9 new Alfas coming soon - Autocar this week

Alfa Quadrifoglio

According to this weeks Autocar Alfa Romeo are to launch 9 new models over the next three years or so:
2013: 4c
Late 2013: facelifted Mito ....trims,spec's,price
Late 2013: facelifted Giulietta ..... spec's, price, 4C's 1750 engine to be used in Giulietta
2014: Alfa SUV ..... competing with Q5/X3 based on Dodge Dart Chassis (extended Giulietta)
2014: 4c Spider
2015: Spider ...rwd j.v. with Mazda built in Japan, Alfa body, engines and suspension
2015: Alfetta .... rwd based on Maserati Ghibli compete with 5 series
2015: Giulia.... 159 replacement, fwd or rwd yet to be decided, saloon and sportwagon
2016: New Mito.....replacement for Mito may be based on FIAT 500X, 4 door only

Sales plan of 300,000, durability/quality huge focus, Alfa Romeo seen as key to future profits for FIAT Group in Europe. Damien Dally Head of Alfa UK quoted so sounds official and like a reasonable plan for the marque. Long overdue my 159 will be 8 years old when the replacement Giulia arrives.

MuppetCheck

I wouldn't hold my breath on a 2015 launch for the Giulia if they haven't even decided on a platform yet. Even if half that list appears it's a step in the right direction.

The Alfetta sounds interesting.

Zubeneschamali

So we can expect to read the following stories in the car comics:

2013: The new car that must save Alfa!
Late 2013: Is this the car to save Alfa?
Late 2013: Alfa's last chance?
2014: Alfa's turnaround car!
2014: Will this car pull Alfa from the brink?
2015: New Spider to save Alfa!
2015: Alfetta: can it save Alfa?
2015: Giulia: Alfa's make or break!
2016: Mito: Alfa's new dawn?

Francie Barrett

9 new Alfa's that virtually no one will buy

166man

Francie Barrett wrote: »

9 new Alfa's that virtually no one will buy

Why not?

MuppetCheck

166man wrote: »

Why not?

Because they seem to be completely and utterly uninterested in selling cars at the moment. The Giulietta should be flying out the door - decent car, low motor tax, cheap to run - but I don't think I've seen it advertised in this country at all. Very few people even know of it I'd wager.

youwhoglue

MuppetCheck wrote: »

Because they seem to be completely and utterly uninterested in selling cars at the moment. The Giulietta should be flying out the door - decent car, low motor tax, cheap to run - but I don't think I've seen it advertised in this country at all. Very few people even know of it I'd wager.

How many Alfas sold so far this year?







7 to end of June.

MuppetCheck

youwhoglue wrote: »

How many Alfas sold so far this year?







7 to end of June.

P1ss poor performance considering the only two cars in the range are the type that would work well with the Irish taxation scheme. And surely one or two of them are staff/dealer cars too. There were 3 times more Porsches bought. Something is definitely wrong if that's the best they can do.

RedorDead

Alfa Quadrifoglio wrote: »

According to this weeks Autocar Alfa Romeo are to launch 9 new models over the next three years or so:
2013: 4c
Late 2013: facelifted Mito ....trims,spec's,price
Late 2013: facelifted Giulietta ..... spec's, price, 4C's 1750 engine to be used in Giulietta
2014: Alfa SUV ..... competing with Q5/X3 based on Dodge Dart Chassis (extended Giulietta)
2014: 4c Spider
2015: Spider ...rwd j.v. with Mazda built in Japan, Alfa body, engines and suspension
2015: Alfetta .... rwd based on Maserati Ghibli compete with 5 series
2015: Giulia.... 159 replacement, fwd or rwd yet to be decided, saloon and sportwagon
2016: New Mito.....replacement for Mito may be based on FIAT 500X, 4 door only

Sales plan of 300,000, durability/quality huge focus, Alfa Romeo seen as key to future profits for FIAT Group in Europe. Damien Dally Head of Alfa UK quoted so sounds official and like a reasonable plan for the marque. Long overdue my 159 will be 8 years old when the replacement Giulia arrives.

I confidently predict if we refresh this thread in 2016 at least half of these will not have made it to market or will be delayed. Too many false dawns for Alfa.

discombobulate

Thought the Giulia was due for next year after originally being this year. Agree on the advertisement / sales comment. There should be a lot more shifting but I don't think the Irish market is a focus at all unfortunately

Celly Smunt

If the Giulia is priced right,i think i might have a new car in 2015.

MuppetCheck

discombobulate wrote: »

Thought the Giulia was due for next year after originally being this year. Agree on the advertisement / sales comment. There should be a lot more shifting but I don't think the Irish market is a focus at all unfortunately

It's not the focus for most makes but they could easily sell a few hundred units with little effort.

Ded_Zebra

MuppetCheck wrote: »

Because they seem to be completely and utterly uninterested in selling cars at the moment. The Giulietta should be flying out the door - decent car, low motor tax, cheap to run - but I don't think I've seen it advertised in this country at all. Very few people even know of it I'd wager.

