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Alfa Romeo 33 4x4 Sport Wagon - elegance, space and traction

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Created on February 21, 2021

Text:

Bruno von Rotz

Photos:

Paolo Carlini - Courtesy RM/Sotheby's

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Alfa Romeo / FCA / Werk

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Archiv

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Paolo Carlini - Courtesy RM/Sotheby's

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Alfa Romeo / FCA / Werk

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Archiv

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - Lifestyle station wagon from Italy

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - elegant station wagon in the best light

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - Pininfarina adapted the bodywork primarily from the C-pillar onwards for the conversion to a station wagon

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - as an all-wheel drive version, the car was two centimeters higher than the front-wheel drive version

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - the roof rails made it possible to transport additional luggage on the roof

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - front still largely in the original 33 look

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - the tailgate only opens up to the rear lights, but the loading floor is also quite high in the all-wheel drive version

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - blessed with good traction even on loose surfaces thanks to selectable all-wheel drive

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - the contemporary tests described the handling in all-wheel drive mode as very neutral

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - on the move

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - the interior was repeatedly adapted to the times, changes compared to the original version are clearly visible here

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - the height of the steering wheel can be adjusted by five centimeters, the dashboard moves with it

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - clear instruments, red area from 6300 rpm

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - Panasonic radio cassette player from the period

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - beautiful tweed fabrics in a four-wheel drive station wagon

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - good space on the fold-down rear bench seat

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - with twin carburetors, the 1.5-liter produced 105 hp in 1988

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - Chassis badge

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - Alfa sign on the front

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - "Sport Wagon" written in two words

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - clearly labeled

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - the Alfa sign on the tailgate

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - View of the technology from below - Front axle

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - A look at the technology - Rear axle

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Alfa Romeo 33 1.5 4×4 Sport Wagon (1988) - Documentation received with the new station wagon

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1983) - Design sketches

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1983) - freshly presented in Venice in the summer of 1983

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1983) - with indicated notchback

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1984) - Interior of the Quadrifoglio Oro version

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1983) - Interior

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1983) - La Linea

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1983) - Advertising - The line of another class

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Alfa-Romeo 33 4x4 - B. Balas on the 4x4 Alfa 33 in the 1986 Monte Carlo Rally

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Alfa Romeo 33 4x4 (1985) - more traction with all-wheel drive

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Alfa Romeo 33 4x4 (1991) - How the all-wheel drive works

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Alfa Romeo 33 Giardinetta - built by Pininfarina, a selectable four-wheel drive is now available - at the 1984 Geneva Motor Show

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Alfa Romeo 33 Giardinetta (1984) - Estate version with all-wheel drive

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1985) in the advertisement together with its racing ancestor

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1987) - Advertising - strong in suit

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Alfa Romeo 33 (1986) - as Quadrifoglio Verde

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Alfa Romeo 33 4x4 (1991) - See-through drawing - View through the bodywork

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Alfa Romeo 33 Sport Wagon 1.7 (1987) - Advertising - the sporty way to create space

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Alfa Romeo 33 4x4 (1991) - with all-wheel drive

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Summary

With the Sport Wagon, Alfa Romeo also offered the Alfa 33, which was based on the Alfasud, as a station wagon and also with all-wheel drive, just the thing for a demanding and leisure-oriented clientele. The compact five-door model was certainly convincing, but was no bargain. Only a few examples of the Alfa 33 Station Wagon are likely to have survived; a well-preserved example is shown in this report, which covers the entire history of the "33" model series, supplemented by an original brochure of the first saloon version.

This article contains the following chapters

Presented in Venice
In-house design
Modified technology from the predecessor
Ascent?
With Pininfarina's support for new variants
From the Giardinetta to the Sport Wagon
A survivor

Estimated reading time: 8min

Preview (beginning of the article)

With the Alfasud, Alfa Romeo presented an extremely progressive car at the beginning of the 1970s, which quickly found many friends. However, quality problems and, in particular, inadequate rust prevention gnawed at its reputation and a station wagon variant called the Giardinetta never emerged from a niche existence. No wonder Alfa Romeo wanted to do everything better with the successor, especially as they had identified an even more interesting sales segment for the newcomer. "The right car at the right time" was the credo behind the announcement. The type designation "33" was not only a departure from the Alfasud, but also a reminder of the famous racing sports car that had brought many victories and triumphs at the end of the 1960s. The new design, which was available almost immediately, was shown for the first time at the end of May 1983 in Venice. Although the Alfa Romeo 33 was slightly larger (+2 cm in length and width), it was also 6.5 cm flatter than its predecessor and, with a drag coefficient of 0.36, significantly more aerodynamic. Of course, front-wheel drive was retained (for the time being).

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