1989 Alfa Romeo SZ (ES-30) by Zagato

The name of the car, first introduced in 1989, is ES-30. This "Experimental Sports Car - 3.0 Liter" was shown at the Geneva Motor Show as a prototype from Zagato but was actually developed by Alfa Romeo. None other than Walter Da Silva was responsible for the ethereal design of the car. Alfa Romeo and Fiat worked with Zagato to create an innovative coupé for limited-series production (1,000 examples). The result was the Alfa Romeo SZ, which combined rear-wheel drive and a V6 engine with thermoplastic bodywork and 'distinctive' looks.

In production 1989-90. 0-100 in 7.3 sec, 5 spd gearbox V6 SOHC 12 valves, rear-wheel drive. A spider version was also available (Alfa Romeo R.Z.). Made its debut as the ES30.

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk; Nikonow Auto Archive

Created jointly by Alfa Romeo and Zagato, this coupe can be loved or hated. But for fans of the brand, this car is much more important. The SZ is one of the first cars created by Alfa Romeo after joining Fiat in 1986. It was she who gave us the same headlights "three in a row" that the 159 and Brera flaunt . And who would have thought that under such a body are the units of the 75 IMSA sedan, which cannot be called trivial either! This entailed rear-wheel drive and a 3.0-liter V6 with 210 horsepower.

The unusual Alfa Romeo has become a delight for the purists. Five-speed "mechanics", fiberglass body, Koni hydraulic suspension - what else do you need to be happy? By the way, thanks to the latter, it was possible to change the ground clearance within five centimeters, and Fiat rally engineer Giorgio Pianta was engaged in fine-tuning the chassis. And if the eyes got tired of contemplating the beauty of the body (or absurdity, this is already a matter of taste), then the interior did not shine with bright solutions. A panel with seven instruments in a row, an analog clock, a fixed steering wheel and a "mechanics" lever - that's all the pilot has at his disposal.

Usually cars with the Zagato nameplate are limited to a few dozen copies, but the SZ is more fortunate: maybe thanks to the platform from a regular sedan. For three years (from 1989 to 1991) 1036 two-door cars saw the light, and in 1992 they were joined by 284 RZ roadsters. According to rumors, three such cars (two red coupes and a yellow roadster) even made it to Russia.

Translated from Russian to English (Source: motor.ru)

Images: Zagato; Concept Car Central