The Volkswagen engineers have made a new statement on the Alfa Romeo brand. More specifically, the Germans have submitted plans for the brand in Milan in case they managed to buy it from Fiat.

According to sources, Alfa Romeo could receive assistance from Porsche to develop a four cylinder boxer engine with a new enty-level roadster. That four-cylinder engine could be used as the smallest engine in the Porsche range and other Alfa Romeo models.

The rumor was not confirmed nor denied by either party, a sign that they prefer to ignore such discussions for now. If this was true, Alfa Romeo could distance brands like Volkswagen, Seat, Skoda and Audi (we’re talking about the ranges and possible performance versions of those models – if any). In addition, Porsche would benefit from such a partnership based on economies of scale.

Despite statements made by Fiat officials, who pointed out that Alfa Romeo is not for sale, people at Volkswagen are extremely confident in their own forces and said they have time to wait. Previous statements suggested that Alfa Romeo will have four times bigger sales in five years under their leadership. Production would take place in the Seat factory in Martorell and at other Alfa Romeo plants in Europe.

Source: Autocar

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The organizers of the World Car of the Year contest announced the finalists of the 2011 edition. They are the Audi A8, BMW Series 5 and Nissan Leaf.

The three models are competing at general categories, while the rest fight for “Green Car of the Year” and “Design of the Year.”

Regarding the “Green Car of the Year”, Nissan Leaf will have to face for the first time since its market debut, the Chevrolet Volt. While the American model is an electric vehicle in the true sense of the word, the two models have been bearing an ideological battle over a year.

The original list of models competing for the title included 39 nominees, chosen by 66 automotive journalists from 24 countries. To be eligible for the 2011 edition World Car of The Year, a model must be available on at least two continents and five countries from January 1, 2010 to May 30, 2011. For this reason, many popular models in the U.S. or Europe are not eligible for this award.

The top three finalists announced in all categories are listed below in alphabetical order:

2011 World Car of the Year

Audi A8
BMW 5-Series
Nissan Leaf

2011 World Performance Car of the Year

Ferrari 458 Italia
Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG
Porsche 911 Turbo

2011 World Green Car of the Year

BMW 320d EfficientDynamics Edition
Chevrolet Volt
Nissan Leaf

2011 World Car Design of the Year

Alfa Romeo Giulietta
Aston Martin Rapide
Ferrari 458 Italia

Source: WCOTY

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At the Auto Show in Detroit, Fiat chairman John Elkann said that they will never sell the Alfa Romeo brand. Elkann practically reiterated an earlier statement by Marchionne, who announced the same thing, but in another form.

This time, Elkann was direct and stated that Fiat won’t be selling Alfa Romeo not even for “tons of money,” meaning that they will do anything to relaunch the brand.

Alfa Romeo sales failed to reach the target of Marchionne’s profitability and the brand needs 300,000 units per year. At present, Alfa Romeo sells only 40% of that amount per year, but the Italians hope to recover this balance.

As specified by Sergio Marchionne, Alfa Romeo is part of Fiat Group’s operational area, and the investments made in this direction are too large to give them up.

Fiat officials have acknowledged that they had some quality problems in the brand, but hope to finally eliminate them for new models. With the Fiat-Chrysler alliance, Italy’s Alfa Romeo will sell the new cars in the US.

The first model will be Giulia, a midsize sedan that promises a lot. The Italians also have a drawback in terms of that model, regarding the factory in which it will be built. More specifically, the unions want to produce it at the Mirafiori plant, while Marchionne wants to produce the US version of the model in America to maintain a lower price.

Source: Autocar

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Alfa Romeo 8C Spider

Nearly every model from Alfa Romeo has made it in the list of the most beautiful cars of the time. The 8C Spider is fitted with a 4.7 liter V8 engine and 450 PS, and its look is brutal, but beautiful and elegant at the same time. All 500 available copies were sold before production started.

Aston Martin DBS

DBS was designed by Marek Reichmann, but is, in essence, an evolution of the DB7 model developed by Ian Callum. The model has remarkably voluptuous proportions, long hood, low ground clearance and an impressive length. The width of DBS is not overlooked, and all these surfaces are made by combining aluminum with carbon fiber. To ensure its success, Gaydon engineers have equipped the model with a V12 of 6.0 liters and 510 hp.

