Alfas, yes, Fiat 500, no.

Fiat 500 all day long…not for me, but a worthwhile offering nevertheless. No car depreciates like an Alfa.

Well, it works for Buick-Pontiac-GMC.

^ There’s no way anyone else will agree with you, although I see where you draw your comaparison. Have you checked the sales of all three brands? GMC trucks outsell Buicks and Pontiacs and GM has ruined all brand equity through enormous rebadging. Selling Alfa’s and Fiats together would be the best move, once they’re both here of course. Maserati should stay exclusive and/or with Ferrari dealers.

well that would be the sensible choice i mean theyre hardly gonna be selling it in Ferrari dealerships are they?? ,also no car is unreliable or temperamental as the Alfa

I would love for Alfa’s to be on the US market.

I wish we could start with a clean sheet over here – in the UK. The worst thing here about Alfa isn’t he cars, it’s the dealerships!

8C, yum. Are there enough Maserati dealerships in the US to hit their sales targets though?

drivingisfun,

I don’t disagree with you but I think this is more a case of “Friendly shores”. Alfa strikes a deal with Maserati to get lot space. That and most Alfas will cost an arm and a leg when they ship to the US so selling along side other high dollar cars, recall that Maserati is basically “Pontiac” to Ferrari’s “Cadillac” now a days.

It looks more like “Italian automakers united” right now. It can only (hopefully) be good in the long run.

Alfa Rocks!

That’s been the plan all along, hasn’t it?

Anyone think they’ll bring the 149 over?

Whaddaya have, maybe 50 Maserati dealers stateside? Assuming each of these might move one Alfa in 10 days that’s about 1800 units per year nationwide. Big deal – most of us will never see one on the road.
.
Plus any buyer would simply have to have a hardon for an Alfa because everyone knows they are built crappily and the nearest service center is about 400 miles away. I love Alfas too, guys, but partnering with an exclusive dealership is not a good way to sell somewhat mass market cars. They’d be better off trying to market them alongside Saabs, Soobaroos, Audis, or Mitsubishis.

This isn’t really “news”, per se, I’ve been hearing about this for a long time now.

We need Alfa back.

Big Time.

Ricardo – they’re going to start at Maserati dealerships, then expand and open Alfa dealerships after the brand is established. Otherwise they would never turn a profit.

I think gtv6 is correct.. just like Maserati was dualed exclusively with Ferrari when it was relaunched here, now there are a number of stand-alone Maserati stores here in Southern California that would have plenty of room to take on Alfa, for example. Thank God there won’t be Cadillac/Saab/Alfa dealers like originally envisioned! And as far as the Fiat 500 being a Mini competitor, the Fiat name is far too tarnished to bring back, and would only hinder Alfa’s grand relaunch. Bring the 500 as an entry Alfa and maybe that would work.

If they brought back a Fiat 500, it at least shouldn’t be this clown imitation of the old ones.

i know – Buick & Pontiac sales are messed up, but when you put Buick, Pontiac, & GMC sales together, sales reach Nissan’s levels –> That’s 6th place!

A cheap & crummy little Fiat at a Ferrari dealer: that’ll be the day!

Somehow, a Ferrari/Maserati/Alfa/Fiat dealership makes sense.
Ferrari: high-end sports cars with some luxury
Maserati: high-end luxury cars with some sport
Alfa Romeo: Mid-range sendans and coupes with some luxury and sport
Fiat: youth-oriented MINI/Scion fighter with some sport

I know I’m oversimplifying their ranges, but this would cover a good chunk of the car-buying demographic. Just watch the build quality and reliability, which all 4 have been improving for some time now.

Originally I thought this wouldn’t be a really good idea, but global_lightning’s comment changed my thoughts. Very few dealers would be able to cover such a wide range of cars. Having Ferraris and Maseratis would also probably help bring people in, and people would associate Fiat and Alfa with Ferrari and Maserati, hopefully in a good way.

But what about associating the great Ferrari and Maserati brands with the Fiat 500? Wouldn’t that screw consumers up?
A Ferrari 599 GTB next to a Yaris/Accent/Rio-fighter?
I mean, as European as it is, the upcoming 500 shares its underpinnings with the Ford Ka/Fiesta, that car that is one model BELOW the Focus in rank and size. The Alfa’s probably going to happen, but most likely, Ford will just bring the Ka/Fiesta here, and no Fiat 500 in North America. I mean c’mon! Fiat???!!!

I doubt they will place a Fiat 500 next to a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti on the showroom floor. Think of it this way: Most MINIs are sold through BMW dealerships. However, they are usually placed in a separate area, away from the more expensive iron. Lexus/Toyota does the same with Scion