Ateco eyes another Italian job

FIAT is still 18 months away from being reintroduced to Australia.

Ateco Automotive - which currently distributes the Alfa Romeo, Citroen and Kia brands - is in talks with the Italian car-maker with a view to reintroducing the marque here.

"The major issue is homologation of models for Australia," Ateco spokesman Edward Rowe said.

"They have to be retro-fitted with bits (to comply with ADRs) which is always more expensive than engineering it that way from the start." The core models imported by Ateco will be the Punto and Stilo hatchback - the latter unveiled at this year's Geneva motor show.

The Stilo, which is built in three and five-door configurations, bears a strong resemblance to the Alfa Romeo 147 cousin - not altogether surprising given that Alfa Romeo is part of the Fiat Group.

It will be positioned against the likes of the Peugeot 307 and Volkswagen Golf, which indicates a starting price around $30,000.

The smaller Punto will be pitched against the likes of the Peugeot 206.

We will get the Speedgear and HGT models, powered by 1.2 and 1.6-litre engines respectively.

Holden a driving force for Alfa

ALFA Romeo's all-new Spider and GTV - due in 2004 and 2005 respectively - may be the first cars in the line-up to use Holden-built HFV6 engines.

The newcomers will also be the driving force for Alfa Romeo's relaunch in the US.

Although the cars will use Holden-sourced engines, they will be differentiated by a variety of upgrades.

"Plans are underway for a variable-compression head," an insider confirmed. Alfa's product pipeline also includes all-new versions of the 156 in 2004 and 166 in 2005.

Meanwhile, the 156 gains a substantial upgrade next year and the line-up will be supplemented by the limited edition GTA, which is powered by a stonking 172kW, 3.2-litre V6.

Despite the hefty power increase, it will retain the donor car's front-wheel drive layout. It will be priced just under $100,000, making it the most expensive Alfa Romeo sold here.

The 147 GTA, which uses the same drivetrain, will follow in 2003, possibly priced around $80,000.