Autoblog

Click on the image to enlarge and see more high-res shots of the Alfa Spider

Alfa Romeo undoubtedly offers some of the most beautiful cars available. While we're anxiously awaiting the storied Italian brand's return to the U.S. market, those in Europe get some added reason to place the aging Spider on their shopping lists. The new Limited Edition model comes equipped with heated seats swathed in Italian Frau® leather upholstery and Alfa's Blue&Me™ (no, we're not making these names up) voice recognition hands-free system. Available in four color combo's and equipped with pretty 19-inch alloys, nobody is likely to kick the LE out of their garages. No power increase is present, but considering that at £25,500, all of this added goodness comes at no extra cost, we don't expect to hear too much complaining. Besides, this car is really meant to be seen in, so the zip-to-sixty sprint of just under nine seconds is likely good enough anyway.


[Source: Alfa Romeo]

Hey, the pseudo-video-game as a car ad technique worked well enough for Pontiac, so why shouldn't Alfa Romeo give it a try too? While we think Alfa's take on arcade-style driving enjoyment is clever, it's not quite as cool as the G8's Spy Hunter recreation, which, as children of the era of excess, we were totally smitten with. Regardless, the expert driving Italy's newest hot hatch looks to have had a great time racing through all 11.1 kilometers of the Forest Track stage, which is actually Arjeplog, a town in Lapland, Sweden, and a popular European destination for winter automotive testing. This video makes us wish even more so that an official announcement regarding the Mi.To's hopeful trip across the Atlantic is impending shortly. Follow the jump to watch it.

[Source: Youtube via Autoblog.it]

Click above for high-res gallery of the Alfa Mi.To

Hot on the heels of the impending sale official sale of Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata and news that Fiat is looking to start producing Alfa Romeo vehicles in the U.S. are reports that Fiat would be interested in partnering up with the new Jaguar ownership to share rear-wheel-drive platforms for their high-end Alfa models. Tata and Fiat already have close ties, as Ratan Tata, chairman of the Tata Group, is a member of Fiat's board and the two companies jointly produce engines and transmissions in India.

In addition to possible platform sharing between Jaguar and Alfa, Fiat is also interested in using the existing Jaguar and Land Rover dealer base in the U.S. as a way to ease Alfa's re-entry the American market. Anything that helps get Alfa Romeo back in the U.S. is fine by us, but there are surely issues with selling what could possibly be competing brands from the same dealer lots.

[Source: The Financial Times]