2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Awd on 2040-cars

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Fiat Centro Stile sells design sketches to support kids in Italy

Fiat's Centro Stile design studio in Europe has kicked off a project called stART Again to support the global charity Save the Children. The studio put 136 high-resolution sketches of Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Fiat Professional, Jeep, and Lancia vehicles for download online at just ˆ20 a pop — about $22. The proceeds from all sales will be donated to a charity founded in England 101 years ago "to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic opportunities, as well as providing emergency aid in natural disasters, war, and other conflicts." Save the Children will use the funds to provide supplies, teaching materials, and support for studies for more than 100,000 children in the most disadvantaged areas of Italy who have been additionally harmed by the coronavirus and its effects. There are a heap of knockout drawings available. The selection at the Alfa Romeo store ranges from a 1958 Alfetta 158 racer to the coming Giulia GTA, classics in between including the immortal GTV 6 and the left-field 75 1.8 Turbo TCC racer. The Fiat marketplace contains wares from Abarth, Fiat, and Fiat Professional, with a massive emphasis on the new 500, but the hardcore 1972 Abarth 124 Spyder and oddball 900E van get slots in there (the 900E looks like a Volkswagen Vanagon, but the 900E came first). The Jeep shop is all business and big tires, save for the 1942 Willys MB, but someone needs to take the 1956 Jeep Forward Control sketch off the page and into reality. And the Lancia store has more to offer than the Stratos and Delta Integrale, an ominous Aurelia B20 GT and a Fulvia GT part of the five-model lineup. For some reason, Maserati got left out of the graphic bonanza, as did Ram, Dodge, and Chrysler, which is a shame. That still leaves 136 good reasons to click through and help the kiddies. Related Video:

Ram, Jeep redesigns on hold, Alfa Romeo models may come sooner

Last summer, FCA outlined an ambitious five-year plan that sketched out the company's product intentions for each of its brands through the end of 2018. However, even the best strategies sometimes need tweaking. According to Reuters after speaking with unnamed people at auto suppliers, FCA is now possibly delaying at least a dozen projects in North America for a variety of reasons. From vehicle to vehicle, these postponements allegedly last anywhere from just a few months to over a year. The sources from the suppliers claim that in some cases these tweaks are for engineering and design changes. The next-gen Ram 1500 reportedly has among the shorter delays and is being pushed from mid-2017 to November 2017, according to Reuters. Also, the much-discussed future Jeep Wrangler is allegedly moving a little later to July 2017. Among the vehicles purportedly seeing longer delays, the next-gen Grand Cherokee could get pushed back about a year to 2018. That then forces the launch of the three-row, luxury Grand Wagoneer to be even further away. Jeep's upcoming C-segment CUV and the all-new Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger, and Challenger might also see postponements. The one brand allegedly seeing an accelerated plan is Alfa Romeo. Without going into detail, the sources from these suppliers claim that the Italian automaker is getting even more vehicles for its lineup and could get them even faster than planned. "Those plans need to be flexible and fluid, with the potential to add some vehicles, pull some forward and extend the life cycle of others," FCA said to Reuters about all of these allegations. "We look at these programs on a vehicle-by-vehicle basis." Investment in the auto industry has been a major topic for FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne as of late. He believes consolidation is necessary so that companies aren't burning money on the same projects. Related Video: News Source: ReutersImage Credit: Bill Pugliano / Getty Images Plants/Manufacturing Alfa Romeo Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep RAM Sergio Marchionne FCA fca us

Alfa Romeo 4C Spider lives to see 2020 and gets an Italia special edition

Alfa Romeo is launching a limited run of special-edition 4C Spider sports cars for the U.S. Called the 4C Spider Italia, only 15 of these cars will be built. Before you get up in arms about how exclusive and impossible to find this will be, consider Alfa 4C sales numbers. All of seven were sold in January, and 2018 saw 238 cars find owners. So, perhaps the limited numbers aren't that limiting. The 4C Spider Italia is essentially a $5,000 appearance package. It takes the standard 4C Spider (the coupe was discontinued in the U.S. last year) and then covers it in an exclusive blue paint called Misano Blue Metallic. Then, the front air intake and rear diffuser are finished in piano black. You also get a "4C Spider Italia" sticker for the side of the car that looks properly Italian. On the inside, there's an aluminum dashboard insert designating this car as the special edition model, and the center console has a plate with the exact number it is in the 15-car run. And that's it. Our brains most recently associate the "Italia" designation with Ferrari, but this package does nothing to bring it closer to the incredible 458's performance. You'll get the same 237 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque from the little turbocharged four-banger. Perhaps the best news out of this special edition car is that it's a 2020 model year. Alfa announced this car and confirmed the 4C Spider will continue at least through 2020. Even with the only option being a dual-clutch automatic transmission, the 4C is one of the most barebones, pure driving experiences you can get in a new car today. Its continued existence is only a good thing for us sports car enthusiasts. With the $5,000 tacked on to the base price, a 4C Spider Italia will run you $73,495, including destination charges. Alfa says orders for the special edition car will open up in the second quarter of 2019. Related video: