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Only best-performing US Fiat dealers to get Alfa Romeo franchises

Alfa Romeo has been rumored to return to the US market so many times for so many years, it's hard to keep count. This time, though, Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne promises that it's for real. Alfa is scheduled to reappear in the States this summer with its 4C sports coupe as its introductory model. However, buyers won't be able to pop into just any Fiat showroom and leave with a 4C – it's planning to only sell Alfas at its best-performing dealers, according to The Detroit News. In fact, the first 4Cs sold here won't be sold at Fiat dealers at all. Instead the first shipment of cars in June will go to Maserati dealers, not unlike the handful of Alfa 8C Competizione coupe and convertible models that trickled in starting in 2008. According to Fiat Chrysler spokesperson Rick Deneau, the company is still deciding which Fiat retailers will participate in Alfa's reentry. Many of Fiat's US dealers are apparently not happy with the meritocracy approach. They built Fiat showrooms partially on the promise that Alfa would enter the US market in 2012, then 2013, and now later this year. Even worse for them, the prospects for more mainstream Alfa Romeo models in the US are still questionable. This isn't the first time that we've heard that Fiat plans to keep Alfa Romeo exclusive in the US. Still, Fiat only plans to export about a 1,000 4C sports coupes a year here. If Alfa wants to be a legitimate player in America and be a money-making concern globally, it will need far more sales than that. Featured Gallery 2015 Alfa Romeo 4C: First Drive View 57 Photos News Source: The Detroit NewsImage Credit: Copyright 2014 Matt Davis / AOL Earnings/Financials Marketing/Advertising Alfa Romeo Fiat Maserati Coupe Performance Sergio Marchionne alfa romeo 4c fiat dealers

Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale is an interesting choice in the world of lux GTs

The Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale sits in an awkward place in the modern world of European grand tourers. Despite its voluptuous Italian body, with 454 horsepower and a six-speed automatic gearbox, it's a bit behind the times when 500 or 600 hp are the norm with seven- or eight-speed transmissions. The GranTurismo is also being phased out, but it's not nearly old enough to be a classic yet. Why would anyone spend their hard-earned dough for this Maserati? XCar Films aims to find out and eventually presents an interesting argument about why the GranTurismo is still worth at least considering against competitive entries from Aston Martin, Porsche, Ferrari or the rest of the European performance pack. This is likely just a temporary goodbye to the GranTurismo anyway, because Maserati plans to revive the name in 2018 with a production version of the Alfieri concept coming in the mean time. If nothing else, this video is a great way to say goodbye to the curvaceous coupe. Related Gallery 2014 Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale four-seater News Source: XCarFilmsImage Credit: Related images copyright Maserati Maserati Coupe Performance Videos xcar maserati granturismo mc

Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #329 LIVE!

We're set to record Autoblog Podcast #329 tonight, and you can drop us your questions and comments via our Q&A module below. Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven't already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our UStream (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.
Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #329
Subcompact sales slump, yet again