Rare Car Archive

Makes › Alfa Romeo Italy › 6C › 6C 2500 SS 'Villa d'Este' (Touring) · Coachbuilt · 1949–1952 Ultra Rare

Alfa Romeo
6C 2500 SS 'Villa d'Este' (Touring)

Touring Superleggera coupé/cabriolet named after the 1949 Villa d'Este concours win

Body: Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera
Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS 'Villa d'Este' (Touring) (Wikimedia Commons search)
Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS 'Villa d'Este' (Touring) (Wikimedia Commons search)
Photo: MrWalkr · CC BY-SA 4.0
36BuiltFactory reported
0Chassis documentedin this archive
?SurvivingNot yet verified
Contents
  1. 01Overview
  2. 02Production & history
  3. 03Specifications
  4. 04Colours & options
  5. 05Individual cars
  6. 06Reference

01Overview

At a glance

Built
36 Built
Years
1949–1952
Engine
Front, longitudinal, inline six-cylinder; cast-iron monobloc, light-alloy head · 2,443 cc / 2.4 LFactory: 2,443 cc
Power
77.2 kW / 105 PSFactory: 105 PS
Top speed
Not yet verified
Designer
Carrozzeria Touring, Milan (Superleggera body); engine by Vittorio Jano
In this archive
Not yet verified
Surviving
Not yet verified

Sources and any conflicting figures are in the sections below.

Why it matters

The Villa d'Este is the coachbuilt high point of the postwar 6C 2500. Touring's Superleggera berlinetta on the short-wheelbase Super Sport chassis took the people's-choice prize at the 1949 Concorso d'Eleganza at Lake Como and gave the production cars their name. RM Sotheby's describes the 6C 2500 as the last of the coachbuilt Alfa Romeos before mass-produced bodies became the norm, and the Villa d'Este as generally regarded as the most desirable version.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Model rarityUltra Rare 36 · Built1,2
Specification rarityNot yet assessed
Colour rarityNot yet assessed
Individual rarityNot yet assessed
Historical rarityNot yet assessed
Survival rarityNot yet assessed

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Photos

Exterior, interior and detail photos with their licences.

02Production & history

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

What is countedFigureBasisStatus
Total model productionVilla d'Este examples in total, incl. a small handful of open cars ('widely believed to comprise no more than 36 total examples'); SCM gives 32 coupés + 5 cabriolets 361,2 Factory production Factory reported

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

Touring's design on the short 6C 2500 chassis with the triple-carburettor Super Sport engine debuted at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este in spring 1949, using Touring's lightweight Superleggera construction. Alfa Romeo and Touring then built a limited run under the Villa d'Este name. RM Sotheby's says 25 were apparently intended but 36 were built before 6C 2500 production ended in 1952.

Because every body was handbuilt, no two cars are exactly alike. Sources disagree on the count: the museum, RM Sotheby's (2024) and Sports Car Market give 36, a Gooding lot says about 32, and an earlier RM Sotheby's text mentions 130 Villa d'Este coupes of which 36 by Touring.

Variants

How each version differs from the standard 6C 2500 SS 'Villa d'Este' (Touring).

No variants documented yet. Have a source? Contribute it.

03Specifications

Technical specifications

Engine

Engine familyNot yet verified
Engine codeNot yet verified
LayoutFront, longitudinal, inline six-cylinder; cast-iron monobloc, light-alloy head1
Cylinders61
Displacement 2,443 cc / 2.4 LFactory: 2,443 cc1
Bore 72 mmFactory: 72 mm1
Stroke 100 mmFactory: 100 mm1
Compression ratioNot yet verified
Valvetrain2 valves per cylinder, 2 overhead camshafts driven by chain and gears1
Fuel systemThree single-barrel carburettors1
Power 77.2 kW / 105 PSFactory: 105 PS1Rating: manufacturerMuseum writes CV. RM Sotheby's (S2) gives 110 bhp and Gooding (S3) 110 BHP at 4,800 rpm for the Villa d'Este.
Power at 4,800 rpm1
TorqueNot yet verified

