What will happen to Alfa Romeo?

Stu999

Stu999

Stu999

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If the proposed Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and PSA merger goes through what do you think will be the future of Alfa Romeo?

Will it end up with rebadged group vehicles or will it receive investment to make it competitive? Alternatively will the brand be left to rot?

I’d love to see a new Spider (not like the fat one that was released in 2007) but is it more likely that they will just release more SUVs, a replacement Gulietta and maybe another Giulia?
 
The french will do the styling, the italians the electrics and the yanks the engines. I know an italian bloke via the sinclair scene, he told me, “I worked for Fiat for ten years, I drive a Toyota”
 
Alfa's are selling again in USA after about 20 years absence. They really are pushing them.

Other than that the usual parts and design sharing.
 
Whatever they do they have to lump the dealers in with Maserati and get them out of the Jeep/Mazda groups. Every dealer I’ve dealt with has been terrible.
 
Well some of the brands will need to be shrunk or just go away, note how many there are in the combined group: Citroën, DS, Peugeot, Vauxhall-Opel, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Fiat, Dodge, Jeep, Lancia, Maserati and Ram.

12 brands to manage, and a shrinking market place for almost everything they currently make, and new comers that will be taking their place. They need to reduce costs, maximise efficiencies and not worry about now, but worry about 5 years from now. Alfa make great looking cars, hopefully they'll do something with that!
 
actually i knew a manager at peugeot who had been there 10 years plus and he drove toyota said he wouldnt drive a peugeot if you gave him one and they tried.

on a personal note i may add we had a 407 estate for 5 years and it never missed a beat till son serviced it one day while we were out (but thats another story)
 
gc123 said:
actually i knew a manager at peugeot who had been there 10 years plus and he drove toyota said he wouldnt drive a peugeot if you gave him one and they tried.

on a personal note i may add we had a 407 estate for 5 years and it never missed a beat till son serviced it one day while we were out (but thats another story)
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That's a ringing endorsement! All of the Vauxhalls are now likely to be basically restyled Peugeots - for instance the new Corsa is based on the 208.
 
Alfa is so far behind everyone that it's basically a footnote by this point.

It's even outstripped by the likes of by Lancia in Europe. No, that's not a joke.

Even more glaringly, in 2019, Alfa registered just 3413 cars in the UK – which was almost a 20 per cent drop compared to 2018. Even Jeep managed almost double that.

Other niche brands? DS racked up 4299 registrations. MG? 9049. Suzuki? 35,065. A mainstream brand, such as Ford? 263,137...
 
You're right about the volumes @Lashout_UK but there has always been a lack of investment in the brand or it comes in fits and starts, e.g. launch some new models, don't update them, then finally replace 10 to 15 years later. Or release cars with obvious flaws (e.g. Brera / Spider too heavy, not enough power). If the brand was managed properly it could do some decent numbers.
 
The brand itself can be saved, but it needs a lot of help. The Giulia and Stelvio are a great start, but they can’t maintain this ‘premium’ image when the service level is that of Fiat/Jeep (worse probably as the parts aren’t kept in stock often). Needs a lot of investment in cars and after sales, they are honestly terrible.

When buying my 4C I was insistent on dealer history and remaining warranty so I could renew - every owner I spoke to said ‘don’t bother’. I though they were joking but it’s really true! I’m actually glad the warranty has expired now I can go elsewhere and know it’s being looked after.
 
I'm not really sure there's room for an Alfa Romeo any more. The Stelvio isn't my kind of car, but seems to get good reviews. The upcoming Tonale looks very stylish. The Giulia is sharp looking and drives well, but is another saloon in a crowded and declining sector. The Giulietta, well. Put it this way, Labour were still in office and Nokia were the top selling phone manufacturer when it first hit our shores.

Premium price without premium quality. The Mito was designed to compete with the Mini and Audi A1, but was built like a MK6 Fiesta inside. That's another model they propped up for a decade, with only a facelift.
 
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