Car Moon

The new Alfa Romeo 4C Sports Concept will receive its UK public debut at the rapidly approaching 2011 Goodwood Festival of Speed, which takes place from July 1 to 3.

Seen for the first time at the Geneva Salon in March, Italy’s answer to the Lotus Elise boasts a lightweight chassis with power coming from a mid-mounted 1.75-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine delivering 200 ponies to the rear wheels. It can complete the 0-62mph (100km/h) sprint in less than 5 seconds and reach a top speed of 155mph (250km/h). Production is set to start in 2012.

We don’t know if Fiat and Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne’s future plans for the upcoming, next generation of the Dodge Viper include the development of a corresponding Alfa Romeo model based on the underpinnings of the muscle car, but famed Italian coachbuilder Zagato has given the formula a try with its new TZ3 Stradale.

You see, Zagato’s TZ3 Stradale is an Alfa Romeo bodied sports car based on the platform and mechanical hardware of the track-conquering Dodge Viper ACR, which features the same 600HP 8.4-liter V10 engine as the standard Viper SRT-10 along with a 6-speed manual gearbox and a race-spec suspension. All parts of the TZ3 Stradale’s carbon fiber body are new with the cherry topping being the classic Kamm-tail (K-tail) layout.

Alfa Romeo has unveiled a concept study for a compact and affordable "supercar” called 4C Concept at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. The car is a two-seater, rear-wheel drive coupe with a mid-mounted engine that could find its way into production as early as 2012. According to the Italian car maker, the 4C represents “the true essence of a sports car, according to the brand values: performance, Italian style and technical excellence aimed at maximum driving pleasure in total safety.”

As the name suggests, the car is supposed to be a smaller version of the 8C Competizione, which is also true in the case of the design, as the 4C looks very similar to Alfa's supercar. The Alfa Romeo 4C Concept has a length of approximately 4 meters and a wheelbase of less than 2.4 meters. These dimensions emphasize the compact size of the car and also accentuate its agility, Alfa says.

A "spy" video showing an Alfa Romeo 4C GTA and Spider has been circulating around the internet lately, with some screen shots even making their way on British car magazine Autoexpress which posted a story on its website the other day.

We had our doubts about its authenticity ever since we first saw the film last week, and today these suspicions were confirmed after we came in contact with Marco Procaccini from MPCARDESIGN who told us that he made the video as part of a new (independent) Alfa Romeo project he is working on. Apparently, someone got hold of Mario's video, and tried to pass it on as a scoop, duping many people in the process.

At this year’s Geneva Motor Show, Alfa Romeo may take the audience by surprise with a lightweight, mid-engine and rear-wheel drive coupe concept that will eventually become the Italian maker’s next affordable halo car, reportedly named 4C GTA.

According to an Automotive News Europe [ANE] report, a Fiat spokesman has confirmed that development is underway, however the Geneva debut is uncertain due to “delays in the concept model construction”.

The brand’s last affordable rear-wheel drive model was the “Classic Spider”, which was discontinued in 1994, leaving a gap that was never filled by Alfa Romeo. True, the limited run 8C Competizione, built between 2007 and 2008, was an impressive car, but with a price tag of over €200,000 (US $276,160) it was simply too expensive for the average Alfa buyer.

From the creator of the Alfa Romeo Vittorio Jano Sedan and Sport Wagon concepts comes this new design study for a classy-looking GT. Named after Giuseppe Merosi, a famous Italian automobile engineer Giuseppe Merosi who worked for Alfa Romeo (then named A.L.F.A.) in the beginning of the previous century, the prototype presented by Marco Procaccini from MPcardesign is a four-seater sports coupe designed to feature a much missed by Alfa Romeo fans, rear-wheel drive layout.

Welcome to the story of the Alfa Romeo Nuvola Prototipo, one of the most gripping concepts to wear the famous Visconti Serpent badges in the past two decades. Unveiled for the first time at the Paris Motor Show in 1996, the Nuvola Prototipo was named after Tazio Nuvolari, the legendary Italian motorcycle and racecar driver who competed for Alfa in the 1930s.

The Nuvola had all the essential ingredients of a proper Alfa Romeo sports coupe - a beautifully crafted body and interior, classic proportions, a dedicated chassis and enough power to put a smile on your face.

Of course we would have preferred a rear-wheel drive setup, but its four wheel drive layout is much less of a compromise (for a sports car) than if power was transferred exclusively to the front axle.

This is IDECORE's (an acronym for "ideas, concepts, relationships") Alfa Romeo Monza V8,a new digital concept in honor of the Italian firm's centennial celebration. IDECORE, which bills itself as "independent designers and modelers", sees this model as an Executive Sport 2+2 with a next-gen Multiair V8 driving the rear wheels.

A few months back we showed you Marco Procaccini's Vittorio Jano design study for an Alfa Romeo 159 replacement (see here). The slinky fastback notably featured an aggressive front end treatment and a C-Column / rear glasshouse design somewhat reminiscent of the Lotus Evora.

Now Marco is back with a more practical Sport Wagon variant of the Vittorio Jano which -in theory- is 50 mm longer and 10 mm taller than its saloon sibling.

Though we'd all like to think we're pretty unbiased when it comes to gender roles in the workplace, there are still a few that manage to surprise us.

Take for example automotive designers. The list of male personas in the industry is almost endless: Harley Earl, Raymond Loewy, Ian Callum, Chris Bangle, Giorgetto Giugiaro... Now try and think of female car designers and you're unlikely to come up with even one name without Googling it.

While doing background research on a sleek design study called the 2022 Alfa Romeo Mode, Carscoop was surprised to discover that the designer behind the project was a woman. As a great number of ladies we speak to roll their eyes at the slightest mention of cars, we were determined to investigate.

