Innovative in its chassis and bodywork , the Alfa Romeo Disco Volante was as one of the favourites for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1952 ... But it never came !

At the end of 1951 , the team of Alfa Romeo withdrew from Formula 1, after winning the first two titles for drivers in it's history with Giuseppe Farina and Juan Manuel Fangio . The technical team , instead of becomong idle was then combined in a monitoring unit, that was dedicated to the study of experimental chassis and engines. The following year , in 1952, the working group gave birth to their first embodiment, the C52 , the great innovation was the adoption of a tubular chassis that combined lightness and rigidity . The body , subcontracted to the Carrozzeria Touring company , is also innovative :  long wind tunnel work had studied unexplored areas, such as sensitivity to side winds or the importance of aerodynamics under the floor. The result is a car with some unusual lines , quickly called a flying saucer (disco volante in Italian) .

The Alfa Romeo C52 "Disco Volante" spider from 1952.

Powerful (185 hp) and lightweight (735 kg) , it naturally displayed exceptional performance with a maximum speed of 225 km/h. So why not bring it into race competition? After tests conducted on the Monza circuit , the car was entered at Le Mans in 1952 with three prestigious drivers  in Juan- Manuel Fangio , José Froilán González and Franco Cortese ... But the team of Alfa Romeo changed their mind and withdrew at the last minute . The work of the Italians was not to be in vain , however , as Jaguar was  inspired to design the D Type, which won the 24 Hours in 1955, 1956 and 1957 !

Both spiders and the single coupe are still the property of Alfa Romeo . They leave the Museum at Areze only on very rare occasions , as was the case for the Concours d'Elegance at Pebble Beach in 2005. Following their success at the event , Alfa Romeo has launched the creation of a modern Disco Volante . Presented at the Salon in Geneva in 2012, it will go into production next year and will require no less than 4000 hours of manual labour to produce each unit.

The single version of the "coupe" from 1953, and its modern descendant, which will go into production next year.

Julien HERGAULT / ACO