1974 Alfa Romeo Spider on 2040-cars

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Alfa Romeo putting a slicker 'coda tronca' on its compact CUV

Our EV revolution Bingo card did not include spaces for the return of wagons (aero crossovers by a more suitable name) and the doubling down on retro design cues, but that's what we're getting and we like it. Alfa Romeo is clocking in on the retro side, design chief Alejandro Mesonero-Romanos telling Autocar, "Our next-generation cars will bring back the Coda Tronca into a current design language — as a means to boost aerodynamic efficiency and range, of course, but also to give the cars a distinctive, classically Alfa Romeo design character." You might not know that "coda tronca" means "short tail" in Italian, but you know what it looks like. Effectively a Kammback or Kammtail, it's when a vehicle roof descends toward the rear of the vehicle, ending in a vertical flank that looks like someone cut the car short with a large knife. It's been on everything from the Shelby Daytona Coupe and Ferrari 250 GTO to the Honda Insight, Toyota Prius, and Audi A2 and A7. The short tail was also famously on the 1963 Alfa Romeo Turbolare Zagato, shortened to the TZ. This is the design Mesonaro-Romanos refers to, as well as the Sprint Zagato, or SZ, that preceded it. He said, "You will see it on several future models," the first reportedly the compact crossover due on the market next year. This will be Alfa Romeo's version of the recently introduced Jeep Avenger battery-electric crossover for Europe, once believed to be called the Brennero. The design boss crossed that name out, telling Autocar, "The model name is now decided. it will be Italian and it will be beautiful. But more than that, I cannot say for now." We might have better luck predicting specs. Checking the Avenger's details, we'd expect the Stellantis eCMP 2 platform crammed with battery modules under the seats that add up to 54 kWh. The Avenger's e-motor turns the front wheels with 154 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque, an all-wheel-drive version is on the way. Range on the WLTP cycle is rated at an estimated 249 miles. As with the Jeep, the Alfa Romeo is expected to get a gas-powered version, maybe with the same 1.2-liter motor going into the Jeep. We're not sure how else the Alfa might distinguish itself from the Jeep, but the Kamm tail could make range for both powertrains a notable differentiator.  Related Video

9 thoughts about the Alfa Romeo Giulia Lusso

The 2023 Alfa Romeo Giulia Lusso is the type of car that reminds you why you love cars in the first place … and why everyone has perhaps gotten a little too practical in their automotive tastes. This is a car filled with life and joy, with controls that speak to you in ways that most other cars and their brands have long ago forgotten. ItÂ’s far from the spiciest Giulia available, but if anything, IÂ’d say the Quadrifoglio overshadowed just how enjoyable the base car is. This was the most time IÂ’ve spent in any Giulia, and whether I was driving my son to school, making the L.A. freeway trek down to the VW ID. Buzz reveal, or whisking through the Santa Monica Mountain roads, the Lusso made the experience extra special. Here are 9 thoughts on the Alfa Romeo Giulia Lusso. 1. All-star steering The steering is just incredible, one of the main reasons I find the Giulia so desirable. ItÂ’s quick and feelsome with a terrific wheel to grip. LetÂ’s talk about D mode, which is the sportiest of the three “DNA” drive modes (N is normal and A is eco). A subtle amount of extra weighting on turn-in is added, and itÂ’s perfect – utterly spot-on and natural. That weighting then lightens as you keep turning through tighter turns, which means the car isnÂ’t fighting against you and allows you to genuinely feel the road free from excess weighting as you make minute adjustments. Steering in N mode is still relatively firm on center, but that turn-in weighting is just a bit lighter. Still great during most of the times youÂ’re driving, but D mode is so, so, so good. All-star, Top 10 board with various Porsches, Mazdas and the surprisingly great Aston Martin DBX on my scorecard. 2. Hey, I actually noticed the brakes! Sadly, the Giulia is not available with a manual transmission. Like a giant tease, though, the brake pedal is closer in size and shape to one from a three-pedal car. Pedal aside, wow are the brakes it's attached to ever good. Wear thin shoes and youÂ’re able to delicately brush the pedal, feeling the calipers brush the rotors in kind. So beautifully modulated. I could see someone finding them a little too responsive resulting in jerking stops, but either stop wearing work boots, try harder or buy a Lexus ES. I donÂ’t usually notice brakes unless theyÂ’re especially good or especially bad/weird. These fall in the former category, and whatÂ’s even more impressive, is that theyÂ’re brake-by-wire.

These 'blind' automotive world record stunts have to stop

Drivers setting world records "blind" – wearing a blindfold or with something obscuring the windshield – is the new thing for some reason. First it was an Alfa Romeo Giulia setting a blind lap at Silverstone with help from a spotter trailing behind, and now this: a stunt man doing a J-turn within a narrow path with nothing but a Nissan Juke's cameras guiding him. He matched the "sighted" J-turn record, flipping the car around in a space about 7 inches longer than the car. I have two issues with these stunts. First, there are just too many world records. Yeah, I said it. Are these meaningful? Is someone else likely to ever attempt this feat? No, because it's just marketing, both for the manufacturer and whoever's still trying to sell those annual books. Stuff like the fastest production car is fine with me. Heck, I'll even take unofficial Nurburgring times – the kind where the drivers can actually see. Second, I'm all for stunts, but do something cool! And preferably something that could only be performed with that particular car, if you're going to make an ad out of it. Yes, the Juke has an Around View Monitor system, which stitches together feeds from four cameras to make it look like the car is being filmed by a drone hovering overhead. I happen to love 360-degree cameras – they let you see things that are just not visible from the driver's seat and make parking and low-speed maneuvering really easy. But the Juke isn't the first car to offer one, and the feature isn't even new to the car. Nissan was at least forthright enough to admit that this professional driver (on a closed course!) had a bunch of practice. But this really says more about his precision driving skills than about the car, or the camera. And just so we're clear, you really shouldn't try to park a car without looking out the windows, even if you have fancy cameras. So what's next? Pretty soon there will be a record for blindest blind stunt. Let me know when someone actually does something interesting. Related Video: