The engine of the FA1L was the old Alfa Romeo 890T turbo engine that had been introduced to Formula One in . Osella had been using Alfa turbo power since , but had scored only two points with the engine over five seasons when Piercarlo Ghinzani had finished fifth in the 1984 Dallas Grand Prix. The team's cars and the engine had both proved unreliable and as a result Fiat, the parent company of Alfa Romeo, withdrew its support for the engine, though they allowed Osella to keep using it in 1988 so long as the Alfa name was not used. This resulted in the engine being renamed the Osella 890T (or Osella V8) for the season.