Report: Alfa Romeo to Return to North America by 2012 Says CEO
According to Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne, his company’s stylish Alfa Romeo brand will return to North America in the next 24 months, meaning that models should be on sale in 2012. “I’m a lot more confident now that Alfa Romeo will reconstitute a product offering that is acceptable globally, and more in particular in the United States and Canada,” said Marchionne to Automotive News.
According to AN, the vehicles most likely to arrive in North America are the successors to the 159 and 166 models, which are believed to be based on upcoming Chrysler world platforms. The 159 would show up in 2012 and ride on Chrysler’s new compact wide midsize architecture, which is also believed to underpin the next Caliber and PT Cruiser – which is odd, considering they are compacts. As for the 166, it may ride on the next generation of Chrysler’s large rear drive platform, which will also be used for the 300 and Dodge charger.
It is not clear how Marchionne intends to position the Alfa brand in the U.S., especially using similar low-dollar platforms to Chrysler models and with Alfas normaly commanding much higher dollar values and delivering a higher level of performance and sophistication.
[Source: Automotive News via Autoblog]
With AutoGuide from its launch, Colum previously acted as Editor-in-Chief of Modified Luxury & Exotics magazine where he became a certifiable car snob driving supercars like the Koenigsegg CCX and racing down the autobahn in anything over 500 hp. He has won numerous automotive journalism awards including the Best Video Journalism Award in 2014 and 2015 from the Automotive Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC). Colum founded Geared Content Studios, VerticalScope's in-house branded content division and works to find ways to integrate brands organically into content.
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I've got a few friends in North America who will be dying to get their hands on Alfa's new cars. :) Wonder if they've heard yet.