The most extreme racing Alfa Romeo 156 still runs... and gets even crazier

Ferdinando Cimarelli is an Italian racing driver from Pergola in the Marche region, who specializes in CIVM (Campionato Italiano Velocità Montagna) hill-climb races. He began his career in the 1980s, but took a break from racing in the mid-90s, before making a comeback in 2004 at the wheel of an Alfa Romeo 33, with which he won his first Italian title. He then switched to an Alfa Romeo 147, with which he won the Gr.A 2000 class in 2009, before setting his sights on an Alfa Romeo 156 D2.

The last Biscione champion

Since 2010, Cimarelli has been driving an Alfa Romeo 156 D2 (or 156 SuperTurismo D2), developed by N-Technology, the company's racing department. Alfa Romeo at the time, at the end of the 1990s, to meet the super 2000 regulations for touring cars. Indeed, the DTM (which became the ITC in 1995), in which the 155 V6 had competed, had collapsed at the end of 1996, and with it the spectacular Class 1 category to which the 155 had responded. Its heir, the 156, was therefore destined to race in the classic supertouring championships, with a 2-liter engine, which it did with brio: two Italian championship titles and four European titles, between 1998 and 2004. And like it or not, it was the last Alfa Romeo to have an official competition program! Almost 30 years...

Second life in hillclimbing

Like the 155 V6 Ti, which also enjoyed hill-climbing glory after the end of the DTM/ITC, the 156s have had a "second life" on mountain roads. The one from Cimarelli initially retained the 2.0-liter engine derived from the D2's Twin Spark, naturally-aspirated, which developed, after a 2012 evolution, around 330 hp at 9,000 rpm for 240 Nm of torque at 7,500 rpm. It was still a front-wheel drive, which can be advantageous on winding roads coming out of hairpins. The engine is 100 atmospheric %, with no turbo or supercharger, a purist choice for the E1-2000 class.

A Supertouring "Evoluzione

The 156 D2 received a number of aerodynamic enhancements, making it even more aggressive than the basic supertourer. The knife-edge rear spoiler was adjustable (angle 8° to 14°) and made of carbon, while the carbon front blade was extended by 8 cm with the addition of various appendages. The chassis, of course, benefited from suspension optimized for hill-climbing, and a low weight for maximum agility. It was equipped with a Torsen limited-slip differential and, from 2012, a sequential 6-speed Sadev gearbox with short ratios, optimized for hill climbs (acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in under 4 seconds is quoted). 

In 2010, Cimarelli became Italian champion in the E1 class up to 2000 cm³, a title he narrowly lost in the final race. The model's most recent successes include victory in the E1-ITA 2000 class at the 27th Trofeo Lodovico Scarfiotti - Sarnano Sassotetto in 2017.

Radical change in 2023

But it was from 2023 onwards that the 156's look changed radically, the latter changing class and becoming a prototype, a silhouette "disguised" as a 156, equipped with a steering-wheel gearshift system. The car thus changed class, moving from the E1 group to the famous E2-SH group of "silhouettes", where the famous 155 V6s previously evolved.

The car now features extra-wide tracks, a spectacular diffuser and a large air intake on the roof, while the entire rear section can be removed for servicing, rather like a 164 Procar. The aesthetic result isn't necessarily very pleasing to the eye... but from a performance and competition point of view, it has paid off, winning this year's E2SH category at 63.^e Svolte de Popoli. Too bad we couldn't get any more information on the engine. We can only assume they've upgraded to something more powerful... we'll be on the lookout for more information!