Essential style capable of conveying strong emotions, engineering that is always at the cutting edge – plus superlative road holding and driving satisfaction: these are the qualities that have always set Alfa Romeo apart in the world motoring scenario. The same values lie behind the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, a veritable piece of poetry in motion that is remarkable for the sculpted and finely modelled surfaces that provide ideal attire for the engineering and mechanical excellence of this extraordinary car. The Alfa 8C Competizione is also the technical and stylistic template that will be used to create all the Alfa Romeo cars of the future, beginning with the Alfa Romeo MiTo, ‘the sportiest mini’ that packs sensual style, agility and technical excellence made for driving satisfaction into a length of just 4 metres.

The concept of the Alfa Romeo stand at the 2008 Paris International Show arises out of this perfect marriage between design and technology. The exhibition area is dominated by a huge sculpted structure that reflects the taut lines and smooth, sparse lineaments of the Alfa 8C Competizione. This work of architecture is enhanced by an enormous Led Wall projecting evocative images of the brand, all set off to perfection by an imposing wall in Racing Red that provides an ideal backdrop to the lithe, unique design of the cars, making them the unquestionable stars of the show. All the cars on show are also in Racing Red, except for the Alfa 8C Spider, which appears in the attractive Mother of Pearl White shade. Another exhibit on the stand is a 33 Daytona (1968), a gorgeous car that renders homage to the brand’s glorious sporting tradition while also emphasising the values of engineering and emotion shared by all Alfa Romeo cars of the past, present and future.


The scene-stealing exhibition area also perfectly expresses Alfa Romeo's main mission: industrial design of vehicles with state-of-the-art mechanics and engineering, featuring contemporary lines and shapes, that embody the concept of design in motion and emphasise the qualities of comfort, sportiness, elegance and power intrinsic to the Brand.
All the spotlights will naturally be turned on the latest addition to the family: the Alfa Romeo MiTo. With this car, Alfa Romeo wishes to offer a new generation of Alfa aficionados ‘the sportiest mini’. Their new baby is an up-to-date, innovative car that evokes, by its name alone, the glorious past of a brand that has written some of the most important pages of motoring history. The name MiTo has great evocative resonance and was chosen to mark the deep-seated link between the past and future of the brand: between Milan, the city of design that brought to 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 site deliberately chosen for the car’s presentation this June was the fairytale Castello Sforzesco in Milan where it is said that nearly 100 years ago a young designer found the inspiration for the Alfa Romeo logo when he saw a serpent carved onto the Filarete tower.
Five Alfa Romeo MiTo cars are present at the Paris show, all in the Selective specification: three come with a Sport Pack and are powered by the spirited 155 bhp 1.4 Turbopetrol engine while the other two are equipped with a 120 bhp 1.6 JTDM unit. All are equipped with the Confort Pack.
A second focus of the stand is an area dedicated to the exclusive Limited Edition Alfa Romeo supercars: Alfa 8C Competizione (introduced at the Paris Motor Show in 2006) and the Alfa 8C Spider, two sports cars that have had collectors and fans swooning with desire throughout the world and falling over themselves to place thousands of orders for both cars in just a few days. Five hundred of the cars have been produced by the Alfa Romeo Style Centre and are remarkable for their moulded surfaces that provide ideal attire for Alfa Romeo’s engineering and mechanical excellence: a slender line that expresses all the beauty of a veritable piece of poetry in motion that harks back to the brand's glorious past while also carrying forward its attributes of engineering and emotion into the future.
The Alfa 8C Competizione and Alfa 8C Spider are equipped with a mighty 4.7 litre 8 cylinder engine that develops 450 bhp, teamed with a 6-speed robotised gearbox, and immediately turn heads due to their unmistakeable Italian elegance, an absolutely unique and unrepeatable style that promises the satisfaction of a sporty drive with full respect for Brand traditions.
The French motor show will also see the debut of the sporty TI version of the Alfa Brera that is due to go on sale in autumn 2008. TI stands for Turismo Internazionale, a name that Alfa Romeo gave only to the best equipped cars with the most sophisticated engineering.
The Paris show also welcomes the return of the Alfa 159 – saloon and Sportwagon – with a new 2008 range that offers some new additions in terms of style, specifications and equipment. The spirit of the two cars naturally remains unchanged: the Alfa 159 MY 08 is a prestige saloon that combines sophisticated Italian styling with the elegant sportiness typical of Alfa Romeo. Meanwhile, the Alfa 159 Sportwagon MY 08 revisits and reinterprets the concepts of Italian style, performance and handling typical of a true sports car, adding flexibility of use and the versatile use of space typical of prestige station wagons. Two cars are on show in Paris: the 159 MY 08 in a TI specification with the powerful 260 bhp 3.2 V6 engine and front wheel drive with a 6-speed manual gearbox and an Alfa 159 Sportwagon MY 08 in the Selective specification and equipped with a 200 bhp 2.4 JTDM 20v and Q-Tronic gearbox. It should be remembered that the Alfa 159 MY 08 models (saloon and Sportwagon) – and also the new Brera and Spider range – were the first to introduce the Electronic Q2 system that offers all the attributes of a front wheel drive and a 4x4 drive with significantly increased road holding, traction and stability during over-run. At the same time, it lessens understeer during acceleration and steering wheel interference.
Visitors to the show can also pick up information material to find out about products on offer from Fiat Group Automobiles Financial Services, a captive finance company created as a joint venture partnership between Fiat Group Automobiles and Crédit Agricole. The company backs Fiat Group Automobiles, in Italy and Europe, with a single mission: to support the sales of Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Fiat Professional and Abarth branded cars by offering innovative financial products incorporating high added value services that are aimed at the dealer network and also private and fleet customers.

