| ALFA 40/60 HP | |
| Manufacturer: | ALFA |
| Production: | 1913 - 1922 27 made |
| Assembly: | Portello, Milan, Italy |
| Layout: | Front-engine, rear-wheel drive |
| Engine: | 6,082 cc I4 |
| Transmission: | 4-speed manual |
| Wheelbase: | 32001NaN1 29501NaN1 (tipo corsa) |
| Weight: | 12500NaN0 11000NaN0 (tipo corsa) |
| Successor: | Alfa Romeo G1 |
| Sp: | uk |
The ALFA 40/60 HP is a road car and race car made by Italian car manufacturer ALFA (later to become Alfa Romeo). This model was made between 1913 and 1922 and was designed by Giuseppe Merosi, as were all other Alfas at that time. The 40/60 HP has a 6082 cc straight-four engine with overhead valves, which produced and its top speed was 125km/h. The 40-60 HP Corsa racing version had and a top speed of 137km/h, and it also won its own category in the Parma-Berceto race.
In 1914 the milanese count Marco Ricotti commissioned to Carrozzeria Castagna the ALFA 40/60 HP Aerodinamica (also known as Siluro Ricotti), a prototype model which could reach 139km/h top speed. A replica of that car was created in the 1970s, and now it is shown in the Alfa Romeo Historical Museum.[1]
40/60 HP production and development was interrupted by the First World War, but resumed briefly afterwards. The 40-60 HP Corsa now had and a top speed of around 150km/h. Giuseppe Campari won the 1920 and 1921 races at Mugello with this car.
The 40-60 HP was based on a ladder chassis of C-shaped stamped steel rails.
Its engine was a 6082cc (bore and stroke 110 x 160 mm, compression ratio 4.35:1) overhead valve inline-four cylinder, fed by a single vertical carburettor. The en bloc cylinder block and cylinder head were split in two groups of two cylinders, and made of cast iron; the crankcase was cast aluminium, incorporating the four engine mountings.The two in-block camshafts were driven by a gear train located at the front of the engine.
The driveline comprised a dry multi-plate clutch, a four-speed gearbox and a one-piece propeller shaft, spinning inside a tube attached to the rear differential housing. At its open end, towards the gearbox, this tube forked out into two ends which, linked to the chassis, located the rear axle. The gearbox was positioned towards the middle of the chassis, almost underneath the driver, rather than in block with the engine—to which it was connected by a short prop shaft.Front and rear solid axles were sprung on longitudinal semi-elliptic leaf springs.Brakes were drums on the rear wheels, with both pedal and hand controls. The wheels were 5.5x19" Sankey-type pressed steel.
The tipo corsa sat on a shortened wheelbase of 29501NaN1, instead of the road car's 32001NaN1. Kerb weight was 11000NaN0 versus 12500NaN0.The racing-prepared engine was fitted with two carburettors and had a 5.50:1 compression ratio. It produced ; after the war, for the 1920–22 races, it was brought to . Top speed was 1500NaN0. The final drive ratio was 18/49 instead of the standard 17/49.The Sankey steel wheels were replaced by 6.0x20" knock-off wire wheels. Fuel tank capacity was expanded from the standard 70L to 120L.