Alfa Romeo Lays Out Product Plans Until 2014, Readying a New RWD Saloon with a V6 Engine

Out of all the mainstream brands included in the Fiat Group and Chrysler LLC portfolio, Alfa Romeo has the most potential to achieve a global reach and bring in some much needed cash and sales. The Italian company's boss Sergio Marchionne is well aware of this and that's one of the reasons he doesn't want to sell Alfa Romeo to Volkswagen, despite Ferdinand Piechs' persistent efforts.

However, one of the most pressing problems with Alfa Romeo is the constant delays, be that for the successors to models like the 159 series or the company's long-awaited return to the U.S. market.

Suffice it to say, there's no way of being sure that the Fiat Group has managed to sort out the time schedule-related problems when it comes to Alfa Romeo. Nevertheless, at a recent event for investors, the Fiat Group introduced an updated plan for the Milanese brand, which it hopes will revitalize Alfa Romeo through the presentation of new models.

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U.S. Fiat Dealers Disappointed by New Decision to Delay Alfa Romeo's Return

American fans of the Alfa Romeo brand are not the only ones to be upset by the Fiat-Chrysler alliance's most recent decision to delay the scheduled return of the Italian automaker to the States. So are the company’s newly launched Fiat dealerships that were expecting the brand to launch in late 2012.

While Fiat and Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne never put it in ink, the company had told its 130 Fiat dealers in the USA that they would likely get Alfa Romeo cars as part of their franchise.

The Fiat-Chrysler alliance appointed a total of 130 Fiat dealers across the States, most of which already had a Chrysler store. The company gave dealers the permission to incorporate temporary showrooms in their existing Chrysler facilities, but required them to build separate and permanent stores by the end of 2012.

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Alfa Romeo Updates Giulietta with Twin-Clutch Transmission and MiTo with Two-Cylinder Engine

The…freshly painted version of the 4C sports coupe concept will be joined at Alfa Romeo's Frankfurt Motor Show stand by the updated variants of the Giulietta and Mito hatchbacks.

The Giulietta gains Alfa Romeo's new double-clutch TCT transmission that will be offered on the 1.4-liter turbocharged MultiAir gasoline engine and the 2.0-liter turbodiesel, both of which have a maximum output of 170HP.

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Novitec Makes the Alfa Romeo Giulietta a Little More Interesting

Novitec is a German tuning company known for wheedling more ponies from anything that rolls on four wheels and is produced in Italy. This time, the tuner has set its eyes on the Alfa Romeo Giulietta hatchback with the release of a comprehensive styling and performance package.

On the outside, Novitec's goods include a subtle but attractive ground effects kit (perhaps with the exception of the somewhat over-the-top rear diffuser, which in our opinion, would have probably looked better in a matte black finish).

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Oops! They Did it Again: Alfa Romeo’s Return to the US Delayed Until 2013

It’s 2003, 2004, 2006 – you get the idea- happening all over again; Alfa Romeo’s return to the US market has been delayed and will not happen in 2012 as was the most recent plan. Instead, Fiat Group and Chrysler LLC CEO, Sergio Marchionne, has pushed the Italian brand’s arrival back for another year, or so until he announces another delay. Read more »

Report: New Alfa Romeo-Derived / U.S. Made Dodge Compact Sedan to Debut at 2012 Detroit Show

A new U.S. market compact sedan to be developed by Fiat and built by Chrysler is set to make its debut appearance at the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit in the beginning of next year, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

The as-of-yet unnamed model will be badged as Dodge and powered by a Fiat-derived 1.4-liter turbocharged gasoline engine. It’ll also do 40 mpg combined, or at least it will if Fiat wants to net itself a further 5% of Chrysler from Mr. Monopoly Uncle Sam.

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Alfa Romeo Focuses on the Giulietta and 2011MY MiTo at the Geneva Show

The Fiat Group will have a particularly strong presence at the Geneva Motor Show this year, as it’s planning to reveal a bevy of new models and concept cars. Alfa Romeo’s offering at the Swiss salon will be centered on the Giulietta compact and 2011MY MiTo subcompact models, with two of each scheduled to go on display. And for those of you wondering, Alfa's press release made no mention of the rumored concept sports coupe based on the underpinnings of the KTM X-Bow.

