Alfa Romeo’s long-awaited multi-model return to the United States market is just two years off, says the automaker’s CEO, Sergio Marchionne.
The head of Fiat, Alfa Romeo’s parent company, told Italian media that the automaker will first launch a production version of the 4C GTA that was shown last month at the Geneva Motor Show before branching out into other products. The 4C GTA would serve as a more accessible halo car than the limited run 8C Competizione that was sold here in limited numbers in both coupe and convertible form. Aside from the 8C, Alfa Romeo has been absent from U.S. showrooms since 1995.
Marchionne said that the 4C GTA will be followed up by both a sport-oriented luxury sedan aimed at the BMW 3-Series and Infiniti G37 as well as a crossover tailored to American consumers.
Sedan lineup
The upcoming Alfa Romeo 159-replacing Giulia will likely be unveiled first at the Frankfurt Motor Show this fall before being shown to American consumers in North America. Marchionne says that Alfa Romeo is working on making the four-door more appealing to buyers outside of Europe.
“Americans don’t like the Giulia’s styling but we’re still working on it,” Marchionne told Italy’s La Reppublica newspaper.
The North American version of the Giulia won’t immediately follow its European counterpart’s debut. Marchionne has already said that he is not pleased with way the Giulia looks – at least in terms of how it will work for North American buyers.
Said Marchionne, “it depends on when and if we can resolve the aesthetic problem. It will have to be an Alfa, like the Mito and the Giulietta are. We can’t go wrong with the Giulia.”
Alfa Romeo is also likely to export the smaller Giulietta, which will likely be a niche model in North America given its comparatively trim exterior dimensions. A full-size Alfa Romeo to rival the BMW 5-Series class is expected to be built in Brampton, Ontario, on Chrysler’s large rear-wheel-drive platform that underpins the Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300.
Jeep bones
Taking advantage of Chrysler’s product portfolio, Marchionne confirmed that the Alfa Romeo crossover will be based on the Jeep Grand Cherokee’s platform (itself based on Mercedes-Benz M-Class architecture that dates back to Daimler’s brief control of Chrysler).
The Alfa Romeo SUV, tentatively called Kamal, will be built at Fiat’s Mirafiori assembly plant in Turin, Italy. Powertrains will almost certainly include Chrysler’s new Pentastar 3.6-liter V6 and, for Europe, a VM Motori-developed turbodiesel.
References
1.’Upcoming US-bound…’ view
