Alfa Romeo Overview

The Alfa Romeo Stelvio has already been around for a while, and the Italian automaker will introduce a new, posh, trim line at the 89th Geneva Auto Show called the Ti. It stands for ’Turismo Internazionale,’ and it’s a nod to Alfa’s storied past. This variant will be equipped with the meatier of the two 2.0-liter, turbocharged, inline-four engines, new burnished taillights, and new wheels to round things out.

This piece of news may already seem confusing to those of you that are familiar with Alfa’s American range of models. That’s because over in the U.S., Alfa is already offering the Stelvio Ti for the 2019 model year. In fact, you can choose between the $44,495 Stelvio Ti, the $46.995 Stelvio Ti Lusso, and the $47,295 Stelvio Ti Sport. All of these come with the 2.0-liter, turbocharged, inline-four engine too. However, there will be differences between the European-spec model and the U.S.-spec ones.

If you are a true car enthusiast, you need to own an Alfa Romeo at least once in your lifetime. Driving the Stelvio Quadrifoglio really proves that the Alfa Romeo experience is still there. But, most importantly, the Stelvio feels special, and that really sets it apart from everything else. We spent a few days with the Stelvio and could not get enough, and that was just driving around town. If there was a race track around, we probably would not stop until there was no fuel or tires left. The Stelvio, at least in the Quadrifloglio configuration, is just a beautifully crafted machine that begs to be driven.

Introduced in 2013 as the company’s first true-blue sports car in decades, the Alfa Romeo 4C soldiered on into 2019 with almost no upgrades. At the 2019 Chicago Auto Show, the Italian company launched the 4C Spider Italia, a limited-edition roadster with a handful of extra features. Although it doesn’t stray far from the regular model, it confirms that the 4C Spider will remain in production for the 2020 model year.

With the Coupe discontinued at the end of 2018, the Spider remains in dealerships for at least one more year, but the Italia is far from special. Finished in an exclusive paint and fitted with custom graphics and badges, it’s just a poor attempt to keep this bare-bones sports car appealing among newer products. Is it worth getting one? Let’s find out below.

If you’re a fan of performance cars, the 2019 Chicago Auto Show must be really boring to you. Packed with trucks and special-edition SUVs, you have to dig deep to find some cool sports car in there, and most of them are actually classics. There is an exception worth checking out though: the 2020 Alfa Romeo 4C Spider Italia.

A limited-series, special edition version of the familiar roadster, the 4C Spider Italia comes with good and bad news for both Alfa Romeo and sports car enthusiasts.

First introduced way back in 2013, the 4C was the first mass-produced Alfa Romeo vehicle for the North American market in the 21st century. And what a comeback - this thing ticks all the boxes when it comes to driving nirvana. Made from carbon fiber and aluminum, the 4C is lightweight, while the exterior dimensions are compact, which combine with the mid-engine drivetrain package to make for some seriously impressive driving dynamics. We love it, but in the six years since its debut, not much has changed, and sales have taken a hit. Now, Alfa is offering a special edition at the 2019 Chicago Auto Show that’s leaving us wondering - is it too little too late?

Alfa Romeo showed up at the Chicago Auto Show with the 4C Spider Italia Edition. It’s the same 4C Alfa’s been selling in the U.S. for almost half a decade already, but the novelty is you can now have it in this nice Misano Blue Metallic paint job if you pay $5,000 more on top of the $1,595 destination tax.

The Alfa Romeo 4C was the second car Alfa Romeo brought Stateside after selling almost 100 of its wonderful 8C sports car in both coupe and roadster guise. The 4C is a much more compact version but, in true Alfa tradition, it looks really well and it drives well too. The issue is that the Italians haven’t really been all that interested in trying to refresh the car and, now, the 4C is a pretty but overpriced car that desperately needs a replacement worth of sharing the garage with the Stelvio Quadrifoglio and the Giulia Quadrifoglio.

The reinvention of old shapes is somehow mystically exhilarating and reinvigorating. Especially if done properly as is the case with the 4C Nivola. Ugur Sahin Design is one of those life bearers, and its latest project is called the Alfa Romeo 4C Nivola. A car that will blossom and spiritually reimagine the Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale. And that was, for many, the most beautiful Alfa Romeo of all time.

After its photos surfaced on the Internet, the Alfa Romeo 4C Nivola bathed us all with its charm, historical links with the 33 Stradale (I almost wrote canonical links, because the Alfa Romeo story is more like a movie), and classic Italian glamour.

