More 149 pics

Click and follow to find more pics on the 147 replacement... Feast your eyes on Alfa's brand new hatch! This is how the sensational 149 - a direct rival to Ford's Focus - is shaping up. Based on the same platform as the Fiat Bravo and Lancia Delta, the replacement for the 147 will blend the raw beauty of the 8C Competizione with the style of the MiTo in a larger, family-sized package. The front end's generous curves and circular headlamps take their inspiration from the MiTo, while the sharp, arrow-like nose and deep Alfa shield grille are borrowed from the 8C Competizione.

Nice car, shame about the spelling

Why is it so hard to spell 'ALFA' correctly?

The Alpha 156 is as much a sports model as family car. The Italian maker seems incapable of designing one that's mere transport, injecting a special flavour into even machines that would be built as “ordinary” cars by others.

Alfa Romeo GTV6 2.8L

Wow. Yuck. Amazing. Awful. Great. I can't decide. One thing for sure - it would give me a headache sitting in it.

GTV 6 with straight pipes - part 2

It looks great, sounds wonderful. I'm sure it's also immense fun to drive... but I'd be worried, tense and anxious about what type of day the police officer has had just before they pull me over for an illegal exhaust...

GTV6 with straight-out-the-side pipes

Dreadful to live near, sounds wonderful; but surely this is a car no police officer could resist pulling over?

New 149 has that 8c look...

Rounded, swoopy, with big round headlights. It's a hatch. The new 147 is looking good.... and may get a classy name: Some rumors speak of an alternative name, "Giulia", at 149

Now there will be a Chinese Alfa?

Does it matter where it's made? Probably not. It just doesn't sound as traditional somehow. Unless we dig back to Marco Polo - now there's a link.

Alfa in China will make its 166, a difficult thing for Alfa fans to digest even though the 166 hasn’t had shades of brilliance throughout its long career. The car will be manufactured by Guangzhou Auto, a Fiat and Nanjing partner in Perla production (derived from the world car Palio and Siena ed Albea project).