Alfa Romeo MiTo
The Alfa Romeo MiTo has taken another step forward in its stylistic, historical and engineering heritage: for nearly one century, Alfa Romeo has stood as an indisputable symbol of motoring design and Italian sporting style, as well as a towering example of engineering and mechanical excellence. These, in a nutshell, are the distinctive features of the 'sportiest mini': the Alfa Romeo MiTo.

Sporty and compact, Italian style
The MiTo 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 side windows described by the flush windows, the three-lobed motif that distinguishes the front bumper, the shape of the headlights and the LED tail-lights. The headlight and tail-light surrounds 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 distinctive dashboard and seats ensure that the interior of the Alfa Romeo MiTo represents the ultimate expression of Italian style, welcoming yet sporty, with high material quality and scrupulous attention to detail.
Much thought has also gone into defining the dimensions, which add up to a compact and dynamic shape that nicely fulfils the requirement for downsizing, one of the buzzwords of present-day automotive design. This trend naturally does not concern only the car's engines but also its weights and dimensions. Downsizing actually means improving energy efficiency, reducing CO2 emissions and simplifying driving and parking around town. But this new approach to construction does not preclude sportiness. Quite the opposite: the Alfa Romeo MiTo is the best demonstration that the two requirements can be reconciled.
First of all, the car’s compact size and the use of special steels mean that it has been possible to achieve outstanding torsional stiffness (101.200 daNm/rad): this is an essential quality to ensure that the car’s response is always prompt and accurate. The car’s proportions also make a very clear statement that this is a true sports car – it measures 4.06 metres long, 1.44 metres high and 1.72 metres wide – without giving up anything in terms of driving comfort. Quite the contrary: the excellent interior space distribution offers an outstanding amount of room for both driver and passengers.
The Alfa Romeo MiTo is therefore a strong, compact car with mastery of the road and an emphatic personality of its own. This is also borne out by a high waist line – the ratio between body and glass is typical of an Alfa Romeo – and above all a long, very aerodynamic profile (Cd 0.29) that, together with a wide track (1.483 mm), add up to a vice-like grip on the road. Not to mention the fact that the broad tyre tread ensures the best print on the ground under all conditions.