Ireland not the only alfa market though. I'm in Switzerland atm and there are Giuliettas everywhere;)

MuppetCheck

Ded_Zebra wrote: »

Ireland not the only alfa market though. I'm in Switzerland atm and there are Giuliettas everywhere;)

I know it's not, I've already said that. But 3 or 4 sold in seven months is a poor effort. What's the point in having a presence if that's the result.

Ded_Zebra

MuppetCheck wrote: »

I know it's not, I've already said that. But 3 or 4 sold in seven months is a poor effort. What's the point in having a presence if that's the result.

True. They probably think that it'll work out cheaper to do that rather than pull out of the market in Ireland only to go back in in 1,2,5,10 years.

discombobulate

MuppetCheck wrote: »

I know it's not, I've already said that. But 3 or 4 sold in seven months is a poor effort. What's the point in having a presence if that's the result.

The presence is gone a lot lower due to only being part of multi manufacturer garages now too. I'm on my third car now, second Alfa and have test drove many cars. Never felt the same driving any VW, Audi, Ford or BMW. Went over to the UK then to get what i wanted.

MuppetCheck

discombobulate wrote: »

The presence is gone a lot lower due to only being part of multi manufacturer garages now too. I'm on my third car now, second Alfa and have test drove many cars. Never felt the same driving any VW, Audi, Ford or BMW. Went over to the UK then to get what i wanted.

Very true, I couldn't see the attraction in keeping on a franchise for them though.

Scortho

166man wrote: »

Why not?

I think we all know just how good their dealer network is....:rolleyes:

Alfa Quadrifoglio

Scortho wrote: »

I think we all know just how good their dealer network is....:rolleyes:

Spot on, no point delivering a new range of interesting models if the dealership network is not up to standard. I hope the proposed Giulia the replacement for the 159 is front wheel drive, more interior space, safer in icy weather and Alfas best cars have been fwd 156, 155, and Sud.

youwhoglue

5 Giuliettas sold in July. Well done lads. :rolleyes:

Alfa Quadrifoglio

And not one Mito, but not surprising when there is zero Marketing of Alfa Romeo in Ireland

R.O.R

youwhoglue wrote: »

5 Giuliettas sold in July. Well done lads. :rolleyes:

Wonder who bought the other 4?


To be fair to Alfa - they haven't had the product to sell. I was chasing the one we supplied for at least 2 months, and wanted either a 1.6JTDM Lusso Giulietta or a Delta (can't remember the spec) - either one, any colour.

They've apparently been re-aligning the specs to the UK, so nothing came through until mid July.

youwhoglue

1 red Giulietta in August.

Zubeneschamali

CAR magazine reported recently that Fiat are considering moving Alfa upmarket away from Mito/Giulietta family hatchbacks, to go after BMW using Maserati bits.

Scortho

Zubeneschamali wrote: »

CAR magazine reported recently that Fiat are considering moving Alfa upmarket away from Mito/Giulietta family hatchbacks, to go after BMW using Maserati bits.

So where they were a few years ago with the 156, 166 etc?
Replacing both those cars with the 159 was a foolish idea by alfa and then getting rid of the 159 was even worse considering there was no replacement.

cjt156

Meanwhile they're moving Maserati down into BMW territory with the Ghibli. I think they've got to many brands to know what to do with.
I reckon they should go;
FIAT: Panda, 500 and Multipla-type quirky MPV.
Lancia: upmarket family hatch and saloons. 1, 3, 5-series rivals
ALFA: 4C and MX-5 sports coupes.
Maserati: Executive coupes and GT cars. 7 series, S-Class, Aston rivals.
Ferrari: Super/Hypercar.

But then what do I know.

Zubeneschamali

Scortho wrote: »

So where they were a few years ago with the 156, 166 etc?

Right, but with rear wheel drive and a 6 pot diesel.

Tea 1000

cjt156 wrote: »

Meanwhile they're moving Maserati down into BMW territory with the Ghibli. I think they've got to many brands to know what to do with.
I reckon they should go;
FIAT: Panda, 500 and Multipla-type quirky MPV.
Lancia: upmarket family hatch and saloons. 1, 3, 5-series rivals
ALFA: 4C and MX-5 sports coupes.
Maserati: Executive coupes and GT cars. 7 series, S-Class, Aston rivals.
Ferrari: Super/Hypercar.

But then what do I know.

If VW can pull it off then surely Fiat can you'd think, but seems they can't. There would be room to have Alfa saloon and hatches alongside Lancia the same way as there are Audi saloons and hatches alongside VW ones. And Seat and Skoda in the mix too. If the product is good enough and marketed well it will sell.

Zubeneschamali

Tea 1000 wrote: »

If the product is good enough and marketed well it will sell.

Much as I love Alfa, the product never is quite good enough, and in Ireland at least, the marketing and dealerships are absolutely woeful.

The new 4C sports car was gorgeous as a concept, and the production version is identical! Except for the ugliest lights since that cross-eyed Impreza, swapped in to save a few bob:

Scortho

Zubeneschamali wrote: »

Right, but with rear wheel drive and a 6 pot diesel.

All they need to do now is bring back the busso and ill be happy!

