Alfa Romeo Giulia SWB Zagato Tempted, Present in 2023

We’ve been talking about the long-awaited Alfa Romeo supercar for quite some time, but the Stellantis brand refuses to give a preview of the long-awaited model. Fortunately, we are now given an early look at what the Giulia-based project developed in collaboration with Zagato will be like. The automaker and coachbuilder briefly teased the car on social media by revealing the taillight markings and the car’s official name.

As the name implies, the Alfa Romeo Giulia SWB Zagato will have a short wheelbase. That tells us that the coachbuilder will likely remove the tailgate and convert the sports sedan into a coupe. Continuous light is interesting because it means the LED strip is mounted on the same body panel. It reminds us of the curved taillights of the Bugatti La Voiture Noire and we are eager to see how the rest of the derriere will look.

While we only have this one teaser, it’s enough to give us the impression that the Giulia-based coupe will be completely redesigned compared to the regular sedan. Knowing Zagato’s modus operandi, expect lots of nods to the past, especially since it already has fruitful collaborations with Alfa Romeo. The latter’s CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato said some design cues from the 1960s T33 Stradale were to be expected.

Alfa had planned to revive the GTV and 8C for the two sports coupes, but the project was ultimately abandoned. This new model penned by Zagato will likely have a limited production run and serve as the internal combustion engine’s swan song. The 2.9-liter twin-turbo Giulia Quadrifoglio V6 engine boosts up to 540 horsepower and 442 pound-feet (600 Newton-meters) of torque for GTA/GTAm. It remains to be seen if engineers will find a way to improve it further.

Interestingly, some reports state a pure electric version is also planned. While the Giorgio platform Giulia rides on wasn’t developed with EVs in mind, it proved flexible enough to accommodate an electric drivetrain considering Maserati came out with the zero-emissions Grecale Folgore.

Alfa Romeo bosses recently said it would be “very exciting, very selective and very expensive,” adding an official announcement could be made in March 2023. As a refresher, the acclaimed Italian brand will go electric-only from 2027.

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