Alfa news from Italy

[Luca <nodoubt@domain.elided>]

being watching tv news during my lounch break, and heard a pretty
weird new I guess it should be a good topic to discuss here.

Fiat is still in crisis. All the Organizations defending workers'
rights are still discussing with Fiat chiefs and also with some
government representatives, but it seems no agreement has been found
yet. 
Meanwhile Fiat employers are still on a nationwide strike, they keep
going protesting down the street, trying to gain their right to work
back.  Fiat just wants to close some factories (including the famous
Arese plant, and this would mean MOVING the museum somewhere else),
Fiat just cannot offer a future to thousands people.. etc.

Our government premier, being a former (well not really former) business
man (kinda like Bush in USA), said that he would love to take care
of the trouble, but he cannot. He, anyways, said coupla words
about HIS possible solution, and the idea was about the following:
We got this FIAT in trouble. Fiat isn't surely a brand worlwide 
people starve at. There's no dream cars by Fiat, there's nothing making
people desiring a fiat BUT the cheap price. They are famous for being
unreliable, they are famous to rust away, they lost somewhere in the
past all the sport car production... basically there's nothing left.
But there are brands ALFA ROMEO. They he also say that there's something
even better: FERRARI.
His suggestion is somehow about making FIAT name disappear, 
starting restyling the whole range, and selling it as Ferrari,
or something like that.
Fiat management really didn't like the words, and the flames are on.

I pass the flames on to you all... feed your comments in.

Ah, I forgot, my opinion:
I surely wouldn't want to see a Ferrrari rebadged FIAT PUNTO or STILO.
Ferrari, as our premier say, is a top level brand... and IMO, it cannot
get down to CHEAP production like Puntos and Stilos.
But the idea, isn't completely wrong.... 
I think that nobody needs a Stilo while there's the 147 around.
The Punto can be easily restyled and badged Lancia. Bigger sedans
are already built by Alfa. Luxury cars by Lancia again.
Sport cars by Ferrari, and I would also say that Maserati could
resurrect the Biturbo concept building a mid range (read affordable
by mortal human beings) sport car.
Right now fiat group is suffering
Identity crisis
Name crisis
Models conflict.
There is no Fiat car NEEDED on the italian market. Alfa, Lancia, Maserati
and Ferrari and Iveco ALREADY build all we need.
So all the business cars (Like the MARENGO, the DOBLO) could be
badged IVECO. The Stilo could be a version of the 147. The Thesis
could stay as a Lancia or become a super luxury Alfa (as it used to
be in the far past). Lancia could build some Daily cars (like the Prisma
used to be). Also sport cars (can you say INTEGRALE??). Maserati
cannot keep on building top range cars! there's ferrari for it.
Maserati could really create some more affordable no compromises
car, and I'd say, looking back at the tradition, that the THESIS would
be really compatible with the Maserati badge.
So what I say is that what the premier says (Bading Ferrari all a
range of restyled Fiat) is a bullshit, but the idea could be
machined around and developed.

To you all now....

nodoubt, 
"With dreams to be a king first one should be a man" Joey DeMaio
937, 75 Turbo, 500 Quattro, RM250



http://nvr2fst.supereva.it
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