Karl AKA Stroget is an active curator at HobbyDB of many of the 1/43 model car brands. He has been adding model cars to the DB since 2014; some of his favorites are Alfa Romeo and obsolete Tekno from Denmark!
When you mention Alfa Romeo and Zagato in one sentence, iconic models such as the Giulia SZ and the TZs spring to mind: legendary sports cars and design milestones that now rightly command stratospheric prices.
But you might not know of another little Alfa Romeo designed by Carrozzerie Zagato. Penned by the coach-builder’s then-chief of design, Ercole Spada, the Junior Zagato, or Junior Z, was born as a light and sporty coupé to be integrated in the Giulia model range and targeted to clients looking for a more responsive and faster alternative to the Sprint GT.
It was built on the platform of the Spider Duetto; it also shared the same gearbox, suspension, rear axle, brakes and 1300cc aluminum engine with the Spider Junior and the GT Junior.
The Junior Zagato was never planned to be mass produced, so every model was almost entirely finished by hand at Zagato’s facilities in Turin, the previously assembled Spider-platforms being delivered from the Alfa Romeo plant in Arese. Only 1,510 were built.
The four 1:64 Kyosho’s shown here are the even rarer model with the larger 1600cc engine, of which only 402 were made. Kyosho made them in silver, yellow, white, and red.
In 1975, after less than two years, Alfa Romeo sadly decided to stop the production of the 1600 Junior Zagato, despite having more powerful engines available that would have made the small coupé even more interesting. The mechanics would not have been a problem either, considering that the Spider Duetto was built until the ‘90s.
The unusual design, being a two-seater with no rear bench to speak of, and the fact that it cost more than all of its rivals meant the Alfa Romeo “Junior Z” was not made to please everybody, and today, while prices are steadily rising, it’s still somewhat underrated, especially considering its rarity and heritage.
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