An Italian Renaissance
WILLIAM IS GOING to become unbearable. My brother-in-law has always been stubbornly loyal to Alfa Romeo, leading the rest of the family to tease him by offering the number of a towing service in case he breaks down on the way over for Sunday lunch. Our opinion was unfairly based upon Alfa's reputation of a decade before, just as his love affair with the marque was nurtured and maintained by the memory of its classic cars of the 1960s. It is therefore rather annoying for us that Alfa Romeo is once again making impressive vehicles.
Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili, to use its original name, began producing cars in 1910. The name Romeo was added in 1918 to acknowledge Nicola Romeo's takeover of the company in 1915.
Before the second world war, Alfa Romeo struggled to make money, focused as it was on the production of larger models that were expensive to make and buy. But the brand was already gaining kudos through legendary sporting success. It began when the original Alfa failed to win an almost certain victory on the Targa Florio when its driver was blinded by mud. Then Tazio Nuvolari won the 1930 Mille Miglia with, the story goes, his headlights switched off in the dark. Alfa Romeo dominated the Le Mans 24 Hours between 1931 and 1934, and Nuvolari beat the home teams of Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union at the German Grand Prix in 1935 - in front of Adolf Hitler, who was not amused.
Then there is a certain Enzo Ferrari, who was responsible for running Alfa Romeo's competition department before building his own cars - and that the very first Formula One World Championship, in 1950, was won by Nino Farina in an Alfa Romeo (with Juan Manuel Fangio repeating the success the following year).
Post-war, Alfa Romeo differentiated itself from fast-growing Fiat by staying true to its sporting pedigree but with affordable road cars. Undoubtedly the most famous Alfa Romeo of all time is the 1966 1600 Spider, familiarly known as the Duetto. This was the car driven by Dustin Hoffman in the 1967 film, The Graduate. It was also the last design personally executed by Battista 'Pinin' Farina of the now-legendary design house.
Few would dispute that light has always reflected well from Alfa Romeo's unique shapes. Owned by Fiat since 1986, Alfa continues to be adventurous in its designs, as the Giugiaro-designed Brera proves. This new coupe will draw admiring glances when it arrives in Hong Kong in November. Together with the 159 saloon, the Brera is one of the new breed of Alfa Romeos leading the turnaround in sales both here and globally.
This rebirth probably owes a great deal to General Motors (GM). Six years ago the American giant entered into a form of partnership with Fiat that gave the Italians much-needed development resources. Most significantly, perhaps, it provided a put-option by which Fiat could have forced GM to buy the whole company last year. Extricating itself from this position cost GM about US$2 billion - a useful cash injection for Fiat.
But a windfall is only part of the story. Alfa has been restructured and boasts a team of business and automotive superstars at its helm. In the 90s, Luca di Montezemolo turned Ferrari from a loss-making car builder and Formula One also-ran into a highly profitable company with a near-unbeatable racing team. His prize was the centre seat on the bridge - the chair of parent firm Fiat Auto. As chief executive he hired Sergio Marchionne, a Canadian-educated Italian with a track record of turning businesses around.
Following suit, Marchionne hired Karl-Heinz Kalbfell who, after a celebrated career at BMW and Rolls-Royce, now plays a strategic development role at Alfa Romeo, while Antonio Baravalle
has moved over from Lancia to take the top job at Alfa.
Alfa's stated intention is to return to the American market, from which it withdrew in the mid-90s. Gearing up for that includes crash-test improvements (its 159 saloon received a top five-star rating from the European New Car Assessment Programme - equal to the BMW 3-series and Mercedes C-Class).
Alfa Romeo will benefit from the US-distribution network of Maserati, another Fiat company. And Maserati dealers elsewhere are considering taking Alfa on. Later this year, Auto Italia, Hong Kong's Ferrari and Maserati importer, will launch a company dedicated to providing an upgraded support system for Alfa customers. 'The new Alfa Romeos do everything their competition does,' claims John Newman of Auto Italia. 'And they put a smile on your face.'
The current range of Alfa Romeos - the 159, Brera and Spider - will be available in Hong Kong with two engine sizes: a 185bhp, four-cylinder, 2.2 litre unit and a 260bhp, V6, 3.2 litre. Automatic gearboxes will become available in the first quarter of next year.
Perhaps the most inspiring of the trio is the Brera, which jumped from the drawing board to the road after winning best of show in the prototype category at the Villa d'Este Concorso D'Eleganza. While obviously a sports car, it boasts the features expected of modern saloons, including seven air bags. But it's obvious that the focus at Alfa Romeo is on driver satisfaction, and the engineers speak excitedly about the electronic stability control system, which they believe balances enjoyment with safety.
It's an opinion shared by automotive journalist Michael Taylor. Based in Italy, he often drives development models and says: 'They keep improving.' That's good news for William, John Newman and Hong Kong's Alfa Romeo enthusiasts.
