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Alfa Romeo

Presenting the All-New Alfa Romeo Giulietta

Filed under: Wheels



Take a good look at the car above, because Alfa Romeo wants you to get used to seeing it. If the Italian automaker has its way, this will be the most popular product in the company's 100-year history. It's the new Alfa Romeo Giulietta, and it's here to stay.

Replacing the old 147, the new Giulietta is positioned just above the MiTo, and while pricing hasn't been announced, Alfa promises its positioned will be attractive enough to lure potential buyers away from the Volkswagen Golf. The vehicle was initially expected to carry the 149 nameplate before Alfa changed tracks to Milano. Workers displaced by Alfa's move to Turin, however, prompted the company to revive the age-old Giulietta badge.

With styling cues borrowed from the 8C Competizione supercar in a more aggressive format, the Giulietta will offer a range of four-cylinder turbocharged gasoline and diesel engines ranging from 120 horsepower to an eventual 230. Each model gets start-stop technology for improved fuel economy and will soon get the advanced MultiAir valve management system as well as a dual-clutch transmission. The new Giulietta is scheduled to make its public debut at the Geneva Auto Show in March, so stay tuned.

Autodelta's Supercharged Alfa Romeo Brera S & J4 159

Filed under: Wheels



Few cars on the road – at any price – have the presence of an Alfa Romeo. Unfortunately their performance seldom keeps up with their looks. That's where aftermarket modifiers come in.

Last year the Italian automaker contracted British motorsport concern Prodrive to help it out in the performance department. Their answer was the Brera S, removing much of the aggressively-styled coupe's weight and fine-tuning the suspension. Now Autodelta is getting in on the action. The English tuning house has taken Prodrive's Brera S coupe and strapped on a supercharger good for 347 horsepower.

The power upgrades are also available on the Brera's four-door counterpart, the 159, which Autodelta transforms into the J4 3.2 Compressore. The pair were unveiled at London's exciting MPH09, but you can see them for yourself in the gallery below.

Plans for Alfa Romeo's Return to North America come into Focus

Filed under: Wheels



With parent company Fiat Group's partnership with Chrysler, plans have been in motion for Alfa Romeo to finally, after years of speculation and strategizing, return to the North American market. But while the bulk of Alfa's line-up currently consists of relatively small vehicles, those that will be offered on this side of the Atlantic will be decidedly larger.

To start off, the company's smallest vehicles won't, according to the latest reports, make it to North America altogether. That includes the MiTo three-door hatchback and the Milano five-door which is slated to replace the ageing 147. The North American range is expected to start out instead with the replacements for the 159 and 166 sedans.

The current 159, as beautiful as it is, is slated to be replaced by the upcoming Giulia around 2012 as a global product that will include the North American market. Meanwhile reports indicate that Alfa Romeo could build a successor to the discontinued 166 flagship sedan on this side of the Atlantic in Ontario, Canada.

Gallery: Alfa Romeo

Etiqueta Negra, Equestrian Style from Argentina

Filed under: Wheels, Celebrity Shopping, Shoes, Sports, Men's Style


The recently-opened Etiqueta Negra boutique in downtown Manhattan has brought a modern take on masculine, equestrian style all the way from Buenos Aires. The store, which features among other décor elements a 1938 Alfa Romeo racecar (above), carries suits, jackets, jeans and shirts, as well as a line of leather shoes designed exclusively for Etiqueta Negra by Casa Fagliano, the Argentina-based maker of Prince Charles' bespoke polo boots. Prices for the princely footwear, which is not available anywhere else in the U.S., begin at $2,500 a pair. They also carry polo gear as well as women's clothing, though the emphasis is on the menswear.

Related: The Classicist: On Equestrian Style; The Classicist: Exploring the Wide World of Polo

Alfa Romeo Showcases Special MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde in Frankfurt

Filed under: Wheels, Green



Alfa Romeo's badge has enough clout as it is. But to Alfa enthusiasts, the Quadrifoglio Verde carries even more prestige. The clover-leaf emblem symbolizes the pinnacle of the company's racing history, and is used sparringly on road cars to distinguish some of its most aggressive, performance-oriented models.

In this case, the new MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde boasts a new 170-horsepower MutliAir engine that uses the latest technologies developed by Fiat Powertrain Technologies. The system optimizes airflow into the combustion chambers, thereby simultaneously improving both performance and fuel economy. The engine and new six-speed transmission are showcased in the Quadrifoglio Verde, and help the sportiest of MiTos get up to sixty in little more than seven seconds while returning an impressive 50 miles per gallon on the highway. Impressive.

