Electric Alfa-Romeo P2 by C.I.J, c. 1935

Alfa plus: a highly important and unique, prototype electric-powered Alfa-Romeo P2 tinplate toy by CIJ (Compagnie Industrielle du Jouet) with hand-held control connected via the rear filler-cap to operate the headlights and facilitate forward and reverse, as illustrated in the lavish and definitive work on tinplate P2 toys by Fabrice Mestrot. French, circa 1935.

Length: 22 inches (55 cm).

The P2 tinplate toy was manufactured between 1924 and 1939 in response to the competition success of Vittorio Jano’s design, one of the most successful Grand Prix racing cars ever. However, by the mid-1930s, CIJ’s legendary P2 toy was somewhat ‘old hat’, and the sales were flagging in the face of more up-to-date offerings from Italian makers such as Domo of Milan. CIJ therefore created this unique experimental prototype to evaluate the feasibility of upgrading the clockwork toy to electric operation. The move was clearly judged to be unfeasible and never took place.

All images and text copyright © Pullman Gallery Ltd. 2024