Concept Flashback: Alfa Romeo’s 1996 Nuvola Prototipo V6 Sports Coupe

Welcome to the story of the Alfa Romeo Nuvola Prototipo, one of the most gripping concepts to wear the famous Visconti Serpent badges in the past two decades. Unveiled for the first time at the Paris Motor Show in 1996, the Nuvola Prototipo was named after Tazio Nuvolari, the legendary Italian motorcycle and racecar driver who competed for Alfa in the 1930s.

The Nuvola had all the essential ingredients of a proper Alfa Romeo sports coupe - a beautifully crafted body and interior, classic proportions, a dedicated chassis and enough power to put a smile on your face.

Of course we would have preferred a rear-wheel drive setup, but its four wheel drive layout is much less of a compromise (for a sports car) than if power was transferred exclusively to the front axle.

Unlike modern days Alfas that are built around less exciting (8c Competizione excluded) hardware pulled out of the Fiat Group’s parts bin, the Nuvola made use of a separate, tubular spaceframe to which the mechanical components were attached. The designers' plan was to use the same architecture on different bodies to cover various niches.

"A welded high strength steel tubing spaceframe brings the benefits of lightness, high torsional rigidity, excellent ride quality and maximum passenger protection as well as low cost of manufactures," Alfa said at the time.

Power came from a front-mounted, twin turbocharged version of Alfa's standard 2.5-liter V6 delivering 300 ponies to all four (18-inch) wheels, with the car said to complete the 0 to 100km/h sprint in the low five second-range.

The Nuvola was penned at Centro Stile Alfa Romeo under the watchful eye of Walter de Silva, who is currently Head of Volkswagen Group Design. As with any proper sports car, the goal of the designers was to stir emotions.

Measuring 4.29 meter (169 inches) in length, the Nuvola is sleek yet muscular, classic yet modern - all at the same time. The two seater show car made several references to Alfa Romeos of the past from the 8C 2900 to the 6C 2500 Villa d’Este, the Giulietta Sprint Speciale and the 1900 Sprint. Notable features include the futuristic luminous diode technology used for the slim, horizontal rear lights and the tires, which had a special pattern created for Alfa Romeo by Michelin.

The 'favoloso' exterior was matched by an equally stunning two-tone interior crafted in leather with aluminum and chrome accents. Sport pedals and a wooden steering wheel are also on the menu, with a finely crafted leather bag acting as storage between the driver and passenger.

While the concept never made it to production, it's styling legacy lives on as the Nuvola prefigured the shapes and surface treatments of Alfa Romeo’s -then- new aesthetics. Take a close look at the pictures and you’ll discover design cues that can even be seen in today's Alfa Romeo models.

Overall, we'd say it's pretty impressive how well the styling of the concept has withstood the test of time and a pity that Fiat's higher-ups never gave it the green light.

Unless you plan on visiting Alfa Romeo's historic museum in Arese, Italy, to see it in person, the closest you'll get to the Nuvola is through a die-cast scale model like the one we found on eBay Italy. True, it’s not the real deal, but probably better than nothing.

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Novitec Spices up the Alfa Romeo MiTo

The German tuner of Italian hardware, Novitec, has developed a comprehensive modification package for the new Alfa Romeo MiTo sport hatchback with power and styling treatments. Novitec offers upgrades for three MiTo engines, the most powerful being the 1.4-liter turbocharged gasoline unit that gains a 31HP and 30Nm bump for an overall output of 186HP and 260Nm of torque. The result is a 0-100km/h (62mph) sprint time in 7,4 seconds, or 0,6 seconds faster than the standard 155HP production model.

For the diesel models, Novitec's ECU kit boosts the 1.3-liter JTD's output from 90HP to 110HP while the 1.6-liter JTD delivers 144HP, up from 120HP. The tuner claims that peak torque is increased in both cases by around 50Nm. Tuned engines can also be upgraded with a sport rear muffler with one, two or four tailpipes.

Novitec also offers two suspension modification solutions, the first being a simple lowering kit that brings the MiTo 40mm closer to the road and the second, a stainless-steel coil-over suspension with adjustable ride height and adjustable dampers. The later gives the Alfa a tauter ride while allowing the driver to lower the car's ride height between 35mm and 65mm.

The shell of the Italian hatch has been adorned with a new bodykit that includes a three-piece front apron, side skirts, a rear apron with an integrated diffuser and a roof spoiler. A new set of 18-inch alloys available in silver or black finish fitted with 215/35 R18 Pirelli rubber finish off the look of the vehicle.

Alfa Romeo 8C Spider

Alfa Romeo 8C Spider

Alfa Romeo 8C Spider Wallpaper

Alfa Romeo 8C Spider Picture

Alfa Romeo Sale to VW Rumors Surface Again

Back in April, the Fiat Group announced yet another round of plans to revive its money-losing Alfa Romeo brand, which included the development of new models and a re-launch in the U.S market. At that time, this seemed possible as the Italian maker intended to make good use of Chrysler and its RWD platforms to expand the model range.

