ALFA ROMEO PROTEO, 1991

CONCEPTS THAT TIME FORGOT

- Sam Burnett

You might think that 2021 has been a bit of a bust, but 1991 wasn’t that much better. A year notable for Operation Desert Storm, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the death of Freddie Mercury. But still, there was a bright red glimmer of hope in the form of the Alfa Romeo Proteo concept, revealed in Geneva.

The concept was based on Alfa’s venerable 164 saloon, with a chunk chopped out of the middle. Styling-wise it took the challenging wedge-tastic shapes of the SZ coupe and its roadster sibling and softened them, made them a smidge more acceptable to the human eye. The Proteo has an elegant rising beltline and squirrels the SZ’s square triple lights behind an extended bonnet.