Alfa Romeo Junior - The "other" Mini
Alfa Romeo unveiled recently the Junior. That's a name associated with classic cars, because for 20 years the Junior was the synonym of a small sports car, yet fun to drive (I have had the honour of trying one and it's one of the best drives I've ever tested). Due to the old Italian taxation system, these cars could be equipped with a 1.3 l engine which, if the driver behaved and didn't push the accelerator too much, could get very good mileages.
Now, the Junior is back with an aggressive style (not the old coupé) and a set of powertrains ranging from 95 to 200 HP. As you have guessed, the model plants itself as one (more) competitor to the Mini. Alfa Romero will also install Fiat's range of diesels, which with only 1.3 l are good up to 120 HP.
[Source: Autoblog, Autoblog en Español, Yahoo Italia]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
justout 8:19PM (7/10/2007)
bring them on!!!!
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mikeinBuilding7 10:02PM (7/10/2007)
Interesting,
Never thought I'd write this: The BMW One is Prettier.
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A.Brien 11:18PM (7/10/2007)
It will be interresting to have more light and smaller cars in north america with little and powerful high revving engine. It's more fuel efficient if you drive slow yet can be fun if you hard press the gas pedal and you shift at 6 000 rpm. In europe thay drive good so there is that kind of car. Here people don't know how to drive and choose big engine with automatic transmission and the car ( or truck )weight a couple of tons.
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1985 Gripen 12:42AM (7/11/2007)
It's too bad Alfa is no longer sold in the States. My first car was a 1976 FIAT 124 Sport Spider (convertible) 1800 (cc). I loved that car, but it was a reliability nightmare ("Fix It Again Tony"). The problem with these great little European cars is that I think in order to sell them at a profit they'd have to price them too high to sell in the U.S. Nobody will pay that much for that little car. Especially with the dollar being weak against the Euro (and just about every other currency) right now.
Just looking at that Alfa Junior (as with the Mini) you can see that it's going to handle very well, like driving on rails, due to the wheels being pushed-out to the extreme corners of the car. That adds stability. Look at a Mini. If they put the rear axle any further back it'd be under the rear bumper! ;-)
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Mattias 2:04AM (7/11/2007)
Not to mention the Diesels... The Junior will be available with a 105hp 1.3l Diesel and probably with a 130hp 1.7l unit. Both good for real-life mileages in the high 50s.
FIAT is currently doing the same as PSA and Renault: developing small turbocharged engines. These little beasts have maximum torque at about 2000rpm and are really fun to drive. Expect a 1.3l with around 120 to 150hp in the Junior.
Regarding the exchange rates it makes more sense to bring the upmarket brands to the US than traditional European bread and butter cars. Sorry, you will not get the THP powered Peugeot 207 or the turbocharged Twingo (uhh, maybe badged as Nissan?).
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mike 9:32AM (7/11/2007)
I think this is a great looking little car. It would be nice if there was a stylish competitor to the MINI. this or the Fiat 500 (Abarth please!) would do just fine. I'll take two!
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GamefreakM 1:17PM (7/11/2007)
That thing looks cool! What a garage I'd have.... MINI S, Alfa Junior, Smart ForTwo.... And a Chevelle SS454. :D
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