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Alfa Romeo UK Adds New Diesel with 140HP and 62.8 MPG to Giulietta Lineup

A newly developed 2.0-liter JTDM engine has made its way under the hood of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta in the UK. The four-cylinder turbocharged diesel unit, which delivers 140HP at 4,000 rpm and 320Nm of peak torque in 'Normal' mode and 350Nm in 'Dynamic' mode, gets the latest generation JTDM-2 MultiJet Common Rail system that is already present on the 105HP 1.6 JTDM-2 and the 170HP 2.0 JTDM-2 engines.

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Euro NCAP's Best and Worst Performers of 2010

The European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), which is similar to the American IIHS testing regimen, has released a list with the safest car in each vehicle category and the two worst performers overall of 2010. The cars that attained the coveted five star rating and achieved the highest overall score in their respective segment are:

------ Executive category: BMW 5 Series
------ Small Family category: Alfa Romeo Giulietta
------ Supermini category: Honda CR-Z
------ Small off-road 4×4 category: Kia Sportage
------ Small MPV category: Toyota Verso

On the other side of the fence are two models that achieved the poorest results of 2010. These are the Citroen Nemo with three stars and China's Landwind CV9 that received only two stars.

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Marangoni's Green-Footed Alfa Romeo Giulietta G430 iMove with 286HP

Italian tire manufacturer Marangoni has teamed up with tuning firm TRC Italia to create a demo version of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta 1750 Quadrifoglio Verde () and showcase a new series of eco-friendly tires which will soon enter the market.

Dubbed the Giulietta G430 iMove, the demo car is fitted with special tires sized 235/35 R19 tires boasting a fluorescent, green pigment, which glows in the dark. The compound is rich in silica content and other materials, minimizing rolling resistance and, thus, improving fuel consumption. The car rides on 19-inch Barracuda Karizzma wheels, painted in a contrasting black tone.

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Nissan Leaf Wins the 2011 European Car of the Year Award

While our readers favored the Alfa Romeo Giulietta in our poll, the jury of the 2011 European Car of the Year Award (COTY) announced that the Nissan Leaf is the winner, earning a total of 257 points. This is the first time in the 47-year history of the competition that the award goes to an electric vehicle.

“The jury acknowledged today that the Nissan LEAF is a breakthrough for electric cars. Nissan LEAF is the first EV that can match conventional cars in many respects”, said Håkan Matson, President of the Jury, Car of the Year.

The Giulietta came in second with 248 points, while the Opel/Vauxhall Meriva took the bronze, with 244 points.

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Marchionne: 2012 Jeep Wrangler to get Pentastar V6, Dodge working on a new compact car

In the announcement on Chrysler's third-quarter sales results, the company's CEO Sergio Marchionne confirmed that next year's 2012MY Jeep Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited will both get a new 3.6-liter V6 "Pentastar" engine. Mr. Marchionne also spoke of a new Dodge sedan as well, which is currently being developed on the underpinnings of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta hatchback.

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Alfa Romeo Creates Giulietta Mosaic with Thousands of Photos

As part of the ongoing celebrations for the Italian brand's first 100 years, Alfa Romeo has unveiled a unique billboard in Chelsea, UK. The specially commissioned artwork depicts the latest model to join Alfa Romeo's range, the all-new Giullietta hatchback, through a mosaic of pictures.

In an apparent nod to the belief that Alfa Romeos have a soul, the mosaic was created by using thousands of photos from past and present owners, historic stills from film, TV and landmark motorsport successes.

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Alfa Romeo UK Announces Pricing for New Giulietta, Including 235HP Cloverleaf Model

Pricing for Alfa Romeo's new Giulietta C-segment hatch has just been announced for the UK market. The 147's replacement will go on sale in Britain this summer with five powerplants and prices ranging from £16,995 to £24,495.

