The Alfa Romeo 2300 is an executive car that was produced by Brazilian automobile manufacturer Fábrica Nacional de Motores (FNM) from 1974 to 1978, and under Fiat from 1978 to 1986.
Origin
The 2300 project traces its roots back to Italy as project 102/12. A prototype was assembled in 1971 and was sent to Brazil for tests in 1972. It was engineered entirely in Italy, specifically for the Brazilian market, and launched in March 1974 under the slogan "O importado fabricado no Brasil" ("The imported manufactured in Brazil", in Portuguese). At the time the adoption of 4 and 6-cylinder inline and V6 engines were studied, with some test mules tested with those engines, but due to the oil crisis in the 1970s and the arrival of a military government, import difficulties forced the factory to adopt the 4-cylinder engine from the Alfa Romeo 1900 with an increased displacement of 2,310 cc and coupled to a five-speed manual transmission.
Overview
The general exterior design of the new car was very similar to that of the Italian built Alfetta sedan, designed by Giuseppe Scarnati and first offered in Europe in 1972, although the Brazilian car was actually 41 centimetres (16 in) longer and 7 centimetres (2.8 in) wider than the Alfetta. Under the skin, the 2300 was based technically on the older 1900.