Alfa Romeo better managed at Volkswagen? Germans, Italians and French disagree!

A few days ago, I published a scenario that still makes purists wince and pragmatists salivate: what if Alfa Romeo was bought by the Volkswagen Group ? The article, published a few days ago, recalled this double “dream” on the Wolfsburg side: that of Ferdinand Piëch, in the early 2010s, then a second approach in 2018. Two rejections, and in the middle a promise that comes back like a refrain: to multiply Alfa Romeo's sales by four by transforming it into a popular Porsche.

But the story didn't stop with the story. It continued... in the comments. And here's where something becomes obvious: depending on whether you read from France, Italy or Germany, you don't hear the same music. Not the same fear. Not the same hope. Not the same trial.

In France: “They would have managed better”... but at what price?

On the French side, the debate splits into two very recognizable camps.

On the one hand, there are those who look coldly at the current situation and conclude that, manager against manager, Volkswagen would probably have done better. We read some very concrete regrets: a wider range, more frequent renewals, a presence in competition, a more stable trajectory. Some sum up the idea in no uncertain terms: Alfa Romeo would have “grown up”.

And when the shadow of Stellantis passes over the discussion, the comparison becomes brutal: “today it's worse because they offer Peugeot duplicates”, “Alfa will die under the Stellantis era”, “lousy PSA engines”. Here, the reasoning is simple: if Italianness is to be “diluted”, it might as well be with a group perceived as powerful, wealthy and structured.

But alongside this, another group rejects the idea on principle, almost viscerally. There's a cultural distrust of the German car, considered too cold, too uniform. The image that keeps coming back is that of cloning: “a Giulietta based on a Golf”, “a Giulia based on a Passat”, and above all this fear of the badge stuck on a generic platform. Several comments say the same thing in different words: an Alfa Romeo under Volkswagen could have become an Audi/Volkswagen in disguise, without that little something that sometimes makes us forgive Alfa Romeo what we don't forgive others.

Between the two, there are the “nuanced” ones: those who admit that Volkswagen knows how to build a brand (Cupra example, Lamborghini example), while doubting that Alfa Romeo can be industrialized without transformation.

In Italy: pride, anger... and the Stellantis trial

In Italy, you don't just read about an industrial debate. It's almost a matter of identity. First of all, there's a very Italian, almost bitter weariness in the face of the national paradox: “in Italy, there are more Audis than Alfa's on the road”, “if you want to see a lot of Alfa Romeo's... buy them!”. As if the question were not just “who manages better?” but “who really supports the brand?”. Some point to this reflex: we defend Alfa Romeo as a symbol, but we don't always choose it when we sign the order form.

And then there's the anti-Stellantis explosion, even more frontal than on the French side. The word “Peugeot” comes back like a slap in the face. There's talk of mistaken strategic decisions, postponed models, a brand lost in a group that's too large, incoherent management. Here, Volkswagen almost becomes a comfortable “alternative universe”: at least, they say, the means would have been there, and production might have been preserved “like Ducati and Lamborghini”.

But even in Italy, not everyone dreams of the German savior. Some reply that Volkswagen wouldn't have worked miracles: the image of reliability has long stuck with Italian brands, and a shareholder isn't going to erase that in five years. Others point out one thing above all: without Marchionne and the Giorgio project, the Giulia and Stelvio might never have existed. For this camp, a “German-style” Alfa Romeo would above all have meant... an Alfa Romeo that was no longer Alfa Romeo.

Basically, Italy is the country where you find the most extreme positions: either “better with them than now”, or “rather die than become German”. It's also the country where the discussion most quickly slides towards politics, taxes, the role of the State, or the figure of John Elkann. As if, behind Volkswagen, it were above all the trauma of an Italian industry that sometimes feels dispossessed.

In Germany: “no thanks”... but not for the same reasons

The German case is fascinating, because it breaks a cliché. You'd think Germans would have applauded the idea of a Volkswagen takeover. However, a large proportion of reactions say exactly the opposite: “Don't touch Alfa Romeo”, “For heaven's sake, not with Volkswagen”, “German sadness in Alfa Romeo”.

Why? Firstly because, for many, Volkswagen does not represent the German automotive dream, but the mass-produced automobile, and sometimes even suspicion: dieselgate, “rigged” engines, criticized DSGs... In some comments, Volkswagen is described as the symbol of the standardized product, of uniformity.

Secondly, because some German enthusiasts clearly recognize that Alfa Romeo can make cars that Volkswagen cannot. We even read statements that turn the usual hierarchy on its head: the idea that a Giulia Quadrifoglio, in its philosophy, couldn't have come out of a VAG specification.

But Germany also has its pragmatic camp, similar to that seen in France and Italy: “With VAG, Alfa Romeo would have better chances”, “better than with Peugeot now”. These people aren't talking about romance, they're talking about survival. And they often add an important clarification: it's not “Volkswagen” that saves the day, it's the group structure, the ability to lift Skoda, to transform Seat into Cupra, to maintain a clear identity despite shared platforms.

The real bone of contention: “management” or “transformation”?

As you read the comments, you'd think you were debating a simple question: “Would Volkswagen have managed Alfa better?” But in reality, not everyone puts the same thing behind the word “manage”.

For some, good management means building volume, occupying the market, renewing the range, investing, securing budgets and stabilizing product plans. In this definition, Volkswagen is naturally credible, and Stellantis often appears as a group where Alfa Romeo has to fight to exist.

For others, good management means preserving a singularity, maintaining a road feel, a mechanical personality, an aesthetic, a character. And in this definition, Volkswagen becomes a risk: that of the “standardized Alfa Romeo”, too clean, too rational, too interchangeable.

What's striking is that all three countries share exactly the same fear... but they project it onto different targets. The French and Italians project a lot onto Stellantis (the painful present). The Germans project a lot onto Volkswagen (the doubtful emotion and recent technical reputation). And Italy projects on everyone at once, because the subject goes far beyond the automobile.

Cupra, Lamborghini, Ducati... the proof that everyone chooses

In this discussion, three names serve as “proof”, and everyone uses them in the way that suits them best. Lamborghini and Ducati are brandished to say: “Volkswagen knows how to keep an Italian identity.” But these examples are also turned around: “yes, technically better, but less crazy”, “the Urus is a supercharged Q8”, “interiors too Audi”. Clearly: even when Volkswagen succeeds, some see it as a cold success.

And then there's Cupra, the example that keeps coming back like a cruel mirror: a young brand, with a sporty storytelling, that sells a lot, and proves that with a common technical base, you can create a strong image... provided you have a stable, aggressive strategy. For some, Cupra is proof that Volkswagen could have made Alfa Romeo a modern success. For others, Cupra is exactly what they don't want: a Golf that thinks it's something else.

Could Volkswagen have managed Alfa Romeo better?

This wave of reactions makes one thing very clear: Alfa Romeo is a brand on which everyone projects their own definition of the automobile. In France, the debate oscillates between romanticism and efficiency. In Italy, it's mixed with pride, politics and anger at the present. In Germany, it runs up against a mistrust of Volkswagen... while acknowledging that Alfa Romeo has something that the Wolfsburg group does not.

Ultimately, the question may not be “who would have managed Alfa better?”. The real question, the one that divides so many, is: what are we willing to lose to save a brand? And on this precise point, the Germans, Italians and French aren't just talking about Alfa Romeo. They're talking about themselves.