PROVENANCE
First Owner, Lugano, Switzerland (acquired new in 1950)
Michel Pfau, Paris, France (acquired in 1957)
Franco Meiners, Bergamo, Italy (acquired from the above in 2013)
Current Owner (acquired from the above)

EXHIBITED
The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering, Monterey, California, 2015

LITERATURE
Fabio Morlacchi and Stefano Salvetti, Alfa Romeo 6C 2300–6C 2500, chassis no. listed on p. 198
John De Boer, The Italian Car Registry, chassis no. listed on p. 54

THIS CAR
The 6C 2500, introduced in 1938, was the final Alfa Romeo model powered by a Vittorio Jano-designed engine. Jano’s six- and eight-cylinder engines, some of the most revered in the automotive world, powered Alfa Romeo’s finest offerings before and after WWII.

At the top of the 6C 2500 range was the Super Sport model, or SS, which benefited from a 12" shorter wheelbase, three Weber carburetors, and a higher compression ratio.

This handsome 2500 SS Cabriolet was delivered new in August 1950 to the Swiss Alfa Romeo agent in Lugano, Switzerland. According to the research of a previous owner, it was the only example delivered in the outstanding color combination of black over a green interior. It was purchased in 1957 out of a garage in Geneva, Switzerland, by Paris-based Michel Pfau, believed to be the second owner. A later owner related that Mr. Pfau and two of his friends were avid jazz enthusiasts, and the three of them traveled in the Alfa to Cannes, Nice, and Berlin, among other European destinations, to attend jazz festivals. A photo of them in the Côte d’Azur remains in the car’s file. Mr. Pfau kept diligent records, so a wonderful set of correspondence, receipts, and registrations dating to the 1960s accompany the sale, along with an original manual. It remains fitted with its rare 1960s French license plates, and its engine number matches that listed in the 6C 2300–2500 registry.

According to Franco Meiners, of Bergamo, Italy, who acquired the Alfa Romeo in 2013, Mr. Pfau had the 6C 2500 restored in Italy from about 2006 to 2012, with the paint done in Novara and the mechanicals done in Torino.

During his ownership, Mr. Meiners did some additional sorting and displayed the 6C 2500 at several concours. In 2014, at his stand at Retromobile in Paris, Mr. Meiners was approached by two men who told him they were Mr. Pfau’s fellow jazz enthusiasts who had been in photographs of the car. They related to Mr. Meiners that Mr. Pfau had passed away a week earlier, and that he had left them the money he received for the car, urging them to use it to continue doing what they loved: attending live jazz concerts. In 2014, the consignor acquired the car, adding it to his esteemed collection.

Presented here is that rare example of automotive excellence that combines the best of Italian engineering and design. Alfa Romeo’s final postwar Grand Touring model still had links to the firm’s glory days, coupled with the gorgeous design by Pinin Farina. Being a Super Sport model, this car yearns for open-road touring, but it would be equally at home on any concours field where its beauty can be appreciated.