Spy photographers have spotted a a very mildly camouflaged Alfa Romeo 159 at Germany’s Nurburgring track and sources say that a Ferrari V8 lies under its hood. The GTA is set to compete with the German stalwarts: BMW M3, Mercedes C63 AMG and Audi RS4.
Alfa has already tapped Ferrari to produce a V8 motor for its new supercar, the 8C Competizione. That motor, a collaborative effort between Alfa, Ferrari and Maserati, will be produced in Maranello, Italy, Ferrari’s legendary home base.
The GTA, an abbreviation for the Italian Gran Turismo Allegerita, is not expected to entirely live up to its name: Allegerita means lightenened in Italian, but the GTA will include Alfa’s Q4 all-wheel-drive system. Other performance-enhancing perks exclusive to the GTA visible in these latest spy photos include wide, low-profile tires, modestly flared wheel arches, a modified bodykit and dual exhaust. Fender-mounted vents and a hood vent look to be a possibility, too.
The 159 GTA picks up where its predecessor, the 156 GTA, left off. The 156 GTA, sold from 2001 to ‘05, featured a 3.2-liter V6 motor produced by GM’s Australian subsidiary, Holden. That motor produced just under 250 horsepower initially, a respectable figure in ‘01, but not comparable to the V8s in the 159 GTA’s competition. The GTA had been rumored to be powered by a turbocharged version of that V6, still a possibility.
June 29, 2007
06/29, 11:19 AM
posted by:
Wickedated
And we’ll never see this car here in the States.
06/29, 12:04 PM
posted by:
55amg
damn ferrari v8? brilliant!!
06/29, 12:51 PM
posted by:
Scarface03
We will see the 159 in the States, but maybe not this particular one–we may have to wait for the next gen. The 8C supercar is first in the States, then the Brera (I believe it’s called) coupe and spyder. I think the first Alfas are less than a year away….
06/29, 1:05 PM
posted by:
mini22
First of all the info is incorrect. The 156GTA had the original V6 designed by Alfa from their Arese plant. The holden Aussie block has only been in the 159. Both were 3.2 lts in size. The Holden block makes 256 HP and 237 LBS of torque where as the Arese block made 250 and I believe 219 LBS of torque. Futhermore it’s still not clear if the V8 is definately going to be in the GTA or an enlarged holden block at 3.5 LTRs.
06/29, 1:29 PM
posted by:
meanpants555
Back in the 80s there was the Ferrari powered Lancia Thema 8.32 that was the top choice of criminals due to its low key looks and power. Had a pop up rear spoiler before anyone else did, too.
06/29, 1:31 PM
posted by:
meanpants555
I love Alfa more than any other marque, but lately their offerings have been below par, including the Brera which is supposed to be an ill handling and awkward looking dog.
06/29, 2:09 PM
posted by:
Eurolion
Well, the Brera doesn’t handle badly, according to reviews, it’s just a bit heavy nad fwd, that’s why it gtes a bit pounded, the styling is something about personal taste, but I think it is one of the most beautiful cars I’ve ever seen, and it’s classified as a coupé, only not the classic type that you like better in the US. As for the GTA’s, they’ll feature some weight loss, such as such carbon fiber body panels, the engine is rumoured to be a V8, since no tranverse manual/sequential gearbox could handle the torque on a twin turbo V6,which was rumoured to have around 440hp, this nes 3,5l V6 is a new Alfa design, I don’t know if it is completely new, or based on the GM HF engine, though it’ll probably be a super square typical Alfa V6.
06/29, 2:45 PM
posted by:
norsairius
an alfa with a ferrari engine? that’s two great things from italy wrapped into one! I like it!
06/29, 2:48 PM
posted by:
LP640
haha sweet i like it very much
06/29, 3:02 PM
posted by:
meanpants555
Eurolion read the road test in the latest issue of Evo. The Alfa Brera kind of falls apart in front of an Audi S3 and BMW 130i. From what I’ve read they are heavy and underpowered. I am sure they will fix the power before it heads to the States; they know how hard they will be scrutinized.
06/29, 3:13 PM
posted by:
Aston Martin
Alfa is Europe’s most underrated brand. When all the components decide to work (and they rarely do) they are ultimate driving machines, the Ferraris for the people.
Alfas are and always have been extremely beautiful, with the Brera being THE MOST BEAUTIFUL CAR EVER MADE.
An Alfa with a V8 from Ferrari? That really would be car of the century.
06/29, 3:53 PM
posted by:
Syrax
finally 159 GTA! it better have a v8.
06/29, 4:07 PM
posted by:
mini22
It may have a V8 or it may have a 3.5 N/A V6 based on the Holden block they currently use in 3.2 guise. I also heard they were developing a new in house V6 to replace the Holden Block(By the way this block is loosly associated with the V6 blocks that Caddilac and Saab use. However it has all Alfa internals and Alfa FI).True they did use a 3.0 V8 in the FWD Lancia Thema. The advantage with the 159 is it has AWD. Weight has definately been an issue with these cars with the 159 V6 Q4 weighing in at about 3900 LBS. That’s been the big problem with acceleration and handling. My understanding is that the mid term update in 2009 brings lighter but stronger sheet metal to save up to 200 LBS in weight. In addition the V6 is going to be tweeked from 260 HP to 290HP.This will make the Brera/159 more competative for the US. The GTA will be lighter still. However I’ve read conflicting reports on the engine for the GTA. I’ve heard about a V8 of unspecified size or power and I’ve heard 3.5 V6 N/A with 350 HP. However Alfa is so far pretty tight lipped so we will have to weight and see.
06/29, 5:27 PM
posted by:
CTS DRIVER
i bet this is gorgeous in red, nice car, definately something i would like to own.
06/30, 12:07 PM
posted by:
AMGoff
I’ve always had a soft spot for Alfas. I can’t think of anything to other than they are just nice cars. It’s a shame they’ve always been inflicted with horrible depreciation. Although on the bright side, if this ever made it to the states, after a few years I’d be able to pick up a Ferrari V8 for a song!
06/30, 2:53 PM
posted by:
deutschetouring1337
Sounds smart for Ferrari since they are already outsourcing their parts and chassis in F1 to other teams, like Honda.
07/01, 2:34 AM
posted by:
A4
id love to see this here, because as of right now alfas may be the most beautiful car in its price range, but they are also the slowest and heaviest.
07/01, 2:35 AM
posted by:
A4
i dont think outsourcing was the right word there either
07/02, 9:53 AM
posted by:
lyndon_h
Holy unreliability, Batman! Most that can afford to spend 200k on a car, dont care about reliablity (or lack thereof). But putting an unreliable engine in a less expensive car just spells “customer service nightmare”.
08/21, 6:30 PM
posted by:
Mclaren19p
Wow! I would like to see the bodykit on this car, cause i don’t want to see a rear spoiler on it
01/07, 7:28 AM
posted by:
kingkool21
Nice one mini22 I was gonna make that commet as well were do these writers get the info from. The holden block is what is used in the later alfas. The arese V6 engine was fisrt produced in or around 1980 and was probably one of the best engines ever made.
I hear alfa are produing there own in house V6 block again soon so fingers crossed. Allthough the holden blcok is just a lump of metal re- engineered by Alfa.