6c 2600 Alfa boat pics

67alloy said:

I found these on a website called alfaromeo2600.org and wanted to get them posted here for posterity.

This touches on another topic regarding header design as used on these boats.

Click to expand...

This is Raphael Pont's web site (he lives in Geneva, Switzerland).

The header design is interesting but I don't know if it gives any insights with respect to headers for the cars. My main concern would be that the boat headers are for a very narrow RPM range because boat propellers seem to deliver maximum efficiency at fixed RPM.

Still, looking at the engine setup gives some interesting insights and points to contemplate:

- The engine seems to be installed in reverse, i.e. the drive shaft exit (that would lead into the clutch bell housing) is near the bow (not near the driver).

- The angle of the engine is much steeper than it is in the cars (and going in the opposite direction), similiar to a car that going down a steep incline. This means that the oil sump construction must be different, as the oil pick-up tube needs to be longer because the oil pump location is (with respect to the oil level in the sump) higher than it would be in a car.

- The intake manifold and carb linkage is also completely different because of the reversed engine angle.

The attached image is from a confidential Frech dealer brochure with information about the performance of 2600 Sprint and 2600 SZ and its main competitors in the market place (Lancia, Mercedes, etc.). To bolster the sales argument for the cars and their engines, 1965 race results for boats were also included:

Hi Ruedi,

Yes I too was curious about the propshaft drive given that the engine was reversed. I wonder if it is not somehow coming off the front (driver near side) of the engine as it appears that there isn't enough room in the bow for what must be a bellhousing leading to some sort of transfer case. Mounting the engine backwards can only serve one useful purpose as far as I see, and that is to turn a propshaft the opposite direction if power was taken off the front of the crank. Looking closer, I cannot see a bellhousing at the bowside of the motor, and the angle would seem to favor a propshaft from the drivers near side. Interesting.

I agree with you on the header. I am not sure there are any tuning gains to be made from the stock cast iron piece, only weight reduction. However, I am more convinced than ever that the full stock exhaust, complete with right angle after the second muffler, is not a very tuned piece and was engineered to give the cars a refined tone at the expense of performance. It can only be improved upon.

Thanks for sharing the competition memo. Further evidence of successful 2600 Sprints in competition in Argentina can be found in the book "Alfa Romeo Argentina" by Bertschi and Iacona. I met them at the Alfa Nationals this past year and they were very taken with my Sprint as it seems their father had one at some point.

Incidentally, said book shows SZ AR10612-856071 as being in Argentina, if you want to pursue information for your register you could contact the authors. I repeat it here because it apparently is public knowledge.