Zubeneschamali

Scortho wrote: »

All they need to do now is bring back the busso and ill be happy!

The new petrol V6 is developed by Ferrari for Maserati, so should be good!

discombobulate

Zubeneschamali wrote: »

Much as I love Alfa, the product never is quite good enough, and in Ireland at least, the marketing and dealerships are absolutely woeful.

The new 4C sports car was gorgeous as a concept, and the production version is identical! Except for the ugliest lights since that cross-eyed Impreza, swapped in to save a few bob:

I agree. Really should have kept the original concept lights!

New Giulia looks great:

road_high

Alfa Quadrifoglio wrote: »

And not one Mito, but not surprising when there is zero Marketing of Alfa Romeo in Ireland

I absolutely love the mito. I think it's the best looking small car by a mile! If its reliable and appears a very solid little thing I cannot understand how it's not selling much better. I know reviews had criticised the dynamics but had they stuck a blue and white propeller on the front I'd say it would sell like hot cakes.

HandsomeDan

.

Zubeneschamali

road_high wrote: »

I know reviews had criticised the dynamics but had they stuck a blue and white propeller on the front I'd say it would sell like hot cakes.

No: BMW did the Mini, the dynamics are far better, and they still didn't think people would buy it as a BMW.

road_high

HandsomeDan wrote: »

Yes, because then there's a chance it might actually be good

But is the Mito actually bad? I've never driven one. Is the MINI really all that much better?

Scortho

road_high wrote: »

But is the Mito actually bad? I've never driven one. Is the MINI really all that much better?

Mito and giuletta are nice to look at.
It ends there.
They didn't drive like an alfa.

In brighter news for alfa, I was talking to my neighbour today who had a great experience with a 166 3.0 v6 but traded it in for a 520d. He can't wait for the giulia to come out.

road_high

Scortho wrote: »

Mito and giuletta are nice to look at.
It ends there.
They didn't drive like an alfa.

In brighter news for alfa, I was talking to my neighbour today who had a great experience with a 166 3.0 v6 but traded it in for a 520d. He can't wait for the giulia to come out.

I guess ultimately they are rebadged Fiats.

Zubeneschamali

road_high wrote: »

But is the Mito actually bad? I've never driven one. Is the MINI really all that much better?

BMW designed the MINI on a clean sheet. Alfa rebadged the Fiat Punto.

bear1

I wonder how many of those new Alfas will actually come to Ireland.. I dont think we will even see the 4C
The Giulietta is already rare enough and the MiTo is even rarer. Haven't seen one 131 or 132 Alfa yet.. which is a shame as I'd love to get my hands on the 1750 turbo Giulietta. I think since the 156 Alfa kind of lost their way and I hope that they can make it back soon.
I'd also love to get my hands on a 3.0 164 and a 2.5 155 but thats another story

Scortho

bear1 wrote: »

I wonder how many of those new Alfas will actually come to Ireland.. I dont think we will even see the 4C
The Giulietta is already rare enough and the MiTo is even rarer. Haven't seen one 131 or 132 Alfa yet.. which is a shame as I'd love to get my hands on the 1750 turbo Giulietta. I think since the 156 Alfa kind of lost their way and I hope that they can make it back soon.
I'd also love to get my hands on a 3.0 164 and a 2.5 155 but thats another story

You'd need to cut your mileage in order to get one of those and cut it significantly.

bear1

If I get rid of our 2 diesel cars, abandon the wife somewhere out in the sticks, claim the insurance policy on her.... then maybe, just maybe I could afford to run a 3.0 164

Tea 1000

road_high wrote: »

I guess ultimately they are rebadged Fiats.

That's not really the problem. Fiats of old drove really well too.
I think people over criticise Alfa these days for feeling a little generic to drive, but the truth is that everything these days is much closer to a generic centre than they were 20 years ago. An E36 felt nothing like a Mk1 A4, but an F30 and newest A4 are much closer to each other. Don't get me wrong, they're still different cars, but you need to drive them further to start counting the differences. Everything is gone a little more insulated.
But only Alfa seem to be taking the flack for it!

bear1

Lancia of old as well get a lot of stick - yes in the 80s they suffered some problems but it wouldn't put me off buying one now.
I remember my parents wanted to buy a Thema in 1996 or 97 but got put off after they heard the stories, ended up buying a Fiat Tempra instead....

MuppetCheck

Looks like one new model by 2015 now. Knew there was more than a whiff of bull excrement about the whole story.

Link:
http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/industry/alfa-romeo-overhaul-stalls-due-fiat-chrysler-buyout

bear1

Ah just sell it to VW ta fock at this point.
Feckin useless that guy is.

road_high

Shame. All these delays are killing the brand. If they have f-all cars to sell how can there even be a brand

ba_barabus

I think the bigger story here isn't that new Alfa's have been delayed again.

It's that FIAT have to buy out more of the Chrysler ownership meaning they will be putting themselves into more debt and no way out.

If they buy more shares they risk bankruptcy and if they don't they still risk bankruptcy by being associated with failing brands. I wouldn't be surprised if FIAT as we know them have a short future........