The Remarkable Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale Came Straight From The Track To The Met Gala of Cars

The OG 1967 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale

The 1967 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale is a race-bred mid-engined car and has a lot of distinct aspects from the other mainstream cars, and the engine is one of them. The Alfa Romeo was fitted with a 2.0L DOHC V8, and the 1,995 cc engine was more closely related to the one from the Alfa Montreal. The overall output varies with each unit due to its hand-built nature. The rated output ranges from 227 horsepower to 240 horsepower with 152 lb-ft of torque. With the open exhaust, the number bumps to around 251 horsepower.

The Stradale retained the flat-plane crankshaft of the Tipo 33, and the aluminum engine with dry-sump lubrication had SPICA fuel injection. The four chain-driven camshafts connected with the cylinder valvetrain offered a rev limit of 10,000 rpm. The 5-speed manual transmission was impressively smooth, allowing the car to accelerate from 0 to 60 MPH in just 5.3 seconds, and the top speed of 160 MPH was hard to beat at that time. If I had to give you a perspective on the kind of performance it offered for its time, it was the fastest commercial car for a standing kilometer (0.62 miles).

Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale Design 

It was not just the engine and its performance that stood out; the overall design of the Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale was among the most coveted ones. The 33 Stradale was built by Carrozzeria Marazzi, and the design came from Franco Scaglione. The car debuted at the Paris Salon de l'Auto in October 1967. It was one of the pioneers to use forward-hinging butterfly doors. The windows had seamless curves that went on to blend in with the roof. The tubular chassis offered better aerodynamics, while the aluminum material ensured better durability.

The 33 Stradale came through two significant prototypes, chassis no. 10533.01 and chassis no. 10533.12, the latter having a magnesium body. It was built simultaneously with the Tipo 33 Periscopica in the same year. There were only 18 units of the Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale ever built, making it one of the rarest street-legal supercars.

The biggest aspect of the 33 Stradale was that each of the 18 articles was handmade, resulting in some level of difference and appearing unique for every owner. Out of these 18, the first couple of vehicles came with twin headlights, which were later replaced with single ones. The 13-inch Campagnolo magnesium wheels came with disc brakes in the front and inboard ones on the rear.

The Original Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale Price & Value

The praiseworthy performance and the unique design resulted in the Alfa Romeo Stradale being the most expensive car at that time. While the average price of most street cars was limited to $2,000 during the end of the 60s, the 33 Stradale was priced at $17,000. To contextualize this, the 1967 Chevrolet Corvette had a base price of $4,240 whereas the average new car cost $2,752.

Alfa Romeo during the production only made 18 Stradales putting several production being very limited the owners hardly ever sold their Stradales which made the estimation of its current worth quite difficult. Out of the 18 made and sold, only 7 still remain on the road and according to the estimations, the car currently holds a value of $10 million in the US market.

The 2023 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale

Paying tribute to the original icon of the 60s, the 2025 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale is an all-new limited offering from the brand. The new 33 Stradale is a custom-built limited edition car acting as a bridge between the brand's past and future. The two-seater coupe limited to just 33 units offers two distinctive powertrain options and when I distinctive, I mean literally. 

Buyers can get their 33 Stradale with a 2.9L twin-turbocharged V6 engine or as a BEV (battery electric vehicle). With the ice setup, the Stradale makes 620 horsepower whereas the electric setup raises the bar to 750. Both versions offer a juicy sub 3-second of 0 to 60 MPH and a top speed of 206 MPH. That's Alfa Romeo's way of clenching the past and the future together.

If you're already excited, I don't want to dishearten you but all 33 cars have already been sold. That being said, the team of Alfa Romeo professionals involved the lucky 33 customers and hand-crafted the car which points to every unit being a one-off.

Image Source- Stellantis Media