Description
After a poor start to the 1981 season, Alfa Romeo introduced two new cars during that year, which can be interpreted as a Tipo 179D. 179D/ 01 was first seen at the 1981 British Grand Prix, driven by the talented World Drivers Champion, Mario Andretti, but only used in the practise session. Mario's first opportunity to see D/ 01 potential was in August at the Dutch Grand Prix. Having a good qualifying session and starting 7th on the grid, an incident at the first corner involving multi-cars left Andretti with a bent aerofoil at about 45 degrees. He managed to hold his place just behind Watson. Pitting for a new nose lost him valuable time as the damaged was hard to remove. After a valiant effort disaster happen on lap 20 with only 10 laps to go, Mario had a monumental accident swiping the barrier at 150mph. He was very shaken and suffered badly bruised legs but the race was over and 179D/ 01 wasn't used anymore that season. Now totally restored, with a new monocoque created and the original kept. The engine has been rebuilt with only dyno test time recorded. Eligible for all premier historical racing events.