Yet, the designer behind this work of art, Ugur Sahin, is from Turkey, with the headquarters of his studio located in the Netherlands. That’s where he worked on the 4C Nivola design. It’s been in the works since he’d seen the 33 Stradale at Pebble Beach last year.

This car will not leave you listless, but packed with emotion. At least it did just that for me. I contacted Ugur Sahin, and he was more than straightforward with his answers. This is what I uncovered about the stunning Alfa Romeo 4C Nivola.

The Alfa Romeo RZ is the equally-boxy and equally odd open-top version of the icon that is the SZ. Controversial at the time, the Zagato styling of the SZ/RZ family is now, 30 years on, considered downright legendary.

Produced as a limited-run joint project between Alfa Romeo and Fiat, the SZ Coupe and the RZ Roadster were laid on the underpinnings of the famed Alfa Romeo 75. Little over 1,000 SZs were built while the production cycle of the RZ began just after the final SZ was put together. Although the exact number varies depending on the source, no more than 285 Alfa Romeo RZ cars were ever built, making it much rarer than the already sought-after coupe.

The RZ was equipped with the same four-cam engine as the SZ although the lack of a solid roof makes the RZ the slower of the two. Alfa Romeo also chose to offer the SZ in more than one color combination, customers being offered the opportunity to pick their SZ up in either yellow or black, besides the customary red which was the only color available for the coupe. The last SZ rolled out of Zagato’s plant in Terrazzano di Rho in 1994 and, in spite of their popularity among the fans of the brand, the SZ and RZ aren’t particularly expensive to grab nowadays.

Keep reading to learn more about the odd Alfa Romeo RZ

Crossovers are vehicles designed to look like they can go off-road, but really be at their best on the road. Sure, some can do light off-roading, but realistically you won’t want to stray too far from the blacktop or the occasional bumpy gravel backroad.

To this end it’s not trivial to know which of these 4x4-aping high riders are best out on the open (and sometimes twisty) road, since it’s where they will spend most of their time. But don’t go thinking that they are on par with more conventional car shapes, because their higher center of gravity and usually higher mass will affect handling.

Safety is at the top of buyers’ lists these days, but what many don’t think about when browsing lists of cars rated with safety stars is that good, predictable road manners and sharp handling are one of the biggest safety features a car can have, since they allow the driver to avoid crashing in the first place.

And while crossovers may give occupants a feeling of extra safety when they’re on board, their poor road manners bring this into question.

Here’s a list of the 10 best handling high-riding vehicles ever made.

Spurred by the popularity of the Stelvio SUV, Alfa Romeo is planning to build not one, but two new SUVs. One of these two models is a smaller SUV that will compete against the likes of the BMW X1, Audi Q3, Mercedes GLA-Class, Range Rover Evoque, and Volvo XC40. Among other things, the baby SUV will be launched with hybrid tech and Level 3 autonomous driving technology.

Alfa Romeo’s plan to flood the market with 26 new and updated models is well-documented. We also know that at least two of those models will be the scintillating 8C supercar and the Giulia Quadrifoglio-based GTV Coupe. Now it looks like a third performance model is in the works, specifically a convertible version of the aforementioned 600-horsepower GTV Coupe that will be released more than a year after the coupe version drops and takes all our money away.

It would seem that the most important goals for any manufacturer today are continuity and clarity. If you do cheap cars, do only them. If you do sports cars, focus only on them. If you are premium, adapt to what the people think is premium and push.

Alfa Romeo had a problem with its mission, vision, and continuity. Since the Eighties, it seems to have shifted its vision two or three times basically confusing buyers when it comes to what the brand truly represents. Now, it is eager to find its footing with what it should have done all along - sports character, upscale styling, and premium nature.

At a press conference held earlier this year Tim Kuniskis, Global Head of Maserati and Alfa Romeo said: “We know our future depends on staying true to our sports car roots. We have learned that when we stay true to Alfa DNA, we can stand out in any segment.”

Thankfully, the brand seems to have found what it wants to be the best at. To communicate this noble vision to the automotive lunatics and solidify brand recognition, Alfa Romeo has to do some extraordinary things. Having the Giulia Quadrifoglio and the Stelvio Quadrifoglio was only a start. Now, the company needs to go further, and that further comes in the shape of the 8C.

Recently, the late Sergio Marchionne hinted at the new 8C only months before his death. Moreover, the plan FCA displayed in June clearly showcases a planned super sports car called the 8C, and it will appear in the next three or four years.