Generation Cyb

The Italian manufacturer of sports car Maserati is reportedly looking for dealers in the United States which will market Alfa Romeos. The Alfa Romeos will become the first of its make to be available in the United States since 1995. Only select few dealers will have the chance to be considered by the Italian firm. Alfa Romeos have been known for their high level of performance as well as their price. A reputation of a dealer which will market the limited sports cars will surely receive a boost. Aside from the prestige of selling the limited Alfa Romeos, the chosen dealerships will also be awarded a permanent franchise to sell Alfa Romeos. The company is still on the drawing board planning a comeback in the United States.

Alfa Romeo and Maserati, both under Fiat, have a working relationship which allows both car manufacturers to share platforms for future car models. This means that both brands will be introducing different cars but they will be sharing the same structure. This is much like the relationship between the marques, subsidiaries, and divisions by General Motors. Sharing platforms means that both car manufacturers will be saving money in developing a new platform. Production of vehicles also involves reduced costs since a car assembly facility needs not to be retooled to manufacture a different car. This works to the advantage of both Maserati and Alfa Romeo. Fiat announced recently that Maserati dealers in the United States will be marketing Alfa Romeos by the year 2010.

The dealerships that will be chosen will be marketing 99 units of the limited edition Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione. Alfa Romeo produced only 500 units of the said car. The production version of this car is equipped with a 4.7-liter V8 engine which can produce an astounding 443 horsepower and 347 lb-ft of torque. That power would surely need highly efficient brakes such as those that can be found at Active Brakes Direct. A racing version of this car will be used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans – the most famous endurance racing event. The Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione is a rear-drive carbon fiber coupe will be undergoing crash tests to make sure that they will meet US safety standards.

James Selwa, the Chief Executive Officer of Maserati North America, said that large and multi-franchise dealers are likely candidates to market the 99 Alfa Romeo 8C Competiziones earmarked for sale in the United States. Among the dealerships that the Italian firm is looking at are The Collection in Florida and the Suburban Collection in Detroit.

The China Premium Lifestyle Enterprise recently reported that they have entered into a letter of intent with Wo Kee Hong Group to have the exclusive right to distribute Alfa Romeo vehicles in Hong Kong and Macau. The announcement was made after Wo Kee Hong Group was given the green light to sell Alfa Romeos in Hong Kong and Macau.

The approval came from Alfa Romeo, Turin, Italy and is seen to be the effect of the group’s established good reputation in their distribution of Ferrari and Maserati at the said countries. Both Ferrari and Maserati are also Italian made performance car brands and Alfa Romeo is an additional offering of the group in Hong Kong and Macau.

This partnership is expected to succeed due to the increased demand for performance cars in the Asian region. The introduction of Alfa Romeo to the Hong Kong and Macau auto market is just the beginning of this relationship since there are also plans to bring the famous Italian car to mainland China.

Richard Lee, the Chairman of China Premium, has this to say about their involvement in the sale of Alfa Romeo vehicles: “When, as a group, we were approached by Alfa Romeo’s management to take up this role, we saw an excellent opportunity to complement our exclusive Ferrari and Maserati franchises with another icon of Italy’s motoring heritage. Alfa Romeo is one of the original manufacturers of performance oriented, classic Italian sports cars. A subsidiary of Fiat Auto SpA, Italy’s automotive manufacturing giant, Alfa Romeo has been completely rejuvenated in recent years, with a fresh image and a range of tremendously exciting new models which are of the highest standards ever produced by the company and priced to appeal to a large segment of potential buyers of sporty European automobiles that is rapidly emerging in greater China.”

The group has already started the sale of the world famous brand in Hong Kong in February of this year according to Mr. Lee. As far as their dedication to their partnership with Alfa Romeo and their sales in the region, he had this to say: “The Alfa Romeo range fits perfectly with our strategy to capitalize on the market for mid-priced sports cars, while maintaining our image as a purveyor of exotic high end motor vehicles. In Hong Kong, our state-of-the-art Alfa Romeo dealership and service center was commissioned in February and inaugurated by Alfa Romeo’s CEO, and sales of the new models, particularly the ‘Brera’ two-door coupe and ‘159’ sedan and station wagon have been encouraging. We are excited about the prospects for Alfa Romeo both in Hong Kong and, ultimately, China.”

With this development, the Asian region looks as if it is ready to be a major hub of European cars. The region once dominated by Asian vehicles like Nissan with their Nissan hubcaps is now slowly opening its doors to other car manufacturer as these car makers see the region as potential strong markets for their products.

Just days after Fiat took over Chrysler’s operation, the Italian automaker is unveiling some of its plans for the newly combined entity, one that may go well beyond Fiat supplying vehicle platforms, engines and transmissions for several upcoming small vehicles to be built in North America.

Sharing The Chrysler LX Platform

According to Canada’s Financial Post, Fiat has been eying Chrysler’s LX platform, the Daimler derived platform which currently underpins the Chrysler 300C and Dodge Charger full-sized sedans. That platform could be used to build a third model – which would be the most upscale of the three – and one sporting the Alfa Romeo moniker at that.

Alfa Romeo along with Ferrari, Maserati, Lancia and Fiat are all owned by the Fiat Group. Alfa Romeo falls somewhere in the middle of the Fiat pricing pack, but the sedan being considered for production in North America would most likely compete against some of Europe’s finest models including those built by Mercedes and BMW.

The 2012 Alfa Romeo 169

The Financial Post says that Fiat is weighing plans to build the Alfa Romeo 169 at the company’s Brampton, Ontario facility alongside that of the Charger and the 300C, beginning in November 2011. That move would time with the introduction of the next generation release of the Dodge and Chrysler models which initially were to roll out in late 2010 for the 2011 model year.

Some sources have pegged the 169’s price at about $62,000 which would be some $25,000 more than a fully equipped Chrysler 300C. However, the sedan would likely share few components beyond the platform, getting its own interior, suspension, engine and transmission.

Bringing Back Alfa Romeo

Well before Fiat had its eyes on Chrysler, the automaker had been wanting to reintroduce Alfa Romeo to the North American market, but the economic climate precluded its return. Fiat ceased selling Alfa Romeo models in North America in 1995, more than a decade after pulling the Fiat brand out of that highly competitive market. Ferrari and Maserati are still sold the US and Canada, although through separate dealer networks.

Chrysler’s slice of the North American market continues to shrink rapidly, something that Fiat hopes to stem with a bevy of new models. Between its Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep brands along with Fiat and Alfa Romeo, the combined manufacturing capacity of the Chrysler Group could help the newly combined entity recapture some of what has been lost.