Alfa Romeo 1900 M

Vehicle Description

– Alfa Romeo 1900 “Matta” from 1955
– 1.9 litre 4-cylinder engine with 51 kW (70 hp) and manual gearbox
– fewer than 50 km travelled after completion of restoration
– spade and pick-axe mounted on the rear
– beautiful beige paintwork and black leatherette interior
– large headroom black soft top
– up to 6 seats on side-mounted rear benches
– originally delivered in its country of origin, Italy
– in 2018 fully disassembled and rebuilt, photo documentation available
Strikingly beautiful and rare off-road vehicle in completely restored condition

In the 1950s, at the request of the Italian Ministry of Defence, vehicle manufacturer Alfa Romeo designed a military vehicle to replace the American jeep. In 1951, development engineer Giuseppe Busso presented the Alfa Romeo 1900 M four-wheel drive off-roader. The vehicle was visually reminiscent of the English Land Rover, while its mechanical basis was the Alfa Romeo 1900 with 1.9 litre engine and 59 kW (80 hp), an upper mid-range car which was referred to as a “sedan that wins races” due to its top speed of up to 170 km/h. In the 1900 M this sporty twin-cam engine was limited to 48 kW (65 hp). There were two versions of the Alfa Romeo 1900 M, AR 51 for the military and AR 52 as a civilian vehicle, even though they were nearly identical. The designation “AR” did not stand for Alfa Romeo as could be assumed, but for “Autovetture da Ricognizione”, i.e. “reconnaissance car”. The vehicle later received its nickname “Matta”, which means “the maniac” in Italian. The presentation of the “Matta” was also crazy and extraordinary: The prototype climbed the stairs of the basilica in Assisi. Until 1954, just over 2,000 units of the Alfa Romeo 1900 M were built, which makes this vehicle so valuable and special.

Vehicle Overview