ALFA 40/60 GP or GP (Grand Prix) was a fully working early racing car prototype made by the company now called

Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." ...

. Only one example was built in 1914, which was later modified in 1921. This was the creation of

Giuseppe Merosi Giuseppe Merosi (8 December 1872 – 27 March 1956) was an Italian automobile engineer and designer. Born in Piacenza, Merosi worked as a building surveyor, before he decided to explore his gift for automotive engineering. He first earned expe ...

and was the first Alfa Romeo DOHC engine. It had four valves per cylinder, 90 degree valve angle and twin spark ignition. Usually Alfa Romeo DOHC engines are thought to be Vittorio Jano's creations but the first one was Merosi's GP car. This kind of engine architecture was very new for the time, originating from 1912/1913

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French brand of automobiles owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was founded in 1810, with a steel foundry that soon started making hand tools and kitchen equipment, and the ...

designed by Swiss engineer Ernest Henry. The history of this engine architecture is unclear, but other cars with dual overhead camshafts were made by

Sunbeam A sunbeam, in meteorological optics, is a beam of sunlight that appears to radiate from the position of the Sun. Shining through openings in clouds or between other objects such as mountains and buildings, these beams of particle-scattered sunl ...

Delage Delage was a French luxury automobile and racecar company founded in 1905 by Louis Delâge in Levallois-Perret near Paris; it was acquired by Delahaye in 1935 and ceased operation in 1953. On 7 November 2019, the association "Les Amis de Dela ...

and

Humber The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between th ...

. This 1914 GP car was intended to take part in the French Grand Prix of that year, but for reasons unknown this never happened. In 1921 Giuseppe Campari took part in the Gentlemen G.P. in

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...

with the modified GP car, but was forced to retire due to a leaking radiator. The GP engine had a displacement of 4.5 litres (4490 cc) and produced at 2950 rpm and after modifications in 1921 at 3000 rpm. The top speed of this car was 88-93 mph (140–149 km/h). It was not until the 1920s when these DOHC engines came to Alfa road cars like the Alfa Romeo 6C.

Notes

References

VeloceToday.com
Retrieved on 2007-04-26. * {{Alfa Romeo Pre War Timeline 40 60 GP Grand Prix cars