Alfa Romeo Giulia 105/115 Nuova Super Diesel
The Nuova Super Diesel brought Perkins diesel power to the final phase of the original Giulia saloon, prioritising fuel economy over sporting performance.
Overview
The Nuova Super Diesel was a late four-door variant of the Giulia 105/115 saloon generation. Introduced in 1976 and recorded as continuing through 1977, it brought diesel power to a range previously associated with petrol engines. These dates describe its production period, rather than a universal model-year designation. The contemporary saloon range was manufactured at Arese, near Milan, Italy. Giulia history; Alfa Romeo’s retrospective.
It belongs beneath the existing saloon generation as a variant. The Nuova Super name denotes the late revision of the original Giulia, rather than a separate generation or the much later Giulia revival.
Body and development
The diesel followed the Nuova revision introduced in 1974. That update gave the saloon four equally sized headlamps, a grille with a single horizontal chrome strip and a revised boot lid without the earlier characteristic recess. The diesel therefore belongs to the final styling phase of the original saloon. The earlier Giulia Super provides a useful comparison within the same generation. Alfa Romeo’s model history.
Perkins diesel engineering
The engine was a naturally aspirated, 1,760 cc Perkins four-cylinder. Alfa Romeo’s technical retrospective describes cast-iron construction, three main bearings and Lucas indirect injection with a rotary pump. Installation in the Giulia involved changes to the sump, cooling system and gearbox attachment flange compared with commercial-vehicle applications. Alfa Romeo’s engine history.
That account specifies 52 CV at 4,000 rpm under DGM standards. A later manufacturer retrospective instead quotes 50 PS without identifying its rating basis. These figures are retained as source-specific descriptions; they do not establish separate engine variants or market specifications. Alfa Romeo’s 2012 retrospective.
Market role and legacy
Fuel economy was the diesel’s central attraction. Alfa Romeo’s engine history reports more than 18 kilometres per litre at a steady 90 km/h; this is a stated constant-speed result, not a combined driving-cycle figure. Manufacturer engine history.
The Giulia history identifies the Nuova Super Diesel as Alfa Romeo’s first diesel passenger car and connects its introduction with Italian fiscal incentives favouring diesel. That Italian context should not be read as evidence of identical availability in every export market. Giulia Nuova Super Diesel history.
Its historical importance lies in introducing diesel into Alfa Romeo’s passenger-car range near the end of the original Giulia’s career. The manufacturer’s chronology subsequently records the turbocharged diesel Alfetta in 1979, a separate development from the naturally aspirated Giulia. Alfa Romeo’s engine chronology.