The ex-Bruno Giacomelli 1980 Alfa Romeo Ti po 179

The ex-Bruno Giacomelli 1980 Alfa Romeo Ti po 179

The ex-Bruno Giacomelli
1980 Alfa Romeo Tipo 179 Formula One monoposto
Private Portfolio No. 132
Chassis no.
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 Swansong challenger from one of motor racing’s greatest marques  Sensational V12 power and
Price € 200,000
for an increasing variety of world class historic racing events 
sound, evocative design and livery  Offered on the market for the first time in over a decade  Eligible
Alfa Romeo is a brand name rightly revered by racing enthusiasts for its classical years of competition
domination prior to 1952. After a false start with Cooper in 1968, the Milan company returned to Formula 1
in 1970. A 3-litre, V8, 4-cam racing engine derived from Alfa’s T33 sports-racing car line was supplied to the
McLaren Formula 1 team ‘just to keep in touch’. This same engine was also used by March Engineering in its
1971 Formula 1 team, alongside what had become its more conventionally Cosworth-Ford V8-powered cars.
By 1975 another sports-racing engine – the 3-litre flat12 – had been developed by Alfa Romeo’s Autodelta
competition subsidiary for use in Formula 1, and after
being fitted initially in one of Graham Hill’s Embassy
team Lola T370s, it ended up powering the works
Brabham BT45 cars instead.
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Alfa Romeo’s modern racing endeavours were
handled by a satellite company named Autodelta,
which had been founded at Udine in 1963 by exFerrari and ex-ATS engineer Carlo Chiti, in partnership
with Ludovico Chizzola. They prepared and modified
Alfa Romeo production cars for competition, moved
the company to Settimo Milanese in 1964, and
became an integral part of Alfa Romeo there in 1966.
Private Portfolio No. 132
1980 Alfa Romeo Tipo 179 Formula One monoposto
From 1967 they built and campaigned their long series of Alfa Romeo T33 sports-racing cars; making chassis,
bodies, engines, gearboxes, running gear…everything – with help where needed being provided by the main
Alfa Romeo production plants.
The Brabham-Alfa flat-12 relationship was close but largely unsuccessful. As early as 1977 Autodelta was
preparing its own Formula 1 car design around the flat-12 engine. This Alfa Romeo Tipo 177 hack was driven
by Vittorio Brambilla at Alfa’s Balocco test centre during 1978, while Brabham designer Gordon Murray had
sparked a crash programme by Autodelta to redesign the broad, low, flat-12 engine as a narrower-angle 60degree V12 which would free space for new-fangled ground-effect aerodynamic undersurfaces to be installed
on each side of the power unit. This latest Brabham chassis was to race in 1979. In parallel, design work began
in Milan for a new Alfa Romeo Formula 1 ‘wing car’.
Despite the Alfa Romeo Group’s poor financial health, the Board of Directors decided then to authorize a
factory Formula 1 racing programme, essentially for the 1980 season, with race development being pursued
during the summer of 1979.
The podgy prototype 177 design, with its hefty riveted aluminium-sheet chassis and bulbous bodywork, made
its debut in the Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder, driven by Bruno Giacomelli and tended by engineers Chiti and
Marelli, plus ten mechanics and a battered old transporter. The car had originally been developed on Pirelli
tyres, but the Italian company felt unready to enter Formula 1 at that time, so the new team made its bow on
Goodyear rubber. Giacomelli proved quicker than the turbo Renaults at one point and the car ran quite reliably
until put out of the race by a minor collision.
The unique 177 reappeared at Monza for the
Italian GP, alongside the first new V12-engined
Alfa Romeo 179 ‘wing-car’. Its aerodynamic
design had been provided by Robert Choulet of
the SERA wind tunnel facility in Paris. The car
was notable for its extraordinarily far forward
driving position. The bullet nose and general
lines were somewhat reminiscent of the
contemporary Arrows A2 design.
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Two Alfa Romeo 179s then raced in Canada
with new Williams-like nose sections, slim and
Private Portfolio No. 132
1980 Alfa Romeo Tipo 179 Formula One monoposto
finned, and Vittorio Brambilla came close to
featuring in the points.
For 1980, Marlboro sponsored the Alfa
Romeo factory team. The 179 design was
revised with outboard rear brakes replacing
the original inboard location, and new rear
suspension with the uprights buried more
deeply within the wheels to clear underwing
air flow.
Bruno Giacomelli and the French star Patrick
Depailler drove the cars, with new 179
chassis numbers ‘3’ and ‘4’ racing in
Argentina. The team became notorious for its
apparent disorganisation. A wheel change in
Brazil cost no less than 53 seconds.
Aerodynamic side pod development and
chassis stiffening added some 7kg weight,
although new bodywork – partially moulded
in carbon fibre – saved some 30kg. Titanium
suspension parts were introduced and at
Long Beach for the United States GP (West)
chassis ‘3’ and ‘4’ reappeared with
reinforced monocoque footbox sections. At
Monaco the team’s fifth chassis emerged as
spare with a new 12kg lighter V12 engine
installed. In Spain, Brambilla rejoined the
team as third driver, although Autodelta/Alfa
Romeo returned to a regular two-car entry
thereafter.
