2022 Alfa Romeo Giulia Ti Sedan 4d on 2040-cars

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Reid Bigland appointed CEO of Alfa Romeo, Maserati

There's been a big shakeup in Fiat Chrysler's leadership team, as head of US sales and FCA Canada CEO Reid Bigland will replace Harald Wester as the chief exec for Alfa Romeo and Maserati. Wester will retain his position as chief technical officer of FCA. Both men will hang onto their positions on FCA's Group Executive Council. The move is an interesting one considering the widely publicized issues at both Alfa and Maserati. Alfa Romeo's problems are almost too many to list. The brand has promised a full-scale return to the US market for more than a decade, but faced repeated delays. Its latest volume model, the Giulia, is being savaged by reviewers over quality issues, and the company has frequently pushed its upcoming CUV back. If that were the only problem, it'd be annoying, but according to Automotive News, Alfa's relaunch is also considerably over budget. Maserati is an entirely different can of worms. Alongside Alfa, it's been stung by a slow Chinese market. Profits are down, according to Automotive News, and it's been widely rumored that the company will delay its next sports car, the Alfieri, until 2018 – it was previously promised for this year. Meanwhile, two of its three other models, the Quattroporte and GranTurismo, are dangerously long in the tooth, and the Levante is still months away from US sales. Can Bigland sort these issues out? Maybe. As Sergio Marchionne said in his official statement, "[Bigland] has an extraordinary record of growing sales and market share in the US and Canada over the last 7 years at FCA, including leading the growth and positioning of the Ram and Dodge brands for part of that time."

Upcoming Alfa Romeo CUV called the Stelvio, Marchionne says

Alfa Romeo will call its forthcoming crossover the Stelvio, and the Italian brand will finally put the often-postponed CUV on sale in Europe in early 2017, according to Auto Express citing FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne. We probably won't see it in showrooms here until at least spring or summer next year. The vehicle's name references the famously curvy pass through the Alps in Northern Italy, which evokes a model with sharp handling and rapid acceleration. The Stelvio uses a modified Giulia platform, and the two models should share powertrains. Standard versions would likely get a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder, which makes 276 horsepower in the sedan. However, the common parts make a Quadrifoglio version of the CUV possible, packing the hottest Giulia's 505-hp 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6, according to Auto Express. Alfa Romeo hasn't teased the Stelvio's design yet, but FCA designer Ralph Gilles posted a photo on Instagram that might have been a hint. The picture showed fellow designer of Lorenzo Ramaciotti in the back of an unnamed crossover. The dashboard, which you could see in that shot, had a distinct similarity to the Giulia. The shot didn't show much of the exterior, but you could barely make out the narrow taillights. Alfa Romeo has had serious problems launching vehicles on time recently, and the Giulia sedan and Stelvio should have been ready by now. The four-door was originally supposed to arrive in late 2015, but Marchionne said assembly would finally begin on March 14, according to Auto Express. The sedan has allegedly had problems passing internal crash tests, but Alfa officials vehemently denied this claim. The brand also delayed the CUV by several months from the original plans. The automaker now asserts that six more models are on the way by 2020, but the company doesn't seem capable of living up to those promises. Related Video:

Alfa Romeo to unveil Tonale at the Geneva Motor Show

Alfa Romeo is bringing a new model to the Geneva Motor Show, and it's likely to be called the Tonale. This is as much as we know so far. The Tonale, the name of which is currently being propped onto the stage in Geneva, is expected to be a small SUV. But the vehicle's basis is being hotly debated right before it's scheduled to be revealed. The compact SUV was also spied on the show floor right now, and the photo leak ran on the "Masera" Facebook page. First seen with its daytime running lights glowing under the wraps, then completely uncovered, the Tonale seems to have a sharp, yet curvy design, with aggressive front detailing. Based on earlier information, we're also expecting the Tonale to be available as a plug-in hybrid. Earlier information called the compact SUV to be based on FCA's Small Wide platform, with Automotive News saying it's likely to be sharing technology with the Jeep Compass, which is expected to be built in Italy in the near future. Later on, a Greek site called AutoBlog.gr (no relation) theorized that the new SUV would be built on the Giorgio platform instead, which would make it more of a true Alfa Romeo and a scaled-down Stelvio instead. As Carscoops says, the Tonale name comes from a mountain pass not quite as tall as the Stelvio Pass. The size and dimensions of the spied Tonale could make it likely to ride on Small Wide, or the long-wheelbase version of the platform, as the Small Wide platform (in several variants) underpins both the Renegade, Compass, and both the Fiat 500X and 500L, just with different lengths. The overhangs, especially the front, are longer than on Jeeps, but for it to run on a cut-down Giorgio might be a stretch. Related Video: