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Alfa Romeo celebrates 110th anniversary with 79-page e-book

For its 110th anniversary, Alfa Romeo wanted to host a summer bash at its renovated Museo Storica Alfa Romeo in Arese, Italy. Coronavirus nixed that, so part of the Plan B syllabus is a 79-page e-book that plucks all sorts of fascinating details from even before the automaker's birth as A.L.F.A., which stood for Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili, and the fecund history since. The work can be considered more than a dive into Alfa Romeo history because of Alfa Romeo's reach for much of its existence. The 1914 Aerodinamica by Castagna built on an Alfa Romeo 40/60 HP chassis predates Buckminster Fuller's Dynmaxion by 20 years. Enzo Ferrari raced for Alfa Romeo or with Alfra Romeo support for 19 years, the driver's seat also occupied by legends like Juan Manuel Fangio, Tazio Nuvolari, and Alberto Ascari. Nuvolari drove the Bimotore — a car with one V8 in front of the cockpit, another V8 behind — to a top speed of 209 miles per hour in 1934, and raced the car alongside Louis Chiron, the same Frenchman Bugatti would later name a car after. Alfa Romeo's tech prowess impressed famed tinkerer Henry Ford so much that in 1939 Ford said, "When I see an Alfa Romeo go by, I tip my hat." And it's hard to believe Ian Fleming hadn't heard of the 1900 C52 Disco Volante concept from 1952 when conjuring a name for Emilio Largo's motor yacht for his 1961 book, "Thunderball." There's plenty of Alfa-centric trivia, too, like an employee coming up with the idea for the automaker's logo while waiting for a train, the origin of the quadrifoglio, intended as a good luck charm for all the three drivers in the 1923 Targa Florio but only paying off for one, and how Nicola Romeo inscribed his name in history. The stories carry up to the present day Giulia GTA and coming Tonale crossover, with a cameo by FCA design chief Ralph Gilles to boot. The book is a quick read, so check it out, or just scroll through lots of photos documenting 110 years of Italian automotive history. Related Video:    

2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio Drivers' Notes Review | Everything you expect

The 2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio is a performance crossover that goes head-to-head with models like the Porsche Macan and Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 S. It takes the Giulia's 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6 and stuffs it into a slightly more practical package. Crossovers are all the rage, and Alfa needs the Stelvio to be a hit if the brand has any hope of success in America. Performance models like this don't come cheap, but you get what you pay for. In addition to the performance parts like a torque-vectoring differential, Brembo brakes and 20-inch wheels with Pirelli summer tires, the Stelvio Quadrifoglio comes standard with features like blind-spot monitoring, a Harman Kardon sound system, a heated steering wheel and heated front seats. Options on this car include $2,200 for the Rosso Competizione paint and $1,500 for a drivers assistance package. Update: CarPlay and Android Auto are standard equipment. The listed price on our tester's window sticker was an error. Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore: I've been skeptical about the Stelvio. Aside from the famous Scudetto grille, what really makes this an Alfa — a good one, anyway? Eyeing them on the road I've been less than impressed. They look like generic crossovers, which is not the vibe Alfa should be giving off. Enter the Quadrifoglio. The 505-hp twin-turbo V6 makes the Stelvio addicting to drive. The 20-inch wheels with Alfa's signature five-hole design under the flared fenders propel this thing to style leadership. Factor in the four-leaf clover badges, and the Stelvio Quadrifoglio looks and feels special. Driving it is a riot. The interior feels legitimately athletic, too. The big, thin steering wheel with the start button and paddle shifters integrated in front of the driver do create a cockpit-like setting. Add in the leather, red stitching and carbon fiber, and it's a cool place to drive. After an energetic commute to the office, my thinking on the Stelvio had changed. Yes, I like the Quadrifoglio, but I can now see this Italian crossover as a compelling alternative in this segment. Wasn't sure how I felt about the @AlfaRomeoUSA Stelvio. But 505 horses convinced me of its merits. Liking this lab hauler in Quadrifoglio spec. @therealautoblog pic.twitter.com/sSUyOS8iY0 — Greg Migliore (@GregMigliore) November 1, 2018 Associate Editor Reese Counts: What a mixed bag. I really wanted to love the Stelvio.

Marchionne uses racial epithet to describe what must power future Alfa Romeo models

Sergio Marchionne and his Fiat empire have a lot riding on the US return of the Alfa Romeo brand. The endeavor has been in progress for what feels like a lifetime - certainly for as long as Fiat has had the Chrysler brand under its Italian wing.
It's not surprising that Fiat CEO Marchionne needs a perfect first Alfa to mark a return to America. And here's where things get dicey. Nobody would argue with Marchionne's insistence that Alfa Romeo's be powered by Italian engines - as Marchionne himself is quoted to have said at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show, "There are some things that are well done in Italy."
If not what he said, then, it's how he said it that has eyebrows raised. "I cannot come up with a schlock product, I just won't. I won't put an American engine into that car. With all due respect to my American friends, it needs to be a wop engine." Wait, what's that?