In hindsight, I’m sure Alfa Romeo is very happy that Expo ’67 was based in Montreal. If the exposition was somewhere else, they could have wound up with a car called the Moosejaw, or the Mississauga, or the Flin Flon.
When Alfa presented their new concept car at the Expo, it had no numerical designation or name, so people just started calling it “Montreal.”
The Marcello Gandini-penned 2+2 coupe body sat on a Giulia Sprint GT chassis and was initially powered by a 1.6-liter Giulia TI engine. When the first production car was shown in Geneva in 1970, it was almost visually identical to the show car. It had made the journey, through to production, without being watered down by comity.
There had been changes, but for the good. Lurking under the hood with the non-functional NACA duct was now a 2593-cc, 90-degree, dry-sump V8 with SPICA fuel injection. The engine put out close to 200 horsepower and revved to a then unheard of 7000 rpms; it was mated to a ZF 5-speed gearbox and a limited slip differential. This was a special motor, it was based on the unit that powered the Tipo 33 sports prototype racecar and its roadgoing Stradale sister. Suspension was borrowed from the Giulia GTV. Double wishbones with coil springs and dampers handled the work at the front, while a live axle took up the rear.
All this was wrapped in a body designed by the man credited with other beauties such as the Lamborghini Miura, Countach, Bugatti EB110 and the Alfa 33 Carabo.
You had to write a big check to become the owner of a new Montreal. Its price tag was well north of an E-Type or 911. It was not widely praised by the motoring press at the time, but that didn’t stop Alfa from selling close to 3,900 cars during its production run.
The Montreal was never sold in the U.S. and Canada, as no version was built to conform to the stringent emission requirements of the two countries, but now due to its age we can experience all the Montreal’s charms. This example was one of the first 60 built when production started and was delivered new to Modena and luckily found its way to these shores.
For a design that appeared 50 years ago, the Montreal doesn’t have a dated look. It’s taut and muscular without being heavy looking. You pick up on styling cues that also appeared on the Miura, as well as the Maserati Khamsin.
Owner Bradley Price sees it as an Italian “Pony Car,” but no Mustang or Camaro has anywhere near the style or elegance of this Italian cavallino.
Once inside, the seats hold you comfortably and are ready to carry you for all the miles this GT can cover. The gauges are some of the most unique units you’ll ever lay eyes on. Both the tach and speedometer are nestled in their own hooded circular surrounds that hold all the other necessary information. The steering wheel has that ubiquitous Italian rake, but all you need to do is grab hold at 5 and 7 and it does your bidding perfectly.
Even without being supercharged, the exhaust note reminds you of the bark of the pre-war 8C Grand Prix cars. And it’s not just sound, it’s motion; the motor does just what a V8 is supposed to do—move you along at a proper pace. It swallows up miles on the open road and it does not disappoint when it comes to twisting mountain roads. It is a well-balanced car that entices you back for more, whatever road you put it on.
It’s hard to put a title to what kind of car the Montreal is. It may have been typecast as a Grand Touring car, but it’s an Alfa Romeo, so it has the heart of a sports car and it gives you everything you want…you just have to ask.
My thanks to Bradley Price, of Autodromo, for letting this pony run free.
Specifications
Wheelbase: 2350 mm / 92.5 in
Front track: 1374 mm / 54.1 in
Rear track: 1340 mm / 52.8 in
Length: 4220 mm / 166.1 in
Width: 1672 mm / 65.8 in
Height: 1205 mm / 47.4 in
Weight 1270 kg/ 2800 lbs
Engine: V 8
Displacement: 2593 cc/ 158.4 cui
Bore: 80 mm / 3.15 in
Stroke: 64.5 mm / 2.54 in
Compression ratio: 9 : 1
Horsepower net: 200
Torque : 188 ft-lb @ 6500
Transmission 5 speed
Price new $16,647 (£,5549) in 1971
Price now $99,000 – $130,000
