1947 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS Cabriolet (Pininfarina)

Drawing its design heritage from the Cisitalia, Pinin Farina’s design for the 1947 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 was among the first Italian sports cars to go into production after World War II. The superbly styled coachwork earned the 6C 2500 the dual honors of being one of the last cars to be recognized by the Classic Car Club of America, and one of the first to be honored by the Milestone Car Society as a postwar collectable. Subtle in its design, most Alfa Romeo 6C 2500s had only minor exterior embellishments, even the bumpers, as on this 1947 example, were little more than metal strips.

Alfa Romeo’s long-lived 6C model made its debut in 1925. It was designed by the brilliant engineer Vittorio Jano and first appeared with 1,487-cubic centimetre displacement and a single overhead camshaft. Twin cams came in 1928, and they were joined by a 1,750-cubic centimetre sibling a year later. That year, the 6C 1750 won every racing event it entered. A 1,900-cubic centimetre version came in 1933, and a 2,300-cubic centimetre version came the next year. The final variant, the 2500, of which this car is an excellent example, was introduced in 1938, and it remained in production until 1952. The 6C 2500 was one of the most expensive cars of its time, and its clientele included numerous celebrity luminaries, with this example being no exception.

As Alfa’s post-war cars followed pre-war practices, so did the coachwork of Turin’s Pinin Farina, although the art deco obsession faded somewhat. Thus, post-war bodies omitted much of the brightwork, which allowed for their handsome lines to make their own statement. Such is the nature of this beautiful 6C 2500, which is the most desirable short-wheelbase model with the most powerful engine, known as the SS.

'The current Alfa Romeo conceals as beautiful a chassis as ever with four-wheel independent suspension and a six-cylinder twin overhead camshaft un-supercharged engine...' - The Autocar, July 11th 1947.

Its Portello factory devastated by wartime bombing, Alfa Romeo did not resume car production until 1946 with, inevitably, a pre-war carry-over, the 6C 2500 in a variety of new guises forming the basis of the Milanese marque's post-war recovery. Destined to be the last of the separate-chassis Alfas, the 2500 had debuted in 1939 and was a development of the preceding 2300. Styled in-house but strongly influenced by Touring, the five-seater Freccia d'Oro (Golden Arrow) sports saloon was built alongside coupe and cabriolet versions featuring bodies by the likes of Pinin Farina, Touring and Ghia, plus a six/seven-seater berlina on a longer wheelbase.

The Alfa tradition of building driver's cars par excellence was upheld by the 2500, for although the box-section chassis was no longer state-of-the-art it boasted all-independent suspension, generously-sized brakes, fast-geared steering and an unusually slick column-mounted gearchange. The engine was, of course, the latest version of Alfa's race-developed double-overhead-camshaft 'six', its 2,443cc displacement having been arrived at by enlarging the bore of the 2300. Maximum power ranged from 90bhp in single-carburettor Sport guise to 105bhp in the triple-carburettor Super Sport. Considerably lighter than the saloon, the latter could easily exceed 100mph. The short-wheelbase Super Sport chassis was manufactured until 1951, by which time 383 had been produced. Most of these bespoke, hand-built cars were bodied as Superleggera coupés by Touring, while the remainder received cabriolet coachwork by Pinin Farina.

This Alfa Romeo 6C 2500SS carries two-seater cabriolet coachwork by Carrozzeria Pinin Farina. The late 1940s was a period of exceptional creativity for Pinin Farina, the 6C 2500 chassis, especially the Super Sport version, allowing the Italian maestro the freedom to experiment with new lines and design solutions. Indeed, a 6C 2500SS with similar coachwork to that of this car achieved a 1st place award at the Villa d'Este concours in 1949.