Assembly was primarily at the Alfa Romeo Pomigliano d'Arco plant, and 893,719 were manufactured from 1972 to 1983, with the addition of 121,434 Sprint coupé versions between 1976 and 1989.

90% of the share capital was subscribed by Alfa Romeo and 10% by Finmeccanica, at that time the financial arm of the government controlled IRI.

[7] Construction work on the company's new state-sponsored plant at nearby Pomigliano d'Arco began in April 1968,[8] on the site of an aircraft engine factory used by Alfa Romeo during World War II.

[9] Along with a 5-speed gearbox, it featured a more powerful version of the 1.2 litre engine, brought to 68 PS (50 kW; 67 hp) by adopting a Weber twin-choke carburettor, allowing the small saloon to reach 160 km/h (99 mph).

[10] Recognizable by its bumper overriders and chrome strips on the door sills and on the tail, the Lusso was better appointed than the standard Alfasud (which was now called "normale"), with such features as cloth upholstery, headrests, padded dashboard with glove compartment and optional tachometer.

[14] The Super introduced improvements both outside, with new bumpers including large plastic strips, and inside, with a revised dashboard, new door cards and the choice of either Alfatex (vinyl) or two-tone cloth seats.

The 1.3 and 1.5 engines were soon made available alongside the 1.2 on the Giardinetta and Super, with a slightly lower output compared to the sport models, due to having a single-choke carburettor.

The range was topped by the five-door Gold Cloverleaf, featuring the 95 PS (70 kW; 94 hp) engine from the Ti and enhanced interior trim.

In 1983 an attempt to keep pace with the hot hatchback market, the final version of the Alfasud Ti received a tuned 1490 cc engine developing 105 PS (77 kW; 104 hp).

The Alfasud became notorious for its propensity to rust, notably because of an assembly process that combined inferior recycled steel, and the factory's Pomigliano d'Arco location just 15 kilometers from the Bay of Naples.

In one instance, early bodies in white, ready for painting, were left in the naturally salty air outside of the assembly building.

[16] To inhibit rust, engineers called for filling all bodywork box-sections with synthetic foam, which was later discovered to hold moisture.

Beginning in June 1981, the South African-made Alfasud was renamed the Alfa Romeo Export GTA and received the 105 PS (77 kW) version of the 1.5 litre flat-four.