Alfa Romeo's New Sedan Is Big on Horsepower and Hubris

The Alfa Romeo striptease continued in Milan this week. This time Fiat Chrysler pulled the cover off a big, sporty sedan dubbed the Giulia. The Alfa renaissance has been going on for some time now. The storied badge now makes the minuscule MiTo and the hatchback Giulietta—neither of which are available in the U.S. In early 2013, it started making the 4C, a tiny, angry speed-pod stripped down to two seats, a carbon tub, and little leather pulls for closing the doors.

In other words, Alfa has been nibbling at the edge of the global car market. Its next model was supposed to be the big bite—the vehicle that would goose the brand toward its lofty volume goals. The thing is, the Alfa we saw on Wednesday isn’t a machine made for volume. Huge sales numbers in the auto industry are usually driven by pickups, compact SUVs, and small, bland sedans.