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New car 179/06 appeared at the British GP
where it was driven by Giacomelli. This
monocoque tub featured carbon-fibre panels
in its front end and on top of the fuel tank
Private Portfolio No. 132
1980 Alfa Romeo Tipo 179 Formula One monoposto
cell. Rear suspension mounts were more robust
following breakages during the French GP
meeting at Ricard-Castellet, and extra oil
cooling was provided.
Tragically, Patrick Depailler lost his life in one of
the cars during testing at Hockenheim in
Germany. Giacomelli ran alone in the German
GP there and in Austria, until Brambilla joined
him in a two-car entry in the Dutch GP at
Zandvoort. By this stage of the season the 3-litre
Alfa Romeo V12 engine was regarded as
probably the most powerful in Formula 1,
delivering something over 520bhp.
At Zandvoort chassis ‘7’ appeared although
numbered as ‘4’ presumably to use existing
Customs carnet paperwork. This chassis featured
a lowered engine. At Imola late that year a new
1.5-litre turbocharged V8 engine was displayed
in a corner of the Autodelta/Alfa Romeo garage
while on circuit Giacomelli disputed second
place in chassis ‘6’, proving the Alfa Romeo
Formula 1 programme’s increasing stature. The
car’s bodywork now ran flat rear body sections
without flip-ups ahead of the rear wheels.
In the Canadian GP new Williams-like
underwing sections were adopted and in the
United States GP at Watkins Glen Bruno
Giacomelli was able to qualify sensationally on
pole position and to lead the race convincingly
until his car’s ignition ‘black box’ failed.
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Having just come to grips with sliding-skirt
ground-effects, Autodelta suffered most from the
Private Portfolio No. 132
1980 Alfa Romeo Tipo 179 Formula One monoposto
sliding-skirt ban which was then applied for 1981, following superbly fast winter testing times at RicardCastellet.
Marlboro bought the services of 1979 World Champion Mario Andretti to lead the Alfa Romeo team through
1981, and the existing Tipo 179 chassis were updated as the 179C variants. However, Autodelta was always
notably wary of disclosing individual chassis details and at the very best individual car identities remain
supposition. However, informed Italian sources considered in period that Andretti normally used chassis ’02’
in its latest iteration, while Bruno Giacomelli took ’03’ early in the year, followed by ’01’ for the Belgian race.
A new car – chassis ’04’ became Andretti’s regular mount for Monaco and Spain, where Giacomelli drove ’02’.
The team experimented unsuccessfully with the new hydro-pneumatic lower suspension systems to side-step the
loss of sliding-skirt ground effects. But the enormous loads inflicted by bumps and kerbs in conflict with such
low ride height and aerodynamic download saw the 179Cs being retired for extensive rebuilding in mid-season.
Old cars were raced at Dijon in the French GP, Andretti being noted as using chassis ’03’ while Giacomelli
appeared in old ’06’.
At Silverstone the reinforced 179C/D model emerged, 5cm lower overall and with new freeflow rear suspension.
By the time of the Dutch GP, design engineer Gerard Ducarouge had joined the team from Ligier, and the Alfa
Romeos appeared with Ligier-like side pods which
moved their aerodynamic centre of pressure
rearwards. In Italy these underwings extended back to
the driveshafts, but the cars were little more
competitive.
A replacement moulded carboncomposite chassis tub was under development for
1982 – as the replacement Alfa Romeo Tipo 182 V12.
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However, the definitive aluminium-monocoque Alfa
Romeo 179 series had performed yeoman service for
the historic Alfa Romeo brand during 1980-81. Its 3litre V12 engine was probably the most powerful in
contemporary Formula 1, and it also proved itself
generally reliable and driveable. The cars’ career was
highlighted by Giacomelli’s fabulous pole position
and race-leading performance at Watkins Glen at the
end of 1980, and today this particular Tipo 179C –
considered by some to have been chassis ’03’ – is
Private Portfolio No. 132
1980 Alfa Romeo Tipo 179 Formula One monoposto
offered here following a fine career in American Historic Formula 1 racing followed by the past decade in
storage. It has survived in its original 1981 livery and although it has been started recently to check the health
of its fabulous V12 (video available), it will require careful inspection and preparation before serious
competition use is again contemplated. Spares include two oil radiators and four transport wheels.
With its historical links to Mario Andretti, Bruno Giacomelli and of course that remarkable character Ing. Carlo
Chiti, this keenly priced, V12 powered Grand Prix Alfa Romeo will certainly enhance any collection of modernera Formula One cars, while equally providing a talking point within any group of Alfa Romeo’s finest
competition designs.
Addendum:
The website www.oldracingcars.com publishes the following race history for this chassis:
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