Audi R8 Spyder

Audi R8 Spyder is first and foremost a creative technique. Initially, the coupe version of the model could easily qualify for this contest, but the Spyder version was chosen for its appealing profile. At first, the model was offered only a 5.2-liter V10 engine and 525 horsepower, but Audi offers a 4.2-liter FSI V8 drive and 430 horsepower, for those in love with V8s.

Audi RS5

The fastest member of the A5 range is an impressive package both in style, as well as in performance. The model engine chosen for it is a 4.2-liter V8 FSI, 450 hp, screaming with all their power through the four exhaust pipes located under the rear bumper. The A5 has an elegant aspect, needing a few accessories to make it beautiful, but the RS version of it presents a set of aggressive traits that greatly fit the model from Ingolstadt.

Bentley Continental GT

Continental GT was the first creation of the brand in Crewe under the wing of Volkswagen. The model debuted at the Paris Motor Show with a new look, which is linked to the brand’s history but still looks modern. Lines shown on the Continental GT will be present 10 years from now, during which the model will receive a facelift and even a new generation. This time, the model is offered in the company of a 4.0-liter V8 engine, not only with a 6.75-liter W12.

Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano

The famous Ferrari GT was designed, as usual, in the studio Pininfarina. The model features a 5999 cc V12 engine that provides 611 hp. The GTO version of the 599 is the fastest Ferrari for road, while the model’s shape is unmistakable. In addition, who may find an angle which is not beautiful?

Hyundai Elantra

The surprise of this list is the new Hyundai Elantra. The model debuted at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November 2010 and its appearance betrays not even one wrong placed line. Cynics might say that the designers forgot who they’re working for, if we compare this model to the previous generation, but we believe that credit belong to the Fluidic Sculpture design language.

Jaguar XK Coupe

XK is Jaguar’s XJ-S replacement and debuted on the market in 1996, while its grandfather is none other than the famous E-Type. At that time, the Jaguar XK-E, or E-Type, possessed one of the most beautiful bodies available on the market. In March 2008, Jaguar E-Type won first place among the most beautiful cars of all time in a top made by Daily Telegraph and XK resembles perfectly all the features of E-Type in a modern definition of what a Jaguar coupe means.

Maserati GranCabrio

The new Maserati convertible GranCabrio is a very attractive model, with an aggressive look, which offers four real seats. The model is equipped with a 4.7 liter V8 and 433 hp and has active anti-roll bars front and rear. Due to this factor, the model offers a higher level of handling without sacrificing passenger comfort.

Volkswagen Passat CC

The last model in this list is not the first in its segment, but comes at an affordable price compared to market opener for four-door coupes. It’s the Volkswagen Passat CC, a very attractive item designed by the constructor in Wolfsburg, which distinguishes itself from the first generation of Mercedes-Benz CLS by the lack of classical elements in its appearance, being a creation full of style and charisma, especially if accompanied by a set of alloy wheels and a 3.6-liter VR6 engine and 280 horsepower.

Source: MSN

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Sources cited by AutomotiveNews suggest that Sergio Marchionne oscillates between keeping and selling Alfa Romeo. The head of the Italian brand is going through an unprecedented internal battle, after which he must decide if he prefers abandoning the tradition and obtaining a significant sum of money or striving to put the famous Milan brand back on its feet. Ferdinand Piech has publicly expressed its intention to buy the Alfa Romeo brand and Volkswagen said they are the only vendor that could get the Milanese brand out of debt.

Subsequently, Sergio Marchionne said he wants to keep the Alfa Romeo. Some sources said that Volkswagen and Fiat have been secretly discussing about a possible sale of the Alfa Romeo brand for almost four months, but Sergio Marchionne has not yet decided. On the one hand, Alfa Romeo is part of Fiat Group’s strategy for the future, but the brand is rarely mentioned in these plans. More specifically, although the Italians were considering closing the Lancia brand and selling products under the Chrysler logo, they have subsequently decided to sell Chrysler models in Europe under the Lancialogo, an exception to the rule being the UK market.