Transmission & drivetrain

GearboxNot yet verified
Gears41
Driven wheelsRear1

Chassis, body & dimensions

ChassisWelded box-section side members and cross-members, unitary with body (as printed: "Monoblocco")1
Front suspensionIndependent, longitudinal parallelogram (trailing arms), coil springs, hydraulic dampers1
Rear suspensionIndependent, longitudinal arm, torsion bars, double hydraulic dampers1
BrakesHydraulic drums on all four wheels1
SteeringNot yet verified
Body constructionBerlinetta, Touring Superleggera (aluminium panels on a small-diameter tube frame)1Construction detail from RM Sotheby's (S4).
Wheelbase 2,700 mmFactory: 2,700 mm1
LengthNot yet verified
Width 1,780 mmFactory: 1,780 mm1
Height 1,500 mmFactory: 1,500 mm1
Front trackNot yet verified
Rear trackNot yet verified
Kerb weight 1,420 kgFactory: 1,420 kg1Page says only "Peso".
Dry weightNot yet verified

Performance

Maximum speedNot yet verified
0–100 km/hNot yet verified
Fuel tankNot yet verified

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

04Colours & options

Factory colours & interiors

Original paint and trim, with the number of cars in each where a source gives it.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

Factory options & codes

Codes are shown exactly as written by the manufacturer.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

05Individual cars

Chassis register

Every documented car, with its colours, history and where it is now. Open a row for the full record. Known chassis are not automatically authenticated originals.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

Competition history

Every race result of the individual cars, in date order. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

Auction & sale history

Documented public sales of the individual cars. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.

Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.

See one in person

Museums where an example of this car can be seen.

No example is documented on public display yet. Have a source? Contribute it.

06Reference

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

Genuine cars use the short 2700 mm wheelbase 6C 2500 SS chassis with the triple-carburettor engine (Weber 36D02 on one Gooding car) and a Touring Superleggera body of aluminium panels over a small-diameter tube frame. Cars are right-hand drive. Chassis numbers quoted in the cached lots include 915910, 915.888 and 951.891, and RM Sotheby's cites matching engine numbers as listed in Anselmi's book on the 6C 2500. Because the bodies were artisan-built, small differences between cars are normal. Sports Car Market warns that a Touring-type body can be fitted to a shortened chassis of a lesser 6C 2500, so chassis stamping and structure should be checked, as was done for chassis 915910, where inspection reports found original stamping and period corrosion.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

  1. 1
    Museo Storico Alfa Romeo, collection: 6C 2500 Super Sport "Villa d'Este" Level A Museo Storico Alfa Romeo (Arese)
    • Vetture Prodotte 36
    • 6 cilindri in linea, monoblocco in ghisa, testa in lega leggera (Dettagli vettura)
    • 6 cilindri in linea (Dettagli vettura)
    • 2443 cc (72x100 mm) (Dettagli vettura)
    • 2 alberi a camme in testa con comando a catena e ingranaggi (Dettagli vettura)
    • 3 carburatori monocorpo (Dettagli vettura)
    • 105 CV a 4800 giri/min. (Dettagli vettura)
    • 4 marce + RM (Dettagli vettura)
    • Trazione posteriore (Dettagli vettura)
    • Monoblocco, con longheroni e traverse a scatola saldati (Dettagli vettura)
    • quadrilatero longitudinale molle elicoidali (Dettagli vettura)
    • braccio longitudinale, barre di torsione, doppi ammortizzatori idraulici (Dettagli vettura)
    • Idraulici, a tamburo sulle 4 ruote (Dettagli vettura)
    • Berlinetta (Touring Superleggera) (Dettagli vettura)
    • Passo: 2700 mm (Dettagli vettura)
    • larghezza: 1780 mm (Dettagli vettura)
    • altezza: 1500 mm (Dettagli vettura)
    • Peso 1420 kg (Dettagli vettura)
    Accessed 2026-11-12
  2. 2
    1950 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Super Sport Villa d'Este Coupe by Touring – RM Sotheby's Milan 2024 Level B
    • 36 Villa d'Este examples in total, incl. a small handful of open cars ('widely believed to comprise no more than 36 total examples'); SCM gives 32 coupés + 5 cabriolets
    Accessed 2026-11-12

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