Alfa Romeo GT 1300 Junior Zagato

At the end of the 1960s, the era of special bodies slowly came to an end. The reason for this can be found quickly if you are familiar with production techniques. In the early days of the automobile, the principle of coachbuilding was adopted, in which a body was mounted on a fixed frame. This could be completely replaced with more or less effort. This led to the establishment of corresponding companies, coachbuilders, which later also had a go at cars. However, even before World War 2, the self-supporting body gradually became established. This combined the chassis and body into a single unit. As a result, external coachbuilders were hardly able to implement their own designs. Nevertheless, some tried it, for example Zagato.

Junior Zagato

Based on the technology of the Alfa Romeo Giulia and the chassis of the Spider, the GT 1300 Junior Zagato was produced starting in 1969. Ercole Spada worked as development manager at this coachbuilder at the time and drew the body of this sports coupé. In stark contrast to the times, he deliberately dispensed with curves and instead focused on clear edges. Smooth surfaces characterize the front, sides and hatchback. The trunk is accessed through the upward-swinging rear window. A special detail was the cladding of the front section to the right and left of the Alfa grille with transparent plastic. Inside, the dashboard somewhat echoed the design of the front. Officially, there were two rear seats, but due to the low roofline and the spatial narrowness, these were actually only usable as luggage racks. Already the smallest engine of the first Spider carried the epithet Junior. Zagato adopted this name for the sleek coupé.

Two engine versions, remained rare

At the 1969 Turin Motor Show, the vehicle debuted with the 1.3-liter four-cylinder engine of the Spider 1300 Junior. This delivered 65 kW/88 hp, making the Junior Zagato as fast as 175 kph (109 mph). Although the Spider floorpan was the basis, the first series received an independent rear section. In this one the fuel tank of the Montreal was used and the spare wheel was hidden in a special hollow. However, this proved to be unsuitable for everyday use and was modified for the second series from 1972. This one used the complete platform of the Spider and in addition the 80 kW/108 hp strong 1600 engine. Even before that, Zagato switched from aluminium to steel for the production of doors and hoods. Compared to the Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint offered at the same time, the Junior Zagato was always around 3,000 DM more expensive. As a result, only 1,510 examples were produced in total, of which 1,108 were the 1300 and 402 the 1600.

1970 example is for sale

At the classic car dealer Auxietre & Schmidt is currently one of these beauties for sale. This Junior Zagato left the halls of Zagato on March 5, 1970. 15 days later already the first owner Harold Roy Slater took it over in the Milan area. An excerpt from the production documents states that the car was originally produced in the color ‘Giallo Oro’ with an interior in Skai Nero. It wasn’t until 1996 that the Alfa changed hands for the first time, going to Romeo Giovanni Milesi in Bergamo. In 2018, the still current owner in Switzerland took over the car and had an extensive restoration done. Today, this specimen probably represents one of the best surviving vehicles of this series.

Images: Auxietre & Schmidt