Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione: Will they, won’t they?

Newswheel staff :: 22 March 2006 :: Filed under Coupe, Front engine sportscar, Alfa Romeo, Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, Europe & UK, US

[Click on an image to view]

Carbon-bodied coupe conundrum

A swoopy carbon fibre body bolted to a space frame chassis. And a screaming Ferrari-derived V8 mounted up front and driving the rear wheels. Yup, the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione concept, first shown at the Frankfurt show back in 2003, is a bit of a no brainer. The sort of car you’d think Alfa would be desperate to build. And so it is, according to Alfa’s new CEO Antonio Baravalle. In fact, he’s even willing to slash Alfa’s advertising budget in order to divert funds to the project. That’s the kind of fighting talk we like. Problem is, it seems the suits at Fiat HQ aren’t reading from the same script…

On the subject of the 8c Competizione, Sig. Baravalle is quoted thusly by the weighty and reliable tome that is Channel 4’s 4Car website:
   
“It is my dream to do it. We have cut the budget for our advertising campaign and will do the 8C instead, because it is a perfect way to promote the Alfa brand. Sergio Marchionne [president of Fiat Auto] says if the figures add up, do it.”

Although the full technical details have yet to be hammered out, if the 8C Competizione does get the green light, it’s likely to use the same carbon-fibre-over-spaceframe construction as the original concept. And just like the concept it will share its engine block with current Maser and Fezza bent eights. What’s more, 4Car reckons a rev-happy flat-plane crank configuration, as per Ferrari F430, is on the cards for the 8C’s particular eight-pot lump.

All of which is fine and dandy, except for one minor malfunction. Italian publication Fastdrive claims the project has been canned for fears that the car would cannibalise sales of the Maserati 4200GT. So, who’s got it right? Well, we’ll know soon enough. 4Car claims the productionised 8C will be shown at the Paris motor show in September, at which venue orders for the production run of 500 cars will open.

P.S. In other Alfa-related news, Alfa grand fromage Antonio Baravalle also intriguingly indicated that a bona fide rear-wheel drive replacement for the 166, to be built on a platform to be shared with Maserati, is under consideration. Here’s hoping…

Linkage:
4Car
Fastdrive (via Leftlanenews)