Riding on the coattails of motorsport success in the early 1960s with the Giulia Sprint GTA and 1750 GTAm, Alfa Romeo conceived the Giulia GTA 1300 Junior to compete in classes reserved for cars with smaller displacement engines. The 1.3-litre twin-cam, inline four-cylinder engine was based upon the existing 1,600 cc engine, but with a shorter stroke camshaft. Four hundred and forty-seven examples of the Giulia GTA 1300 Junior were built between 1968 to 1975 and the model would be an immediate hit with racing fans across Europe as the car was not only high competitive, but cheaper to run than its larger displacement siblings. Of those, only 193 examples were built to ‘Stradale’ specification for road use, including the example offered here.

The accompanying FIVA Identity Card (issued February 2017) alongside copies of the car’s previous Italian registration chronicle this GTA 1300 Junior’s early history. Sold new via Autoscaletti S.r.l of Naples, the car was originally registered to Amedo Bianchi of Carrara, a small town north of Pisa, in August of 1968. A letter on file from the Alfa Romeo Automobilsimo Storico Centro Documentazione shows that it was originally finished just as the car presents today, in Hawthorn White paintwork over a Black Skai interior.

Bianchi kept the car for three years prior to selling to Franco Raso of Ovada (in between Genoa and Alessandria), who kept the car for just over a year. The car’s third owner, acquiring it in February of 1972, would be Giovanni Subrero of nearby Montaldo Bormida. His original Italian logbook registration remains on file, showing that the car was registered as AL 240965 in his ownership. He would go own to keep the car for the following eleven years and would be the GTAs last Italian owner.

In 1983, the car was purchased by Hans-Joachim Rossing of Hamburg, Germany, and the car was exported to Germany. It would remain in his ownership for the following twenty-five years. Moving to Munich in 2009, a restoration was commissioned approximately ten years ago. Great care was kept to make sure the GTA kept as many of its original parts as possible, replacing only what was absolutely necessary. Importantly, during the restoration the car was upgraded with a 1600-specification engine but a correct 1300 Junior-specification engine is offered alongside.

Imported to the Netherlands in 2019, this GTA 1300 Junior presents exceptionally well today and would surely be a thrill to drive and enjoy. Highly eligible for a number of historic races and rallies, these cars are well sought after for their driving dynamics both on road and track and prove to be just as exciting to drive today as they were nearly sixty years ago.