Performance and technology for an exhilarating yet safe drive
Style, design, and more: performance and technology must always be top of the range on an Alfa Romeo. Apart from anything else, an Alfa Romeo has always made its personality known at the steering wheel because these cars are famously synonymous with ‘movement and agility’. And the Alfa Romeo MiTo is certainly no exception. The new model displays all the unmistakeable hallmarks of peerless driving satisfaction, Alfa Romeo style: beginning with a favourable weight/power ratio (more than one third higher than the average for the segment); adding a centre of gravity near to the roll axis for the best dynamic response - and concluding with mechanical units that can accommodate even sudden movements in safety. The new Alfa Romeo MiTo is therefore self-avowedly an Alfa to the core, confirming an uncompromising sense of control and driving satisfaction.
This out-and-out sporty configuration is also determined by a low ride typical of a true Alfa Romeo and the choice of two tried and tested suspension layouts – Mac Pherson at the front and semi-independent with torsion beam at the rear – already used on other Fiat Group Automobiles models but appropriately revised and updated to meet the standards of handling that customers know they can always expect of an Alfa Romeo car. Amongst other things, the Alfa Romeo MiTo adopts shock absorbers with coilover springs on all specifications and engine versions. This considerably reduces roll, guaranteeing maximum linearity and precision in the steering response (the steering ratio – 12.9:1 – is extremely direct and the trajectories very neutral); and great road-holding, maximum stability in high-speed manoeuvres and the agility of a true Alfa Romeo over tight mixed routes. Not to mention the fact that the four generous disc brakes guarantee an excellent stopping distance: 34 metres from 100 to 0 km/h.
So much for the mechanical options that make the Alfa Romeo MiTo an uncompromising sports car. These features are complemented by the latest new products in the field of electronics. Beginning with the brand new ‘Alfa D.N.A.’ device that the compact Alfa Romeo introduces for the first time in its sector. This control acts on the engine, brakes, steering, suspension and gearbox, allowing for 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).
Another innovative product introduced on the Alfa Romeo MiTo is the Q2 Electronic system that acts only on the brakes to guarantee the effect of a self-locking differential. On normal cars, the inner wheel loses grip and the trajectory swings wide when the car accelerates out of a bend: with the Q2 Electronic system, on the other hand, the traction control device brakes the inner wheel and redistributes the torque, applying it to the outer wheel with the greatest grip. This maintains the desired trajectory with optimum traction: with this system, lateral acceleration rises to 1 g as compared to a value of 0.95 g obtained without the Q2 Electronic.
Lastly, the Alfa Romeo MiTo adopts another state-of-the-art electronic device for maximum handling: the DST (Dynamic Steering Torque) system that complements the electronic power steering as part of the Vehicle Dynamic Control system. In detail, the DST makes it possible to apply a slight torque to the steering to suggest the correct manoeuvre to the driver. This takes place in very specific circumstances, e.g. to compensate for oversteer or to make the effort at the steering wheel proportional to the steering angle, or to maintain a trajectory if the grip is different on either side.

