1996 Alfa Romeo GTV TB 5-Speed


This interestingly styled Alfa Romeo was never offered in the United States.

Alfa Romeo was actually without a hardtop coupe after production of the 1974-1986 GT ended. In 1995, they pulled out of the U.S. market altogether. That same year they debuted the GTV.

The technical specifics aren't too impressive - it is front-wheel drive, after all. But they were significantly better cars than the previous GT and were given a whole new range of peppy engines. This one has the 2.0-litre "TB" V6 under the hood.


Styling is courtesy of Enrico Fumia at Pininfarina and is visually intriguing. The whole front end is swept up into a notch line that wraps around the c-pillars and rear windshield, from which juts a seemingly separate part that becomes the tail end. The rear features a single-strip taillight that the Alfa's164 sedan had pioneered as a design trademark. When I was younger I had a diecast 1:18 scale model of a burgundy convertible.

The seller states they have owned the car for 6 years but imported it themselves 3 years ago. The U.S. government typically doesn't allow importation of vehicles newer than 25 years old, so this one somehow passed underneath the radar. I'm sure there are some legal loopholes. I'm not complaining. It's great to see one here.


The odometer is most likely in kilometers and the seller says it reads 133,582 which converts into about 75k miles. Mechanically, they say the engine runs and doesn't burn or leak any oil. The say the brakes and tires are new and the air conditioning is cold. Cosmetically they say it has no rust, and the paint is "perfect", although they state it has some minor dents and scratches.

These do pop up for sale in North America, but they are usually in Canada. This could be an opportunity for lovers of Alfa Romeos or just funky Italian cars from the 90s to own a very rare car in the U.S.

The seller says it is titled in Vermont (confirmed by the green license plate) and is ready to be transferred to anywhere else.

Find it here on ebay in Bronxville, New York.

1 comment:

  1. A New York seller with his car titled in Vermont. Hmm... The Vermont title may be "ready to be transferred to anywhere else," but the buyer's state DMV might not ready to receive it. Of course, there are ways to do it, and "forbidden fruit" late model Alfas seem to have a particularly strong appeal.

    While the design language is dramatic, the details don't work for me. It's hard to find a photo angle on this that doesn't look a bit awkward (for example, check the seller's 8th photo). The Spider version worked a little better, but not by much.

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