News about future products from Fiat Auto have been pouring in recently, after a long period of silence which had many industry specialists confused. After the ground-breaking news that the development of the Fiat Stilo replacement has been completed after a period of just 18 months, spy photos have revealed the first 'mule' of the new Fiat 500 project to be seen on the public roads. These two models, along with the successful Grande Punto and niche Croma, will add to the new face of the Fiat passenger car range, with quality, the best of Italian style and value being its foremost characteristics. Over the last month though, news from Alfa Romeo has also been emerging, with ever increasing chatter about the Alfa Romeo 147 replacement, codenamed Progetto 940.

As originally planned, Progetto 940 will be based on the new ‘Compact’ C-platform, which will also be used under the Fiat Stilo replacement and new C-segment Lancia. A series of discussions were held concerning the possible use of the Premium platform, which underpins the Alfa Romeo 159, and which will most likely be used for a future Alfa Romeo cross-over vehicle which may be developed in collaboration with Maserati. The decision to use the Compact platform was calculated, with the foremost advantages being weight and time to market. The Premium platform would have required an estimated 6 additional months of development time, resulting in a rather late market launch of early to mid 2008. With the C- platform now chosen, the Alfa 147 replacement will make an appearance between October 2007 and January 2008.

Several styling proposals were drawn up for Progetto 940, by Bertone, Centro Stile Alfa Romeo, Giugiaro, Fioravanti and Pininfarina, from which three finalists were chosen. A specialist company was employed to produce 1:1 and 1:5 scale models of all proposals. All of the five designs feature very similar round rear lights, which were first grafted on to a 1:1 scale model back in summer 2004 at the Arese based Centro Stile Alfa Romeo. The Centro Stile design proposal takes cues from the Kamal concept car and Alfa Romeo 8C Competitzione, the latter which will be launched later this year at the Paris Motor Show. Details from the 8C design have been used in particular for the front end of the car, with the lights and bumper design.

Engineering work at the Elasis facility also got well underway at an early stage using the original Centro Stile bodywork designs.
 

Interestingly, the external proposals also used details from the 8C Competizione, notably the front bumper design. There are though some stark differences between the proposals, with one, for example, using a quad front light setup. In general, the design proposals reflect different ideas, ranging from a high quality straight edged formal design, to a stunning curvaceous Italian design, and thus covering a broad range of customer demands. Already, it is strongly rumoured that the Centro Stile Arese design has been chosen as the winner, the design expressing true Italian style and a well balanced combination of the brand values attached to the Alfa Romeo brand.

Computer and virtual technology is now being used extensively by Fiat Auto for product development, with prototypes scheduled to hit the roads only during final development stages. There have been suggestions that a batch of mules will be built in August or September for testing at Balocco and the Elasis engineering centres. Progetto 940 uses both front and four-wheel-drive transmission layouts. Independent suspension all round, similar in design to the setup used on the Alfa Romeo 159, will provide for an impressive combination of handling and comfort. With a total length of approximately 4.3 metres, and a wheelbase in the region of 2.6 metres, the five door hatchback bodywork with hidden rear door handles will offer a spacious interior for its class.

In the meantime, sales of the current Alfa Romeo range are doing particularly well, after turning in an impressive increase of 44.9 percent in May over the April month. The Alfa Romeo 147 model range remains an excellent customer choice, offering the most stylish and driver oriented car in the C-segment and at a fantastic value, along with undoubted class leading handling capabilities.