Powerful, smooth and environmentally-friendly power units
Driving satisfaction means also being able to count on lively and reliable power units. The engines that power the Alfa MiTo (developed and produced by FPT - Fiat Powertrain Technologies) are at the cutting edge of automotive engineering in terms of technology, performance and respect for the environment. At its launch, the model will be available with 155 bhp 1.4 Turbopetrol and 120 bhp 1.6 JTDM engines that already comply with the limits imposed by the future Euro 5 regulations. Each with different qualities, all utilised to the full because they are teamed with 6-speed manual gearboxes that are individually remarkable for their generosity and lively temperament and also for their high performance and sophisticated technology.
In particular, the 120 bhp 1.6 JTDM is the best engine in its category in terms of specific torque (it can achieve a mighty torque of 320 Nm at just 1750 rpm), while also boasting 80% lower particulate emissions and 20% lower CO2 emissions than the previous generation of power units. In the same way, the top of the range car in terms of power – the 155 bhp 1.4 turbopetrol – offers extraordinary performance for this capacity (top speed of 215 km/h and acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in just 8.0 seconds) with a 30% reduction in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions compared to cars of the previous generation. Not to mention the fact that Alfa Romeo power units may be distinguished by their unmistakeable Alfa Romeo sound that emphasises the unique nature of the car while complying fully with type approval constraints and environmental aspects.
A version with 78 bhp engine and Junior specification, also Euro 5 compliant, is also available, that has been created specially to attract younger drivers to the world of Alfa Romeo.
At a later stage, the Alfa Romeo MiTo engine range will be further extended to include higher power ratings and the introduction of other new features developed by FPT – Fiat Powertrain Technologies such as the Multiair electronically controlled valve lift system and the innovative DDCT (double clutch) automatic transmission.

Segment-beating safety and dynamic behaviour
The Alfa Romeo MiTo was built to obtain the maximum Euro NCAP rating in the future. For this reason, the new model unveils the most sophisticated electronic devices for control of vehicle dynamic safety: Vehicle Dynamic Control (not disengageable) that manages important functions such as the Hill Holder, traction control, assisted panic braking, MSR to prevent the wheels locking during over-run, DST (Dynamic Steering Torque) and Q2 Electronic. All these systems guarantee both driving safety and vehicle traction - hence performance.
The Alfa Romeo MiTo has also been designed to achieve the maximum safety rating: it offers total protection for driver and passengers, as evidenced by 7 airbags as standard (two of which are Multistage); three-point seatbelts with pretensioners and load limit limiters; S.A.H.R. (Self Aligning Head Restraint) system, an anti whiplash device built into the backrest on the front seats. Not to mention the contribution to occupant protection made by the body, the bonnet, the doors and the dashboard crossmember in addition to the seats and steering column, that have been designed with a view to their behaviour in the event of an accident.
In the field of preventive safety, the Alfa Romeo MiTo also offers headlights with a daytime function (known as daytime running lights) that automatically turns on the side lights when the engine is turned on – to meet a specific European standard that will enter into force in 2012 – and LED tail-lights that offer greater brightness than conventional bulbs, for greater safety.
To make drivers, particularly young drivers, aware of the topic of accident prevention and safety when at the wheel, an alcohol kit consisting of three testers is present on board the Alfa Romeo MiTo.

Maximum in-car wellbeing
The Alfa Romeo MiTo is also a distillate of technological innovation when it comes to on-board well-being. The new car is also able to offer the most advanced devices and systems in the in-car entertainment field due to its cooperation with the very best partners in each sector.
For example, music fans will love the radio with CD-MP3 player or, as an option, steering wheel controls and a Bose® Hi-fi. Or you can access the countless functions of the Blue&Me® device, a system developed in conjunction with Microsoft that offers handsfree operation with a Bluetooth® interface and advanced voice recognition, USB port, MP3 player and SMS interpreter, also available on the MiTo in the two latest versions, i.e. NAV (with pictogram navigation systems) and MAP (with a navigation system on a remote display applied to a special port on the dashboard).
Lastly, a dual zone automatic climate control system and, in the future, a panoramic sun-roof of ample proportions contribute to the satisfaction of travelling on board the Alfa Romeo MiTo.