Alfa Romeo brand had to sell some Dodge models, but the situation was not publicly completed until present, with the only link being the United States with Chrysler and Jeep models. Alfa Romeo is Marchionne’s biggest failure, as it was unable to get any profit during the last six years. Furthermore, there are chances that Alfa Romeo has not recorded any profit in the last ten years. Sales in 2010 exceed 120,000 units only, not even half the 300,000 the Italians foreshadowed. Moreover, Marchionne said he has a plan to increase sales to 500,000 Alfa Romeo units per year until 2014, but market analysts are skeptical.

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF FIAT SELLS ALFA ROMEO

If Fiat sells Alfa Romeo, they will get between 1.5 and two billion euros. Besides, they make a saving estimated at 1.5 billion euros in development costs, since it will have to launch five more Alfa Romeo models in the period 2012-2014. Fiat Group’s profit would increase in the years 2011 and 2012 by eliminating the losses represented by Alfa Romeo. In addition, the Dodge brand could be reintroduced as a sports brand in Europe and would do so without overlapping Lancia.

IF FIAT DOESN’T SELL ALFA ROMEO

On the other hand, if Fiat keeps Alfa Romeo, they will have a better margin profit in 2014 and will be able to pay all debts until then. Also, by selling Magneti Marelli, Comau and Teksid, Fiat could get the same amount of money they would get from selling Alfa Romeo, and investors would be happy, some analysts believe. In addition, the relaunched version of the Alfa Romeo brand would have a margin profit of around 10 percent. Thanks to this, Fiat could get an annual operating profit of 3.5 billion promised by Marchionne until 2014. The Fiat-Chrysler alliance would save money by using multiple Alfa Romeo platforms and the corporation could enter more firmly on the Chinese and Russian markets. If they keep Alfa Romeo, Fiat would no longer be constrained to obtain profit from a segment with an extremely low profit margin given the low purchase price.

Source: AutomotiveNews (înreg.); Carscoop

Image source: seriouswheels.com

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Asked which is the reason the Alfa Romeo Giulietta fails in what concerns the emissions while the Audi A3 1.6 TDI doesn’t (99 grams CO 2 / km), Wester said: “these figures are miraculous, magical and alien. We must be more serious about these long-term numbers,” concluded Harald Wester, who was named as president of Alfa Romeo at the beginning of this year.

According to technical data provided by Alfa Romeo, the most organic version of Giulietta is equipped with a1.6 JTDM engine of 105 hp with Start & Stop, which consumes 4.4 litres/100 km in mixed mode environment and emits 114 grams CO 2 / km.

For the Audi A3 1.6 engine of 105 HP with Start & Stop, the data provided by the German manufacturer shows an 3.16 liters in a medium mixed consumption, the emissions being of 99 grams CO2/km.

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For now, those from Zagato had no further details about the new concept that will debut on April 23.

The Zagato concept would be the third Alfa Romeo concept introduced this year, all four being made in honor of the centenary manufacturer in Milan.

Italians are involved in other design projects such as creating automatic electric train system for passenger for a city in Abu Dhabi.

Many Zagato models are known for special ceiling that has two bumps, which gives drivers plenty of room for competition helmet.

Other special features of Zagato models we mention that the lights are the first elements of the car body from the front, flat handles of doors and the absence of bumpers protruding body, and no side mirrors.

Image source: Automarket

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For the moment, Pininfarina offered only a sketch of the future car concept from which we can tell that the car will be a two seat with a convertible version of its Brera coupe.

On technical area, if Pininfarina chooses to build a power train, then the power will be produced by a turbocharged 1.8-liter I-4, a normally aspirated 2.2-liter I-4, or a 3.2-liter V-6 — to be sent to the front wheels.

It seems that Pininfarina wants the new concept to represent its past, present and future. Also, Pininfarina has a strong relationship with Alfa Romeo due to the legendary 1966 “Duetto” Spider .

The Pininfarina Spider will be unveiled on March 2nd.

Image source: automobilemag.com

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The American said he got inspired from design of competition cars of ‘30s, but also by Venetian carnival. McMurry also thought about the technical part of Fastback 2017 and proposed a V8 engine powered by diesel or biodiesel and traction provided by the rear axle.

Yanko Design, those who promoted Murry’s project, hopes that the model’s design of Alfa Romeo which will be commercialized in North America to be similar to Fastback 2017.

Image source: Automarket

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