The range comprises of three petrol and two diesel powerplants, all turbocharged. The petrol lineup includes a 1.4-liter TB with 120 bhp, a 1.4-liter TB MultiAir producing 170bhp and a top-of-the-range 1750 TBi with 235bhp for the Cloverleaf model that boasts a top speed of 150 mph and a 0–62 mph (100km/h) acceleration time of 6.8 seconds

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Alfa Romeo's 2010-2014 Product Plans Include New Giulia and Spider, but no Succesor for Brera. U.S. Sales Start in 2012

Here we go again; the Fiat Group today announced plans to revive Alfa Romeo with a raft of new models that will also play a key role in the relaunch of the brand in the U.S. market (how many times have we heard that before?) by 2013.

Fiat Group CEO Sergio Marchionne said that Alfa Romeo will launch seven new models from 2010 to 2014 starting with the new Giulietta that will receive an extensive facelift in 2014.

The next newcomer from Alfa will be a replacement for its BMW 3-Series rivaling 159 that will be named Giulia.

Set to arrive in 2012, the Giulia will be based on an existing Fiat platform (most likely, a wider and longer version of the Guilietta's new platform). It will be offered in four-door sedan and station wagon variants and according to the plan, it will mark the return of the Alfa Romeo brand in the States.

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New Alfa Romeo Giulietta Photo Fest with 65 High-Res Images

On the occasion of the market launch of the new Alfa Romeo Giulietta that is set to go on sale in all major markets from the beginning of May, the Italian automaker released a plethora of photos of its VW Golf-sized hatchback.

The sporty-looking Giulietta introduces an entirely new platform called "Compact" that will underpin a variety of Fiat and Chrysler Group cars in the near future.

Available exclusively as a five-door hatchback, Alfa Romeo's replacement for the 147 is 4.35 meters long, 1.46 meters tall and 1.80 meters wide, with a wheelbase of 2.63 meters, with Alfa claiming that it features a boot capacity of 350 liters.

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Alfa Romeo Giulietta Configurator Goes Online

Following the official presentation of the Giulietta at the Geneva Show earlier this month, Alfa Romeo has now launched an online configurator for its sporty hatchback. All you have to do is simply log onto Alfa Romeo's Italian website where you are given the opportunity to customize the all-new Giulietta inside and out.

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New Alfa Romeo Giulietta: The Official Promo Video

A couple of weeks after the Giulietta's world premiere at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, Alfa Romeo has released a two-and-a-half-minute long promotional video of its new sporty hatchback.

The spot nods at the past by shadowing previous generations of the Giulietta in the background but also embraces the future by touting some of the Giulietta's technological and mechanical highlights such as the multilink suspension and start&stop system.

The new Golf-sized Giulietta will be offered with a variety of powertrains spanning from a 105HP 1.6-liter diesel to a 235HP 1.7-liter turbocharged petrol. Video after the break.

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Alfa Romeo to Celebrate Centenary at Goodwood with a Bevy of Classics

This year's Goodwood Festival of Speed (2-4 July) in the UK is dedicated to Alfa Romeo as the renowned Italian marque turns 100 years old.

To celebrate the event, Alfa Romeo has announced that it will display an array of vehicles representing various periods from the firm's first 100 years. Included among these will be many cars never before seen in Britain, direct from the brand's extensive Milan-based Museo Storico collection.

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VIDEO: Alfa Romeo Giulietta on the Move During Winter Testing in Sweden

Already revealed in pictures, Alfa Romeo is now showing off its Giullietta hatchback on film with a new video clip that was shot during winter testing in Arjeplog, Sweden, this past January. The Giullietta is a direct replacement for the decade-old 147 hatchback model rivaling C-Segment cars like the VW Golf and BMW 1-Series.

The new model is set for a world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show in March and a market launch in Europe this summer.

It will be offered with three petrol engines, including 120HP and 170HP versions of a 1.4-liter turbo unit, and a 235HP 1.7-liter turbo, as well as two diesels producing 105HP and 170HP. Hit the jump to watch the new video clip.