The Alfa Romeo GT was a fairly successful small coupe built between 2003 and 2010. Its clean styling courtesy of the Bertone design house and its sweet handling led to sales of 80,832 units worldwide. But did you know that Bertone also conceived a convertible version of the car? In 2003, the Italian design house and coachbuilder built a one-off, four-seat soft-top version of the GT for Alfa Romeo, in order to convince them it was worth making.
However, the beautiful concept never reached the limelight. Originally, Bertone insisted for the Alfa Romeo GT coupe to be built by its carmaking division, Carrozzeria Bertone. Fiat refused, and decided to assemble the GT at the Pomigliano plant, alongside the 147 and the 156.
Bertone then hoped that Fiat would allow them to build the cabriolet version of the GT. “Daniele Bandiera [Alfa Romeo CEO at the time] told us they loved the car and that we were going to build it,” current chairman and widow of Nuccio Bertone Lilli Bertone told Autonews.
It never happened though, as Alfa decided to build the Brera-based Spider instead. This was a massive blow to Carrozzeria Bertone, which later went into bankruptcy and was bought in 2009 by Fiat, which renamed it Officine Automobilistiche Grugliasco. The Alfa Spider enjoyed modest sales between 2006 and 2010 (12,488 units), while the Brera sold 21,786 units between 2005 and 2010.
The Alfa Romeo GT Cabriolet remained locked in Bertone’s garage until April 6 2011, when it was shown to the press for the very first time. One can’t help but wonder if the GT Cabriolet would have enjoyed greater commercial success than the Giugiaro-designed Spider. We will never know the answer to this question, but you’re welcome to write your opinions on this matter in the commentary section below.
By Dan Mihalascu
Source: Autonews Europe
