Osella were impressed by his sensible approach, and signed him for a full season in 1987. The Alfa Romeo-powered FA1I was uncompetitive and unreliable; Caffi finished no races out of 16 and failed to qualify twice, though he was classified once. At the opening round, the Brazilian Grand Prix, Caffi retired after 21 laps due to exhaustion as the heat and physically demanding nature of the car proved too much.