History
Until 1983, the car's name was Alfasud Sprint and after that year Alfa Romeo Sprint. It was available with a 1,350 cc, 1,500 cc, and a 1,700 cc flat-4 engine, most of which (except the very late 1.7 models) were equipped with double carburetors. The later 1.7 engines were equipped with the same fuel injection system as the Alfa Romeo 33. There were a few prototypes of 2.5 V6 rear mounted engine rear wheel drive Sprints built by Autodelta, but this vehicle never made full serial production (Sprint 6C).
In 1983, the car received a facelift; to coincide with the release of the Alfa Romeo 33. This involved a multitude of changes, notably a change from chrome to plastic bumpers, new headlamps, a new hood and grille, different materials and some changes to elements in the cabin. The Sprint also received a platform upgrade, which was now the same as that of the Alfa Romeo 33 (1st generation). This means that the Alfa 33 (1st generation) and Sprint 83-89 practically share the same mechanics. This is helpful when finding parts for 2nd generation Sprints, since 10 times more Alfa 33s were produced.
Initially the Sprint had disc brakes all around, the front ones being the inboard brake type. At the front there is independent MacPherson strut suspension, and at the rear a rigid axle with trailing beams and a Panhard rod. From 1984 all Sprints got the Alfa Romeo 33 floorpan and modified front suspension and front brakes (no longer of the inboard type). The rear end now had drum brakes. The Alfa Romeo Sprint was one of the best handling small coupes of its time. Although of only average build-quality, they were fun to drive and very predictable. With the engine mounted over the front wheels and a very low center of gravity due to the flat (boxer) engine, it has a unique way of driving in curves.
The Alfasud Sprint has justifiably been criticized about rust and poor build quality, the rust being a result of both the quality of the cheaply bought Russian steel used for the Alfasuds at the time (which happened to contain quite some impurities), and the method of transporting the unpainted bodyworks through any kind of weather on open trolleys, towards the painting-plant in a separate building. Word has it they often arrived already slightly rusty in named painting-plant, and subsequently still were painted anyway; and without any of the protectives so common nowadays. They were built in a then new car plant in southern Italy, in Pomigliano d'Arco, hence the original 'Sud' moniker which means south. Other Alfa models were still being built in Milano. Alfa Romeo Sprint did not have the quality problems of the Alfasud.
The Sud's penchant for rust gave Alfas in general a bad name in this respect, which until today haunts their reputation; even though their more recent and current cars are not more rust-prone than most other car-brands.
There were a total of 116,552 Sprints produced during its lifespan. 15 of these formed the basis of the Australian-built Giocattolo sports car, which used a mid-mounted Holden 5.0 group A V8 engine.
Read more about this topic: Alfa Romeo Sprint
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