What we discovered was designer Yana Briggs, who was kind enough to agree to do an interview with us. We ask Yana about herself, the challenges of working in a male dominated industry and her Alfa Romeo design study. Intrigued? Then follow the jump for the interview.

Automotive design students from UK's Swansea Metropolitan University tapped into the deepest wells of their imagination to create their final year projects and exhibit them at the 2010 Degree Show, which was held in July at the National Waterfront Museum in Swansea Marina. Thanks to the crew over from 'Car Body Design', we can show you some of the conceptual projects that were on display.

These include the Alfa Romeo Stradale 50, a mid-engined supercar said to combine the curvy lines of the 8C Competizione with the more angular detailing of the 159 and Brera; the Duesenberg 2100 that revives the iconic brand from Indiana with a futuristic take on the Art Deco theme; the exotic BMW Formula 1; the Ginetta G80 sports coupe and last but not least, the Aston Martin Viceroy. Follow the jump below for the photo gallery.

The Alfa Romeo Vittorio Jano concept sedan is the brainchild of independent Italian designer Marco Procaccini. Named after Vittorio Jano, an Italian race car designer of Hungarian descent that worked at Alfa Romeo from the 1920s through the 1930s, Procaccini's proposal is a sporty-looking saloon with a five-door fastback body style and seating for four.

Created as a direct replacement for Alfa Romeo's BMW 3-series-fighting 159 sedan, the Vittorio Jano measures 4,650mm in length, 1,830mm in width and 1,400mm in height. The designer said he plans to follow up the sedan with a Sport Wagon study. Gallery and video after the jump.

[Updated with an official statement] Just landed in our mailbox is this teaser sketch of the Alfa Romeo 6C 3200 Cento spider created by a Dutch/Italian design company called "1754 Fuori dell' ordinario" to celebrate the automaker's one hundred year anniversary.

Details remain sketchy for now but the design firm said that the styling was inspired from Alfa's historic racers and production roadster models, while the 156 GTA's 250HP 3.2-liter V6 would be the power of choice of the spider were to be produced. We've sent an email to the company for more information, so we'll update the story as soon as we hear back from them.

Originally made for Alfa Romeo by Bertone, the (real) Carabo was built atop a chassis donated by Alfa's 33 Stradale. Packing a 230-horsepower V8, it debuted at the 1968 Paris Motor Show. But this isn't it.

Don't worry, this isn't some tacky, Fiero-based kit car, either. The guy behind this replica wanted to purchase the original from Bertone (so the ad says) but the design firm wasn't willing to part with the masterpiece, so he decided to say to hell with that and have his own built...by Sam Foose. For those who just got out of bed, that would be Chip Foose's father.

Here are the names of the three designers behind this Alfa Romeo Spider: Alberto Gaiani, Massimo Paparella and Michela Zedda. They're from the Politecnico di Milano University, and this is the result of a project in conjunction with Alfa.

If ever built, this Spider would likely have an FR layout, a power cloth top, and retain the trademark Alfa nose. From these shots, it looks like a Pontiac Solstice / Saturn Sky from Alfa, a higher-luxury would-be Miata hunter.

Samuel Codegoni, a teacher at the university, explains the design like this: "One of the main ideas that drove this project was to express a sense of tension in action. This decidedly moves away from the first production model takes as a reference: the iconic Duetto of the 1960's - the second reference was the Alfa Spider from the '90s, with its typical wedge-shaped profile."

The Zagato-penned and developed Alfa Romeo TZ3 Corsa was finally revealed in a world premiere at this past weekend's prestigious Villa D'Este Concours.

As Zagato pointed out, the car is not a design exercise but a one off racing special that was commissioned by German collector Martin Kapp who owns, among other Alfa Romeos, an SZ coda tonda and SZ coda tronca, TZ, and TZ2, Junior Z and S.Z.

Inspired by its 1960s predecessors, the original Alfa TZ and TZ2, the TZ3 Corsa is based on a mono shell carbon fibre tubular chassis, coupled with a tubular frame and a lightweight aluminum body.

Zagato has released two more pictures of its latest creation, the Alfa Romeo TZ3 Corsa that takes inspiration from the original Alfa TZ and TZ2 and commemorates Alfa's centenary.

The Italian carrozeria claims that the Alfa Romeo TZ3 Corsa is not a design exercise study but a one-off race car that has been commissioned by an unnamed enthusiast from Germany.

What you're looking at here is the first official teaser picture of Zagato Atelier's Alfa Romeo TZ3 Corsa that will be fully unwrapped at the prestigious Villa D'Este Concours d'Elegance motor show on April 25.

Contrary to initial reports, the Alfa Romeo TZ3 Corsa is not a concept study but a one-off race car that was commissioned by an unnamed enthusiast from Germany.

With Alfa Romeo midway through its centenary year, Italian coachbuilder Zagato is adding to the automaker's centenary celebrations with the world premiere of a new concept sports car at this month's 2010 Villa D'Este Concorso d'Eleganza.

Dubbed the Alfa Romeo TZ3 Corsa, the concept model is said to pay homage to special Alfa TZ models of the past. No other details were released on the car, but with the show just around the corner (April 23-25), we won't have to wait long to find out what it's all about.

As talented as any designer may be, it's never easy to update an original classic such as Marcello Gandini's 1970s Alfa Romeo Montreal sports coupe. Nevertheless, young design student Davide Varenna tried his best to create a modern interpretation of the Montreal for the "Stile Italiano Giovani 2010" competition organized by ANFIA.

The 20 year-old student adopted many styling cues from the original Montreal including the deep headlights, the shape of the side windows and doors, the hood-mounted NACA duct and slats behind the doors, adding his own personal touch to the rest of the car.