However, at the end of August, Alfa Romeo was rumored to be hemorrhaging about €200 million (US $261 million) annually. The brand-hungry Germans over at Volkswagen felt Fiat's need and offered to take over the historic Milanese company. After much unrest, in October, Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne put an end to the rumors and reiterated his turnaround strategy, while Alfa estimated losses climbed to €306 million or about $400 million.

Now, Automotive News [AN] claims that in the past months the two companies have been discussing the sale of Alfa Romeo, but Marchionne is still undecided. So, what will happen next?

Inside sources told AN that the decision is not only about money, even though Fiat could use the cash and Volkswagen has plenty of it (http://carscoop.blogspot.com/2010/11/vw-group-to-invest-516-billion-in-its.html). But this is a classic case of the door swinging both ways. If Fiat can survive the next couple of years, which will be the most difficult period of the turnaround plan and keep Alfa Romeo, then it could count on the premium brand to spearhead its next move.

The other scenario sees Fiat earning some quick cash, but still struggling in two year’s time, so, yes, the pressure is really on Mr. Marchionne’s shoulders.

My take on the matter is that Alfa should not be sold. Fiat has the opportunity to use platforms sourced from Chrysler, so rear-wheel drive Alfa’s could make a much anticipated come-back. Not taking this step doesn’t make sense.

Furthermore, if the Volkswagen Group acquires Alfa, it will have a tough time fitting the Italian company in a portfolio that includes brands like VW, Audi and Seat. In any case, only time will tell. In the meantime, take a look at the list below, in which Automotive News reasons the benefits of keeping or selling Alfa Romeo.

By selling Alfa, Fiat could:

• Cash in between 1.5 billion to 2 billion euros. Then the post-spinoff Fiat Auto would be virtually debt-free;

• Slash product development expenditures of at least 1.5 billion euros, since Fiat no longer would have to launch five new Alfas from 2012 through 2014;

• Boost profits in 2011 and 2012, since the company would be rid of Alfa's annual losses projected at about 200 million euros;

• Reintroduce Dodge as a sporty brand in Europe, positioned above the mainstream Fiat brand. A sporty Dodge would not overlap Lancia-Chrysler, which will focus on comfort.

And here are six good reasons why Marchionne should keep Alfa Romeo:

• If Fiat can fight through the next three years, it will emerge in 2014 with fatter profit margins and a nearly debt-free balance sheet, according to Mediobanca Securities;

• Fiat can raise as much as 2 billion euros by selling Magneti Marelli, Comau and Teksid, which produce auto parts, production tooling and engine blocks. Then Fiat wouldn't have to sell Alfa, and it could focus more closely on the auto industry. Investors would like that;

• A relaunched Alfa eventually could command profit margins of 10 percent or so. That would help Fiat to generate the 3.5 billion euro annual operating profit that Marchionne has promised by 2014;

• Fiat will save money by letting Alfa Romeo and Chrysler share platforms. Moreover, Alfa could generate sales of 500,000 units a year, helping Fiat and Chrysler to achieve economies of scale. Roughly 300,000 of the 500,000 units of Alfa planned by 2014 will be based on architectures shared with Chrysler;

• Since Alfa Romeo will share its compact wide global architecture with Jeep, Fiat could produce those vehicles together in crucial growth markets such as China and Russia;

• Without Alfa Romeo, Fiat would be hard-pressed to make reasonable volumes and decent profits with mid-sized and large cars. Aside from Ferrari's handful of supercars, Fiat would be forced to eke out a profit from low-margin segments such as minicars and compact cars.

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.

Like Marangoni's previous demo car, the Alfa Romeo MiTo M430, the G430’s exterior makeover was also inspired by the Ferrari F430. The front bumper has two enormous F430-like air intakes channeling airflow to the brakes, while at the rear we can find a carbon fiber diffuser. Lowered side skirts and a discrete roof spoiler complete the aero kit.

Under the bonnet, a new bearing-mounted turbocharger boosts the four-cylinder unit's output to 286 hp, an increase of 51hp over the standard model.

Engineers also lowered the car by 4 cm (1.6 inches) and fitted KW threaded strut housings that allow multiple height adjustments and shock absorber calibration. The standard brakes were ditched in favor of 330 mm 10-pot Tarox B360 composite disks.

Inside, golf apparel provider Conte of Florence used a combination of leather, Alcantara and carbon fiber, with the seats and door panels trimmed in a quilted theme that evokes Scotland’s golfing tradition. The only problem is that the G430 doesn’t seem like your ideal golfer’s car and there’s not much space left in the boot because of the Segway. But, hey, I guess times are changing and the two-wheel EV could make your life much more easier on the golf course.

TRC Italia said it will offer all components designed for the Giulietta G430 iMove, starting from next year.

The Giulietta G430 iMove will be officially unveiled at Bologna Motor Show in Italy this week.