To further set the Quadrifoglio Verde apart from ordinary MiTos, the special edition carries 17" wheels and trim in dark satin chrome, with an all-black interior offset by sporty white instruments. Plus, of course, the famous Quadrifoglio Verde emblem.


Alfa Romeo Says It's All in Your Jeans

Filed under: Apparel, Wheels



With the MiTo premium hatchback, Alfa Romeo started talking a lot about its DNA. And now it's talking about the brand's jeans, thanks to a new collaboration with fashion expert Louise Roe to produce a line of specially-branded ladies denim pants.

The specially-crafted garments features such uniquely Alfa Romeo touches as red stitching, embroidered serpent from the company's iconic badge and, of course, fit like a glove. Available from the initiative's website mitojeans.co.uk, the jeans are produced in strictly limited quantities and sell for £75 a pair, proceeds from which go towards a charitable research organization.

Japan Gets Special Alfa Romeo MiTo Imola Edition

Filed under: Wheels


For some, Alfa Romeos are special enough as they are. But just the same, the Italian automaker has just announced a new special edition of its MiTo premium sport-hatch called the Imola edition. Named after the famous Italian racetrack, the Imola edition gets a special yellow paintjob, unique 18-inch split-three-spoke wheels hiding red brake calipers, chromed mirror housings and a special Pelle Frau leather interior with yellow accents. Unfortunately Alfa will only be making 150 examples of the special Imola edition, and they're all bound for Japan where, despite a burgeoning domestic auto industry, premium imports are all the rage.

The Most Expensive Alfa Romeo Ever Made

Filed under: Wheels



Although most present-day Alfa Romeos are positioned at competitive price points, the company's name has almost the same clout as Ferrari or Maserati. But today all three of these venerated Italian marques are owned by the same company, so they each take a different market position. Except the 8C Competizione. That's the one model that bursts dividing walls between the separate divisions, with each one lending a hand towards the car's development and production. Alfa only made 500 examples, and they all went fast. But there are 500 more to come, and they could be even more desirable.

Spurred purely by popular demand, Alfa Romeo is building a second run of convertible 8C Spiders. But good luck getting your hands on one. Of the 500 that will be built, only 35 are destined for the United States. And when they get here, they'll be selling for $299,000 apiece. But with demand reaching far higher than supply, you can bet that most will be trading hands at far higher prices than that, giving new meaning to the phrase "nice work if you can get it".

Alfa Romeo Reportedly Cancels the MiTo GTA

Filed under: Wheels




Everyone stood up and paid attention at the Geneva auto salon this past March when Alfa Romeo took the wraps off the MiTo GTA. The lust-worthy hatchback promised all the Italian style and aggression you'd get from a Ferrari or Lamborghini in a more accessible package and finally gave the diminutive MiTo premium hatchback – Italy's answer to the Mini Cooper and styled to mimic the gorgeous Alfa 8C Competizione – the capabilities to match its styling. Although what we saw in Geneva was just a concept car, Alfa Romeo spokesmen said we'd see a production version on the road by the end of the year. Well, don't go making room in your driveway just yet. Because while Alfa Romeo is slated to finally return to the North American market as part of parent company Fiat's new partnership with Chrysler, the MiTo GTA may not make it. And not just the trip across the Atlantic either, as Alfa Romeo now says that the harsh economic circumstances mean that the project has been put on indefinite hold. Which could mean that we'll get another chance at the mean little monster when things return to normal, or it could mean we'll never see it again.

Retro-Cool Bugatti Stratos Concept

Filed under: Wheels


Rare Bugatti Type 57s from the '30s and '40s sell for several million dollars at auction, so the design seems like a solid basis for a new concept car. French graphic / industrial designer Bruno Delussu has come up with the brilliant Bugatti Stratos (above), a retro-futuristic homage to the Type 57 mixed with the Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Mille Miglia along with a touch of the "futuristic optimism" of industrial designer Raymond Loewy's (1893 – 1986) amazing Art Deco steam locomotives. Noting his total lack of a need to adhere to practical restrictions of actual production, Delussu comments, "Often sports cars are compact, nervous and aggressive. I wanted the opposite. That's why I prolonged the frame and created a voluptuously streamlined [shape] that glides smoothly through the air like a hand over silk."

