Alexandre
ALFA ROMEO: THE NAME MILANO DOESN'T WORK? THEN JUNIOR IT IS! We talked about it a few days ago, the Minister for Made in Italy had declared that the use of the name "Milanochosen for the recently revealed sports compact, was against the law. Yet the name was chosen to pay homage to the town where Alfa Romeo was born in 1910.
Historically, Alfa Romeo has often solicited public opinion to name its models, as was the case in 1966 with the Spider 1600, christened "Duetto" by its fans. However, despite compliance with legal requirements and more pressing issues to deal with, Alfa Romeo quickly opted for a name change to "Junior", aimed at maintaining a climate of serenity and mutual understanding. Junior's name must already have been on the short-list, because it's the one we sensed several months ago.
By press release, the Alfa Romeo team expresses its gratitude to the public for their warm welcome, to the dealers for their support, to the journalists for their intense media coverage, and even to the Italian government, whose interventions offered unexpected publicity to this debate.
Jean-Philippe Imparato, CEO of Alfa Romeo, comments: "We are aware that this moment will mark the brand's history. Choosing 'Junior' seemed a natural choice, given its deep connection with our heritage and its popularity with our public. As a team, we continue to put our passion at the service of the brand, always putting the product and our customers first. The decision to change the name, although not compulsory, is intended to preserve the positive emotion that our vehicles have traditionally aroused, and to avoid any controversy."
Stefano Odorici, President of the Italian Alfa Romeo Dealers Association, adds: "Alfa Romeo is a brand that generates passion and positive emotions. The latest news, which is likely to influence enthusiasm for the new car, makes us even more excited. applaud the decision to rename the model from Milano to Junior. These two names, steeped in the brand's history, were already among the public's favorites."
"Junior" is nothing new in the Alfa Romeo lexicon. The name dates back to 1966 with the GT 1300 Junior, a car designed to appeal to a young public thanks to its elegance and exclusivity at an affordable price. Equipped with a powerful 1290 cm3 engine, this model was a runaway success, selling over 92,000 units and becoming a symbol of its era.
This situation remains absurd, and once again marks the tug-of-war between Stellantis and the Italian government that has been going on for several months.
It's a crazy turn of events but quite logical, Junior fits this little SUV like a glove, Milano would in my opinion be more appropriate for a large sedan...produced in Italy of course!:)
It's the gag of the day. Imparato and Tavares are amateurs!
With the PureTech engine, call it Peugeot Junior, change a few logos, and you'll be back on track.
Another debacle for Imparato, who chose the name...
We should think about changing the management team...
Milano, Junior or Tartempion, it's all still crap from Pijot, in any case it proves that whether under the Fiat era or now Stellantis, this brand is still managed by incompetents. What a shame Fiat didn't want to sell it to VW back then, when you see what they've done with a dying Audi!
Well, with the 3-cylinder vw as greedy in oil as the puretoc, fortunately Fiat has never sold alfa to vw, I remind you that the closure of seat is programmed by 2030....in 10 years of mechanics I have never repaired so much car vw or Ford.
In the end, Seat will continue to produce cars, and in the worst-case scenario, Cupra sales will make up for any stoppage. It must also be said that Seat and even
Cupra sells 4 times more cars than Alfa Romeo
This is not the first time that the Fiat Group has renamed a model shortly before its release. In 2003, the second-generation Panda was to be called Gingo. After threats from Renault, who felt the name was too close to Twingo, Fiat hastily decided to revert to the Panda name (which was actually a very good thing).
What I remember is that the group is very responsive and perhaps made the right decision in opting for a nice name for an SUV that I find very nice.
But this brand is a sketch!
How did I catch the virus?
It's true that Alfa cars traditionally arouse positive emotions, but they should ask a representative panel of their target customers for feedback, perhaps they'd learn something. As for the rest, we're in a state of total improvisation. At least we got a lot of coverage at the launch, but is that really necessary for Alfa Romeo, given the passion associated with the brand?
In France, people remember more the 205 junior, which was really the bottom of the range, and this name doesn't necessarily sound like a car name. Besides, the 146 junior didn't boost sales either. I agree that Milano should be an Italian car with a FPT engine, not a puretoc.
A question arises: didn't SSANGYONG Tivoli suffer the same attacks from Italian politicians, even though it's a city in Italy and the model wasn't produced there... it's only a short step from saying that politicians want to em*** Stellantis?
Incidentally, Alfa cars have always been produced in Italy, with dozens of Italian subcontractors, Italian bodybuilders and an Italian R&D subsidiary called Magneti Marelli. Today, the executive notes that Marelli has been sold to an investment fund, that subcontractors (notably for seats) are no longer Italian, and that the latest Alfa is produced in Poland. At some point, we have to defend jobs in Italy and fight against relocation. It's one of the government's missions to defend the interests of Italian citizens.
It's true that the Italian government is doing its part to defend jobs in Italy.
The Sabelt seats on the Veloce version are made in Italy, aren't they?
The Sabelt seats I had on an Abarth 695 were super snug, and perfect.
The Abarth 595 and 695, and some of the old Fiat 500s were also made in Poland, and I never thought I'd have anything other than an Italian car.
The Alfa Romeo Junior exudes a certain dynamism. And watching several videos of the Junior on the move, I think it's not too bad, just like the Tonale.
It's not a timeless line like the Giulia, but I'm waiting to see it in person. The interior is very good, no doubt about it. The subject of engines is another matter.
It's not a name that will help sales... Milano may be classy, but Junior is not. For a petite bourgeoise, it's an aspect that should have been taken care of.
Simply Brenero, as originally planned.