Alfa-Romeo Diva
The biggest surprise on the Sbarro Espera stand at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show was undoubtedly the Alfa-Romeo Diva. An interesting sketch was unveiled a few days before the show opened, but the Diva turns out to be much more successful "in real life" than on paper. This car is the fruit of a three-way collaboration between Wolfgang Egger (head of Centro Stile Alfa), the Fiat Group's research center and Franco Sbarro. The car was designed by Egger himself and built by Sbarro and students from the Espera school.
![Sbarro Alfa-Romeo Diva](Sbarro-Diva-1.jpg)
Nostalgia
The lines of the bodywork
evoke a nostalgic past (notably the sublime Alfa Romeo Tipo
33 Stradale), but without lapsing into facile neo-retro.
Among the most striking features of this coupé are the
elytra opening doors and LED headlamps. The front end is
directly inspired by Formula 1. The result is a resolutely
sporty, modern face. The rear is much more retro, with two
large round lights reminiscent of the Lancia Stratos. The
central, high-mounted double exhaust tailpipe is superb and
adds a touch of originality. The result is a compact,
muscular car with a strong personality. A success in every
respect. As for the interior, it's very Spartan.
![Sbarro Alfa-Romeo Diva](Sbarro-Diva-2.jpg)
Modern
The engine, located in the
rear center position, comes from the Alfa-Romeo 147 GTA.
It's a 3.2-liter V6, here boosted to 290 hp. The running
gear is nothing less than that of the Ferrari F430. We've
done worse! Last but not least, weight remains well
contained at 1100 kg. This gives an interesting
power-to-weight ratio of 3.79 kg/hp (for comparison, a 2006
BMW M3 "does" 4.35 kg/hp). Performance should therefore be
high. However, the car was certainly not tested before the
show opened. Indeed, Espera's students were forced to race
against the clock to be ready in time. Which explains some
of the details that betray the speed of execution.
![Sbarro Diva](Sbarro-Diva-VanCampenhout-2.jpg)
The Sbarro Espera Diva was
presented at the Villa d'Este Concours d'Elegance, where it
almost eclipsed the production 8C spider. The Diva is one of
the most beautiful cars designed by students at the Espera
school. Such a success story would have deserved to become a
small production model for Alfa-Romeo. Which would have made
it one of Alfa-Romeo's finest creations.
- Six-cylinder V-twin engine (original Alfa-Romeo 147 GTA)
- Displacement: 3179 cm3
- 290 horsepower
- Transverse rear mid-engine position
- Six-speed manual gearbox with Selespeed system
- Pilot Sport PS2 225/35 ZR19 tires (front) and Pilot Sport PS2 275/35 ZR19 tires (rear)
- length 3.894 m; width 1.869 m; height 1.182 m
- weight 1100 kg
In brief
1- Official order from Alfa-Romeo
2- Wolfgang Egger, head of Centro Stile Alfa, was personally involved in the project
3- One of Espera Pontarlier's finest creations