, Blue Oceano, Grigio Nuvolari) and a Ferrari range (Blue Pozzi, Vinaccia { Aubergine}). The bodyshell is made of carbon fibre, produced by ATR Group.
The carbon fibre body is fitted to a steel chassis, made by Italian company ITCA Produzione. Final assembly took place at the Maserati factory in Modena.
An 8C Competizione was featured on the main sculpture at the 2010 Goodwood Festival of Speed. One of the two remaining Alfa Romeo P2s was also part of the display.
Powertrain
The car uses a unique platform that shares several components with the Maserati GranTurismo. The powertrain features a Ferrari/Maserati derived cross-plane, wet sump lubricated 90° V8 engine assembled by Ferrari. The top engine performance figures may be summarized as a maximum power output of at 7,000 rpm and a peak torque of at 4,750 rpm (80% at 2,500 rpm) with an engine redline of 7,500 rpm and rev limiter of 7,600 rpm. The V8 engine has variable timing, intake valves and a compression ratio of 11.3:1.
The six–speed transaxle gearbox has computerized gear selection by means of paddles on the steering column and may be used in Manual-Normal; Manual-Sport; Automatic-Normal; Automatic-Sport and Wet modes. The gearbox can shift gears in 175 milliseconds when the Sport mode is selected. The car also features a limited slip differential.
Performance
The 8C Competizione is fitted with specially developed 20-inch tyres: 245/35 at the front and 285/35 at the rear, wrapped around perforated wheels crafted from fluid moulded aluminium. The brakes of the car, which are Brembo carbon ceramic units have been called "phenomenal" by Road & Track magazine, with a stopping distance of , when travelling at an initial speed of . The official top speed is officially quoted to be but it might be higher, with estimations that it could be around according to the Road & Track magazine.
8C Spider
2005 Spider concept
At the 2005 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, Alfa Romeo unveiled the 8C Spider, a roadster version of the Competizione coupé concept presented in 2003. The Spider concept was built by Carrozzeria Marazzi. Production of the 8C Spider was confirmed by Sergio Marchionne on September 25, 2007. It was announced that the Spider would be built in a limited production run of 500 units and would cost around US$227,000 (€165,000), considerably more than the coupé version.
