Alfa Romeo Through The Years

aga, Romeo THROUGH THE YEARS Behind the Alfa Romeo badge is a 100 plus year history of automotive greatness, here is a brief timeline of some of the most iconic Alfa Romeo's from the Torpedo launched in 1920 to the 40 launched in 2014. 1910 - THE STORY BEGINS. OMEO It was in 1910 at 95 Strada del Portello, a factory located on the outskirts of Milan, that Ugo Stella established Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili - A.L.F.A was born. Within the year, the fledgling company had 24 HP. A total of 300 rolled off the production line in Italy. Capable of reaching a top speed of 100km/h, the model was the first to carry the new Alfa badge. This consisted of a blue and white background with the serpent from the Visconti family's coat of arms and the red cross from Milan's city banner. The symbols were surrounded by a metallic ring and sat produced its first car, LFA below the words ALFA and MILANO. 1920-TORPEDO 20-20 HP Italian industrialist Nicola Romeo acquired the firm in 1915, adding his name to the badge. The First World War had stopped production, but by the early 20s Alfa Romeo had produced its first car under the new brand, the Torpedo 20-20 HP. It was during the same year that racing legends Giuseppe Campari and Enzo Ferrari helped Alfa Romeo to cement its place in racing history, Campari scoring a win at Mugello and Ferrari taking second place at Targa Florio. 1937 - 158 The design of the single-seater 158, or Alfetta, began in 1937 and carried on after the war years. This motorsport legend won the 1946 Nations Grand Prix in Geneva, followed by the inaugural Formula One race at Silverstone in 1950, where Giuseppe Farina took the chequered flag. Farina went on to win that year's championship title, while Argentinian racer Juan Manuel Fangio claimed the F1 world title in an Alfa Romeo 159 the following year. 1951-MATTA Alfa Romeo produced its first off-roader. The Matta, which translates as "mad" in English, was a hit with the military thanks to its rugged build and go-anywhere attitude. A total of 2,000 models were snapped up by the armed forces. 1954-GIULIETTA With its youthful styling and dynamic contours, the Giulietta was an instant hit. Available in both coupé and soft-top versions, it proved particularly popular with women and helped bring the company's cars to a wider audience. By 1962 more than 100,00 units had rolled off the production line. 1960- GIULIA Heir to the original Giulietta, the Giulia was the first to feature a crumple-zone body style as well as five-speed gearbox. Numerous versions of this popular car were created, including the TZ, a Le Mans winner and the first model to be created under Alfa Romeo's Autodelta motorsport division. Alfa 75 Turbo 1985- ALFA 75 Created to celebrate 75 years of car production, the Alfa 75 was the last rear wheel drive model. Numerous versions were produced, right through until the early 1990s. The car offered a unique design and high performance. Popular models included the 3.0-litre V6 and 2.0-litre turbo diesel. 2006 - SPIDER The return of a legend. Inspired by the 60s open-topped Spider Duetto, which remained in production for 26 years, the new model debuted at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show. An Italian sports car through and through, the Spider brought together beautiful design, great handling, and plenty of power. 2007-8C COMPETIZIONE The 8C was first presented as a concept car at the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show and later launched in 2007. The name refers to the eight-cylinder (Cilindro in Italian) engine. The lines of the twin seater are meant to echo the styling of Alfas of the 1950s and 1960s, and the "Competizione" name is a reference to the 1948 6C 2500 Competizione. Alfa MTo 2008- MITO With a design inspired by the 8C Competizione the MITO is a three-door premium super mini sold to compete with the Mini and the Audi A1. The name 'MITO' is an abbreviation of the cities Milano (Milan) and Torino (Turin) because it was designed in Milanp and built in Torino. The name is also a play on the word 'mito' in italian which means 'mythical' or 'legendary Giulietta 2010-GIULIETTA Introduced at the March 2010 Geneva Motor Show, the Alfa Romeo Giulietta is a small family car available as a 5-door hatchback. It came in second place in the 2011 European Car of the Year awards and was awarded a 5 star euro NCAP safety rating. The engine MultiAir engines used in the Giulietta were voted best new engine in the International Engine of the Year awards 2010. 2014-4C Designed to represent the core values of Alfa Romeo, the beautiful 4C marks the firm's return to producing sports coupés. The presence of a 1750 turbocharged petrol engine and dry twin clutch semi-automatic transmission ensure supercar performance. The use of carbon fibre and aluminium to keep the car's total weight to less than 850kg, result in incredible handling and a thrilling driving experience. 2014-GIULIETTA & MITO OV At Geneva Motor Show 2014 Alfa Romeo introduced the new Quadrifoglio Verde Giulietta and MiTo. the Giulietta QV has a new 237 hp direct injection 1750 Turbo Petrol aluminium-block engine and Alfa TCT 6-speed twin dry clutch transmission borrowed from Alfa Romeo 4C. The Mito QV has a 168bhp 1400 Turbo petrol engine and also sports a TCT 6-speed twin dry clutch gearbox. THE BADGE The Alfa Romeo badge is largely considered one of the great emblems in automotive history. The badge has two key images within it, both central to the brands roots in Milan and dating back to the Crusades. The red cross celebrates Glovanni da Rho - a Milan resident who climbed the wall of Jerusalem and placed a cross during the first crusades. The green serpent is the symbol of the Visconti family who ruled over Milan for many years. Below you can see how the badge has changed and developed since the earliest example in 1910 to the 1982 version we see on the latest generation cars today. FROME OMEO MILANO ILANO LANO 1910 1912 1915 1925 ROMEO LFA LFA LANO 1945 1950 1960 1972 ROME 1982-PRESENT DAY Thames Motor Group