Rare 1958 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider Convertible on 2040-cars

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Alfa Romeo to go all-electric by 2027

On an earnings report last week, Alfa Romeo parent company Stellantis tacked on some electrification plans for its 14 brands. One surprising piece of information: Alfa Romeo would be the first of them to go fully electric, and it'll happen by 2027. We've known that Alfa Romeo would eventually go electric, but it's a bit surprising to hear that Stellantis wants it to happen on such a short timeline, and that it would spearhead its EV push. Alfa Romeo has been one of the most protected brands in the Stellantis empire, and one of the most traditional as well. The often quirky but nevertheless beloved brand has long been a favorite among car enthusiasts. In fact, brand heritage is so important that back in 2014 the company opted to develop its own Spider rather than borrow a platform from the ND Miata (That car went to become the Fiat 124 instead). Stellantis didn't confirm what the first Alfa EV would be, but it could arrive in the form of a subcompact crossover about the size of a BMW X1. It could also share the platform with other Stellantis brands like Peugeot, Fiat and Jeep and is slated to debut in 2022 or 2023. In the meantime, Alfa Romeo is working on the Tonale plug-in hybrid electric, which was recently delayed. Reportedly, Stellantis head Jean-Philippe Imparato was not satisfied with the hybrid-electric system. The PHEV crossover will share a platform with an upcoming Jeep model as well. It should arrive in early 2022 if things stay on track from here. The express timeline also indicates that the new Stellantis STLA large-vehicle architecture will have to be ready before 2027. It's set to replace the sharp-handling rear-wheel-drive Giorgio platform that underpins the Giulia and Stelvio. And while it'll be shared across multiple Stellantis brands, Imparato has promised Alfa Romeo-badged cars will retain the qualities that have made the name so special. In the same report, Stellantis confirmed that Opel would go all-electric by 2028 and Fiat would follow by 2030. Related Video: 2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid powertrain feature walkthrough | Autoblog

Stellantis wants to outfit cars with AI software to drive revenue

MILAN — Carmaker Stellantis announced a strategy Tuesday to embed AI-enabled software in 34 million vehicles across its 14 brands, hoping the tech upgrade will help it bring in 20 billion euros ($22.6 billion) in annual revenue by 2030. CEO Carlos Tavares heralded the move as part of a strategy that would transform the car company into a “sustainable mobility tech company,” with business growth coming from features and services tied to the internet. That includes using voice commands to activate navigation, make payments and order products online. The company is expanding existing partnerships with BMW on partially automated driving, iPhone manufacturer Foxconn on customized cockpits and Waymo to push their autonomous driving work into light commercial vehicle delivery fleets. StellantisÂ’ embrace of artificial intelligence and expansion of software-enabled vehicles is part of a broad transformation in the auto industry, with a race toward more fully electric and hybrid propulsion systems, more autonomous driving features and increased connectivity in automobiles. Ford and General Motors also are banking on dramatically increased revenue from similar online subscription services. But the automakers face immense competition for monthly consumer spending from movie and music streaming services, news outlets, Amazon Prime and others. Stellantis, which was formed from the combination of PSA Peugeot and FCA Fiat Chrysler, said the software would seamlessly integrate into customers' lives, with the capability of live updates providing upgraded services over time. New products will include the possibility to subscribe to automated driving features, purchase usage-based car insurance or even increase the power of the vehicle with a tune-up to add horsepower. As a baseline, Stellantis generates 400 million euros in revenue on software-generated services installed in 12 million vehicles. To meet the targets, Stellantis will expand its software engineering team of 1,000 to 4,500 in North America, Asia and Europe. More than 1,000 of the expanded team will be retrained in house. Stellantis also announced a new partnership with Foxconn to develop semiconductors to cover 80% of the companyÂ’s needs and simplify the supply chain. The first microchips from the partnership are targeted to be installed in vehicles in 2024.

Alfa Romeo Giulia Luggage Test: How big is the trunk?

The Alfa Romeo Giulia is a brilliant little sport sedan to drive, a true delight every time you get a chance to jump behind the wheel. But what might it be like on a road trip? Well, it's a sedan, so obviously you can bring some friends along, but the back seat certainly isn't the largest out there and neither is the trunk. To be clear, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. A bigger Giulia would probably be a worse Giulia to drive. One simply needs to be aware of the trade-off. According to the specs, the Giulia's trunk measures ... um, actually, they're not listed anywhere on the specs provided on the Stellantis media website. For any Giulia from 2024 to 2017. Let's go ahead and check the consumer website then. Wow, nothing there, either. OK then, thank goodness for the luggage test, then. Let's snap to it! OK, so here is the trunk. It is not big, but how might it compare to other sport sedans I've tested, including the Genesis G70 (10.5 cubic-feet), Cadillac CT4 (10.9) and BMW 3 Series (depends on model)? Let's find out.  As in every luggage test I do, I use two midsize roller suitcases that would need to be checked in at the airport (26 inches long, 16 wide, 11 deep), two roll-aboard suitcases that just barely fit in the overhead (24L x 15W x 10D), and one smaller roll-aboard that fits easily (23L x 15W x 10D). I also include my wife's fancy overnight bag just to spruce things up a bit (21L x 12W x 12D). There are two options here. On the left, the fancy bag on top of one of the medium black roller bags, plus the biggest bag (gray) and smallest roller (blue). Alternatively, I could fit the small blue and its bigger check-in sibling, plus the two medium-sized bags -- but the small blue one would be a big squished.  Obviously, as you can see here, there's lots of left over space. There's also two bags left out regardless of configuration. Why? There's just not a lot of height in this trunk, and there are things hanging down that hamper it further. Shown above are speakers can might catch on something, plus the fat structural crossmember running above the fold-down seat pass-through that prevents bags from sliding all the way back. The biggest hindrance, though, are these large seat pass-through pulls on the left and right side of the trunk. They got in the way when trying to stack bags on their bellies atop each other.