Diverse range and custom purchase packages
The Alfa Romeo MiTo is aimed at demanding customers who love to stand out in a crowd and offers two specification levels and two packs in all markets. From the first specification level, the MiTo boasts all its distinguishing features, namely Alfa Romeo D.N.A., VDC with Hill Holder and Electronic Q2, DST, LED lights, suspension with coilover springs, the maximum safety level, an alcohol tester kit, a Radio CD/mp3 with 6 speakers, a trip computer and 16” rims. These are joined by other more conventional features such as an air conditioner or leather seats, that allow each market to build the range best suited to their needs.
For example, in France the MiTo is offered in two specifications: Distintive and Selective. In detail, the Distintive specification offers interiors in two different colours (one red and one black) and offers 16” alloy wheels and an air conditioner in addition to all the features described above. The Selective, on the other hand, extends the generous equipment package offered by the Distintive to offer no fewer than three interior colours with ‘Pelle Frau’ upholstery as standard. This name is one of the most renowned Italian designer labels in the world, known above all for its hand-crafted creations. This cooperative venture has made it possible to create exclusively appealing and top-quality interiors.
The MiTo range offers a new departure for Alfa Romeo: two packs, Sport and Confort, that may be bought together, both available with the Selective version. The Sport Pack includes a fog light, sporty rear bumpers, spoiler, 17” or 18” alloy wheels and instrument panel with white lighting while the Confort Pack includes a dual zone climate control system, rear parking sensor, automatic headlight activation, rain sensor, electrochrome rear view mirror, front armrest with oddment compartment, passenger side lumbar adjustment and 12v power point in the boot.
Five types of alloys are also available (from 16” to 18”) and 10 body shades, of which 5 metallic, that reflect every facet of the sporting spirit of the new Alfa Romeo (no fewer than 5 colours have been introduced for the first time on the Alfa Romeo MiTo). All this also comes with the option of personalising the tail-light and head light frames and also the door mirror housings, all available in 14 different colours. This broad and diverse range confirms the unique nature of the new model.







Alfa Romeo Brera TI

The Paris show hosts the world première of the sporting TI specification of the Alfa Brera that is due to go on sale in autumn 2008. This version is distinguished by the TI logo applied to the front wings and will initially be available with 2.2 JTS (Manual and Selespeed) and 3.2 V6 engines and later also with other engines.
TI stands for Turismo Internazionale, an acronym that Alfa Romeo used to assign only to its best-equipped cars with the most sophisticated engineering. Such cars were derived from standard production models but, as a result of experience built up on racetracks throughout the world, were customised with mechanical and styling changes to create thoroughbred sports cars that could still be driven on ordinary roads.
The Alfa Romeo engineers adjusted the tuning of the suspension system to emphasise the car's renowned attributes of sportiness and handling still further: the springs and dampers are even stiffer, designed specially to ensure an effective grip by the 19-inch tyres, while the shape of the brand new alloy rims, inspired by the 8C Competizione, has been developed for maximum weight containment and efficient cooling of the braking system. The latter features large brake discs and Brembo red one-piece front callipers with a radial attachment. These top-quality engineering attributes mean full expression of Alfa Romeo driving satisfaction, with its time-honoured qualities of agility, precise steering and safety under all conditions.
Inside, the TI weds the sporty spirit of an Alfa Romeo with the class and elegance that is expected of an Italian product. A carefully-crafted finish and material quality was the brief of the Alfa Romeo Style Centre when developing the interior environment. The high-containment anatomical seats are trimmed with soft leather and finished with top-stitching and a metal plate bearing the TI logo. The dashboard central console and the steering wheel panel are in dark brushed aluminium or carbon fibre, as an option. The anatomical steering wheel grip and gear knob are in perforated leather. The interior environment can be made even more exclusive by adopting a leather dashboard, a sophisticated option created with hand-crafted diligence.
For maximum driving satisfaction, the instruments can also come with sporty graphics, with white lighting, while the pedal unit and foot rest are in aluminium with a special non-slip treatment.
The version on show in Paris is equipped with a lively 185 bhp 2.2 JTS engine (an up-to-date power unit made entirely of aluminium and equipped with direct fuel injection) combined with a Selespeed sequential gearbox. It also offers a long equipment list that includes a dual zone climate control system and VDC stability system with optional extras such as a radio navigation system, xenon headlights, sky window, adjustable door mirrors with memory, luggage retaining net and sensor pack.