Alfa Romeo releases the new Mi.To

Click above to view the Alfa Romeo Mi.To in hi-res
Months upon months of spy shots, teasers, renderings and endless speculation have come to their culmination as Alfa Romeo this morning released official images and details of the highly-anticipated new Mi.To. As we previously reported, the Mi.To name – an abbreviation for Milan and Turin (also meaning "myth" or "legend" in Italian as our astute commenter Nick pointed out) – won out for the final nameplate over the internal designation "Junior" and the proposed name "Furiosa".
Alfa is quick to point out that the Mi.To is the first new model introduced since the 8C Competizione, and the new hatch draws heavily on the supercar's styling, as you can see from the images in the gallery below. If you tried to morph an 8C with a Fiat 500, you wouldn't be far off, but the Centro Stile Alfa Romeo appears to have bridged the gap with considerable finesse. Alfa Romeo also confirmed that the Mi.To will initially be offered with a range of four turbocharged fours, with horsepower ranging from 90 to 155, with even stronger engines to follow. The Mi.To's official presentation will come in June before market introductions begin in July. For more details, scope out the press release after the jump.
Gallery: Alfa Romeo Mi.To
[Source: Alfa Romeo]
PRESS RELEASE
Alfa Mi.To: World Premiere
With the Mi.To, Alfa Romeo wishes to offer a new generation of Alfa aficionados the most compact sports car ever.
An up-to-date and innovative car, a name redolent of history. The name Mi.To has great evocative resonance for Alfa Romeo, since it was chosen as a sign of a deep-seated link between the past and future of the brand: between Milan, the city of design that brought the car's style into being, and Turin, which will be responsible for its industrial production. A decision that highlights the brand's strong desire to consolidate its Milanese roots.
The Mi.To is the first car to be built since the 8C Competizione, Alfa Romeo's icon of style and technology, from which it borrows certain characteristic traits: the particular shape of the unframed side windows, the three-lobed motif that distinguishes the front bumper, the shape of the headlights and the LED tail lights. The headlights and tail lights represent a distinctive personalised feature: a frame featuring different forms of material processing and colours to create an ultra-stylish eye-liner effect that underscores the car's style and aggression.
The highly personal dashboard and seats ensure that the interior represents the ultimate expression of Italian style, welcoming yet sporty, with top-quality materials and the closest attention to detail.
The greatest thought has also gone into defining the dimensions, which add up to a compact and dynamic shape: the Mi.To is 4.06 metres long, 1.44 metres high and 1.72 metres wide.
Style, design, and more: performance and technology must always be top-of-the-range in an Alfa Romeo. As all the brand's models, the Mi.To is able to appeal to the most demanding customers with its exciting driveability, determined partly to the Alfa DNA system. This control acts on the engine, brakes, steering, suspension and gearbox, allowing three different vehicle behaviour modes based on the driving style best suited to the situation or the customer's wishes: supersporting (Dynamic), town driving (Normal), maximum safety even in difficult grip conditions (All-Weather). Mi.To is the first car in its segment to offer such innovative technological content.
Great performances are guaranteed by a range of 4 engines, all Turbo (petrol and diesel), that currently range from 90 hp up to 155 hp, with the range due to be extended by even higher power ratings.
Performance and handling have been developed and optimised to offer maximum driving satisfaction in complete safety. The Mi.To offers true Alfa Romeo sporting ride, featuring contractive suspensions – standard on all specifications and engines – that considerably reduce roll and maximum active, passive and preventive safety: VDC stability system as standard and a vehicle structure that is already designed to obtain the top EuroNCAP rating in the future.
The Alfa Mi.To will be introduced to the international press during June and will then be gradually introduced from July in all the major markets.












Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
FThorn 7:45AM (3/14/2008)
I want this car. I love the current Alfa design cues.
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Mattias 9:06AM (3/14/2008)
Me too!
KA 8:30PM (3/14/2008)
God DAMN. I've been waiting for this car since I saw the first sketches, and it's better than I'd hoped.
My only disappointment is that the sides don't have those sexy indents that were in those sketches.
Allan 7:59AM (3/14/2008)
WANT!
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Aetius 8:01AM (3/14/2008)
Beautiful. The sweep of the C-pillar makes me think how hot a Mazda3 3-door would be too.
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tenfifteen 8:06AM (3/14/2008)
For me, the 'nose' is rather large; it's 13" longer than the R56 Cooper S, and it looks like all of that is forward of the front wheels. Still, it is definitely a beauty.
Then again... 155hp? Sounds like the Abarth T-Jet plant, which in that car was good for an 8.2s trip to 62mph. Mmm-yeah. Not so good. Let's hope they can get a 200hp/200tq plant in there so it runs as good as it looks.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat_Grande_Punto#Abarth_Grande_Punto
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fsx 8:20AM (3/14/2008)
The GTA version will get a 1.8 JTB engine with up to 230 HP. It should appear somewhere during 2009.
Guy 8:20AM (3/14/2008)
Video: http://thecarfanatic.com/?p=3436
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MikeInNC 8:38AM (3/14/2008)
WANT WANT WANT!!!
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Vo0Ds 9:48AM (3/14/2008)
:O too... beautiful... for words...
WANT.
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Bryan Riddle 8:49AM (3/14/2008)
so is it going to be grossly overweight like all the rest of their cars? i imagine somthing like 3000 pounds
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Flea 9:01AM (3/14/2008)
considering it has a slightly modified Grande Punto chassis, it should weigh between 1015 and 1080 kgs, aka 100kgs less than the Mini.
So no, weight won't be an issue.
DJ 9:11AM (3/14/2008)
Mi want one.
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Stephen 10:16AM (3/14/2008)
Mi. To
Sorry, couldn't resist.
SPG 9:31AM (3/14/2008)
To see this car, as well as some select Fiat's, Citroen's, Peugeot's, and Renaults on North American streets would be a dream.
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Rick 10:25AM (3/14/2008)
I dig the retro treatment of the lights. Everything flows nicely, the design has nice curves and proportion for all angles. This is a unique look and I like it. Love the fender flares as well, very beefy.
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almost Dr. G.. 10:03AM (3/14/2008)
someone PLEASE tell me that alfa is coming back to the states before 2011.
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Colin Smith 10:05AM (3/14/2008)
Very pretty little car. My dealer is going to get one (left hand drive though) as soon after the launch as possible so that punters can see one well before it goes on sale in Britain next year.
1.6 Diesel please...
Can't wait. This car will SELL!
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Jerk Face 10:05AM (3/14/2008)
I like the car, but the name is horrendously stupid. Have a '.' in the middle of your car's moniker is neither clever nor edgy.
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MK 11:13AM (3/14/2008)
Says the guy called Jerk Face (which is is neither clever nor edgy)