Alfa Romeo Pumps up the MiTo with the GTA concept in Geneva

Filed under: Wheels



When Alfa Romeo launched the MiTo, it was clear the Italian automaker was serious about taking on the premium hatchback market in Europe, a realm until now dominated by BMW's Mini. But while the MiTo borrowed styling cues from its big brother, the 8C Competizione supercar, the small hatch lacked the performance to back up its looks. With the new MiTo GTA, Alfa looks poised to rectify the situation. Resurrecting the company's performance badge, the GTA packs a 230-horsepower turbocharged engine, packed into a compact aluminum and carbon-fiber body with attitude to spare. Although the car shown in Geneva was, strictly speaking, a concept car, Alfa says it will be putting it into production before the end of the year. In the meantime, why not have a look at the images in the gallery below.

Lamborghini Insecta Carbon Fiber Concept

Filed under: Wheels


The other day we told you about the eye-catching Audi Shark hovercar concept. Now here's an equally alluring Lamborghini design based on an insect. The carbon fiber-bodied Lamborghini Insecta concept (above) was created by Iulian Bumbu, a Romanian designer and graduate of the Alfa Romeo-sponsored Transportation Design Master Course at Milan's Scuola Politecnica di Design (SPD). As the name suggests, the Insecta concept was inspired by the world of insects, particularly the armored casings which protect beetles.

The Insecta's resemblance to a beetle's sheath is especially apparent viewed from the side and above. The Insecta is similar in dimension to Lamborghini's Gallardo, though it is lower and wider with a slightly longer wheelbase. It gets its power from the same 5.0 liter V10 engine and drivetrain found in the Gallardo, but the design enhancements and use of carbon fiber make it lighter and faster. A glass engine cover seamlessly blends into the glass roof providing a clear view of the mid-mounted engine for optimum visual appeal.

[Diseno-art via Luxuo]

Scrimaglio Vineyards Produces Special Fiat, Lancia and Alfa Romeo Wines

Filed under: Wheels, Wine

If you can appreciate a fine Italian automobile, then you can probably appreciate a fine Italian wine, too. That's what Fiat is hoping anyway. The Italian automaker – which also owns Lancia, Alfa Romeo, Maserati and Ferrari – has teamed up with Scrimaglio vineyards in Nizza Monferrato, Italy, to produce a special range of wines. The collection includes various reds, whites and sparkling Spumantes bearing the Fiat, Lancia and Alfa Romeo emblems on specially-designed bottles, available to the discerning motorist/connoisseur of fine vinos, just so long as s/he hands over the keys to a designated driver first.

Rare Million Dollar Porsche Stars in Goodwood Sale

Filed under: Wheels, Auctions


A rare and beautiful 1964 Porsche 904 GTS sports racing coupé (above), one of only 100 made, is expected to fetch up to $1 million during Bonhams' sale at the Goodwood Revival in West Sussex, England on Friday. The car, veteran of several important and historic competitions, is from the collection of renowned French racecar driver Bernard Consten and has won concours d'élegance honors.

Also on offer during the Goodwood Revival, billed as the world's most popular historic motor race meeting, is Consten's equally alluring 1965 Alfa Romeo TZ1, est. at $430,000 - $500,000; a 1970 Aston Martin DB6 Mk2 Volante convertible, est. $450,000 - $540,000; a 1973 Ferrari Dino 246GT Berlinetta, est. $115,000 - $135,000; a 1970 Maserati Ghibli 4.7-Litre coupe, est. $50,000 - $60,000; and more. See the gallery for pix.

[via Affluent Page]

Alfa Romeo's $200,000 Supercar

Filed under: Wheels

Meadow Brook's Concours d'Elegance, suburban Detroit's luxury car show to end all luxury car shows, will feature the return of an old favorite: Alfa Romeo. The high-end car manufacturer announced that it will bring its vehicles back to the United States, starting with the $200,000 8C Competizione supercar, then continuing in 2009 with the Brera and the Spyder.

Since the automaker pulled out of the States in 1995, numerous comebacks have been rumored to no avail. With the beautiful show in Rochester Hills as the canvas, Alfa has finally mapped out a plan. In addition to the new Competizione, Alfa Romeo will show off its Berlina Aerodinamica Technica technology on its cars from the 1950s.



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