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The troubled Alfa Romeo Giulia needs serious help [UPDATE]

UPDATE: An Alfa Romeo US spokesman responded to this article with the following statement: The safety concerns expressed in the story are false. The all-new 2017 Alfa Romeo Giulia is designed and engineered to meet or exceed all federal safety regulations. The Alfa Romeo Giulia will begin production for the North American market in the late second-quarter of this year. Alfa Romeo will have a full product portfolio of premium vehicles that includes plans for (8) all-new Alfa Romeo vehicles by 2020. The product launches are prioritized by segment volumes starting this year with the Alfa Romeo Giulia production for North America starting in late Q2, followed by the Midsize-UV – the 2nd largest premium segment in North America. Even on the day you dragged them kicking and screaming and gesticulating wildly to a table full of concrete evidence, Alfa Romeo executives will never admit the Giulia program is going through a tough patch. But it is. Reports say the Giulia, on the eve of production, didn't just fail one internal crash test, but failed the front, side and rear impact tests. Alfa denies it. Automotive News published a report last week saying two suppliers had insisted the Giulia, on the eve of production, didn't just fail one internal crash test, but failed the front-, side-, and rear-impact tests. A third supplier source told us the same thing. Alfa is denying it. It was due on sale in Europe late last year and was supposed to be here in the next month or two. But it wasn't, and it won't. It was to be headlined by a twin-turbo V6 that reportedly howled its way around the Nurburgring 14 seconds faster than the BMW M3 could manage. That second part is only true if you believe it's fair to compare a full lap in a standard BMW M3 with a favorable accumulation of sector times to a development prototype Giulia with 220 pounds stripped out of it and rolling on hand-cut racing slicks. No, me neither. A Promising Start The Giulia's all-new architecture was developed in just two years by a skunkworks of young engineers headed by Fiat's engineering prince, Philippe Krief, and (bafflingly) sited inside Maserati's headquarters complex in Modena, about three hours from Alfa Romeo's own Turin HQ.

V8-powered Maserati Levante spied nearly naked

I love fast SUVs. A big engine can do wonders to make a boring crossover exciting, even if they still handle like an overstuffed goldfish on wheels. That's why I'm really excited to see spy shots that show a V8-powered Maserati Levante in the flesh. Even before the Levante hit showrooms, Maserati admitted to us that a V8-powered prototype was already in existence. It seems that a full reveal is imminent. Visually, the prototype we see here only does with revised front and rear fascias. It's slightly more aggressive, but not that far removed from what's currently available. Still, we're more interested in what's under the hood. Maserati said the Quattroporte's Ferrari-assembled 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 fits in the Levante with no issues. That should be no surprise, as the two models share a basic platform. In the Quattroporte, the engine makes 523 horsepower and 479 pound feet of torque. Don't be surprised if things are cranked up in the Levante to compete with the 567 horsepower BMW X5 M and the all-new 550 horsepower Porsche Cayenne Turbo. Look for bigger brakes, stiffer suspension and more aggressive rubber. Typical performance modifications. While we don't know for sure, the V8 Levante is likely to wear the GTS badge, just like the top-dog Quattroporte. Unfortunately, the model ditches hydraulic steering for an electrically assisted unit. Still, it's sure to be a riot, at least in a straight line. Related Video: Featured Gallery Maserati Levante GTS spy shots View 12 Photos Image Credit: CarPix Spy Photos Maserati Crossover SUV Luxury Performance maserati levante gts

Maserati offers peek into Alfieri concept's design

This year marks Maserati's hundredth anniversary, which means we'll be spending the rest of 2014 talking about all the company's planned celebrations. The Alfieri Concept, shown at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, though, is quite possibly the most noteworthy part of the brand's centennial.
Named after one of the company's founder, Alfieri Maserati, the coupe is a striking piece of design, although it did manage to fall short of earning a spot on our editors' choice list for the Geneva show (we blame this more on the number of exciting products at the show rather than any shortcoming of the showcar).
In this video, Maserati Centro Stile designers take us through the process of penning the Alfieri, from the car it was inspired by, on to the actual process of designing the car. Fans of automotive design won't want to miss this video. Take a look below.