In 1973, in search of affordable transportation, Bernardo and Ines Martinez acquired a 1972 Alfa Romeo Berlina from Bobcor Motors in Buffalo, N.Y. Today, they still own the car, but instead of hauling kids and groceries, as it once did, it serves as one of Bernardo Martinez's vintage Alfa racers. (See Part I of this story.)

In his day job, Bernardo Martinez is a vascular surgeon who specializes in endovascular and endolaparoscopic vascular surgery at St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center in Toledo, Ohio.

As a surgeon trained in a field in which robotics plays an increasingly prominent role, one might expect Martinez to say he races for pleasure and relaxation.

While that is true, Martinez observes that it's also true that the hand-eye-foot coordination skills he applies in the operating room are similar to the skills a driver uses in hustling a car around a racetrack. Even while he's racing, he's honing the body-mind skills that make him a good surgeon.

"I use the same motor-sensory skills," he says. "In surgery, you have turns, you have braking points, just as you do in racing. It's very easy to visualize driving techniques as surgical techniques."

The Berlina Cockpit as an Operating Room

Because training a surgeon is not unlike training a driver, Martinez compares the two skills when he's teaching young surgeons. "Sometimes you have to be slow to be fast," he says. "Sometimes you have to conserve movement and energy here to dedicate faster movements later on."

The two fields share another attribute, too, Martinez adds. To do well in either, all the logistical and organizational elements must be in place. In racing, you not only need to prepare your car before you pull out of your driveway, you also need to prepare your trailer if you want to arrive at the track safely and on time and with everything you need.

"You need to make sure it's in shape," he says.

In surgery, the organization and logistical elements center on the patient and the surgical team. Again, all the elements have to be in place if the surgery is to go well.

"The logistics may appear complex," Martinez says, "but to me, it's something that I do in the same way I prepare for a race. It's a very natural process."

Berlinas on the Street: 'Hey, Nice Volvo!'

While a success in Europe and other parts of the world, few Berlinas arrived in the U.S. during the car's decade-long production run, says Alfa owner and confirmed Berlina fan Andrew Watry. Preceded by the Giulia sedan and succeeded by the Alfetta sedan, Berlinas were available stateside between 1969 and 1974.

"Berlinas in general were 105/115 chassis cars built from 1967 to 1977," says Watry, the founder of the Berlina Register (www.berlinaregister.com). "Alfa introduced the 1750 model in 1967, and it carried through to late 1971."

The 2000cc Berlina then replaced the 1750 model and maintained the line until its end in 1977.

In non-U.S. markets, there was some overlap with Giulia and Alfetta sedans at the beginning and end of the Berlina's run, Watry adds. "Total production was about 101,000 1750s for all markets and 89,000 2000s for all markets."

In the U.S., the Berlina was something of a hit-and-miss item. While it was introduced in 1969, the 1750 Berlina was not offered in 1970 but became available again in 1971. The 2000 appeared in 1972 and continued through 1974. Although some Berlinas trickled out of U.S. showrooms over the next few years, "there were no new U.S. cars after the 1974 model year," Watry explains.

U.S. cars featured Spica fuel injection and a five speed-manual transmission with a 4.56 rear axle ratio, Watry says. The 2000cc Berlinas also featured limited-slip differentials. "I have pretty good evidence that a few came with factory air; others had dealer-installed air. There were no factory sunroofs, but dealers and aftermarket shops added them."

Berlina mechanical specifications were basically identical to Spiders and GTVs, Watry adds.

While he hasn't been able to pin down definite numbers, Watry estimates that approximately 2,750 1750s and 3,500 2000s made it to the U.S.

"Berlinas were not great sellers," he says.

Driving a Berlina Today

If you are interested in a Berlina, consider all the usual Alfa quirks when you evaluate the car, says Jeff Zurschmeide, a past regional executive of the SCCA's Oregon Region, a member of the Alfa Romeo Owners of Oregon (AROO) and a Berlina owner.

"Rust is the big thing, of course. After that, make sure the mechanicals are in good shape. I wouldn't be concerned with mileage numbers. The newest of the cars is 31 years old. You're buying a classic, not a late-model Toyota."

The windshield is a weak point of the model, Zurschmeide adds. "The glued-in windshields tend to crack. Replace the glue with a rubber gasket if you replace the windshield. Also, take up the carpet around the driver's seat and look for cracks around the seat mounts in the floor pan."

The good news is the interchangeability of parts, Zurschmeide says. There is a lot of compatibility with same-year Spiders and GTVs. "In many cases, Berlinas have been more gently driven than their Spider and Coupe siblings; so you may be pleasantly surprised with the condition of the transmission synchros," he notes.

For Berlinas, the mechanical compatibility also has a downside. Over the years, many of them have become parts cars for their more sporty siblings. Still, Zurschmeide says, you can find a Berlina, and if you do, you will be pleased.

"Having driven most of my Alfa miles in Spiders and GTVs, I'd definitely say the Berlina is a pleasure to drive and great fun," says Joe Cantrell, a fellow AROO member and the owner of a 1972 Spider and a 1973 Berlina. "You can't appreciate Berlinas until you've driven them. I believe I enjoy it more than the Spider."

Both Zurschmeide and Cantrell also belong to Portland's Servizi Vari, an informal Alfa group that maintains its Berlinas in more or less unrestored condition.

"Our focus is on keeping the cars running and enjoying them--and reminding gas station attendants that they aren't Volvos or Datsun 510s," Zurschmeide says.