It is believed the new Alfa 159 (http://www.autoindex.org/news.plt?no=1091#)
was designed also thinking about US sales.
Dario
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dario Bonazza" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <pentax-discuss@pdml.net>
Sent: Sunday, August 28, 2005 12:20 PM
Subject: Re: OT: Alfa Romeo cars
Two months ago the general manager of Alfa Romeo division stated that Alfa
wants to be back to US market as soon as possible, with a proper line-up
including Maserati V8 engines.
Dario
----- Original Message -----
From: "Godfrey DiGiorgi" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <pentax-discuss@pdml.net>
Sent: Saturday, August 27, 2005 9:42 PM
Subject: re: OT: Alfa Romeo cars
On Aug 27, 2005, at 11:37 AM, keithw wrote:
Just for giggles, I went to my large L.A. Yellow Pages, no Alfa dealers
or repair shops evident anywhere.
Used to be one in nearby Santa Monica, but...long gone.
I accessed Google, and nothing there, either... Hmmmm.
Seems likely the rumors I heard long ago about ALFA not exporting cars
to the U.S. is entirely true!
Sighhh. I was geared up for a moment, there!
Alfa Romeo has been a division of FIAT Group since 1987.
FIAT pulled Alfa Romeo from the US market in 1995.
There have been persistent rumors of Alfa Romeo returning to the US, but
nothing's happened yet. A year or two ago, GM and FIAT entered a
shared-stock/resources agreement. From that, it might develop that Alfa
Romeo could return to the US with distribution through some GM dealer
franchises. Nothing's happened as yet. This is a shame as the current
Tipo 156 sport sedan, and others, would be a superb car for the US
market.
However, there are Alfa Romeo service and parts suppliers around,
although they are rapidly becoming a niche/enthusiast/collector
specialty. A quick sneak with Google looking for "Alfa Romeo Service
'Los Angeles'" netted at this page of Italian car shops in the Los
Angeles area;
http://www.ocautoservice.com/ItalianMain.asp
A better source of such information are the Alfa Romeo Owners Club
(nationwide) and Alfa Romeo Association (San Francisco Bay Area)
newsletters. San Francisco has always been a big area for Alfa Romeo in
the US.
At this point in time, there are far more interesting cars to be found
in the UK than almost anywhere else I've traveled. It's a sad state of
affairs for the US automobile enthusiast.
Godfrey
