Edit by J-Gian:
Alfa wants ad boost from 8C supercar
Luca Ciferri
Automotive News Europe
March 5, 2008 15:36 CET
GENEVA -- Alfa Romeo could use its 8C supercars in advertising to give the brand an image boost.
Alfa Romeo CEO Luca De Meo is considering creating an advertising campaign to link the limited-edition supercars to its volume models. " The 8C Competizione and 8C Spider represent the true essence of the Alfa brand and it is a pity just to leave them in the garages of collectors," De Meo said.
Alfa unveiled the 8C Spider at the auto show here. The 8C is a convertible version of its flagship 8C Competizione coupe that went on sale in Europe last October.
The 8C Spider will go on sale in Europe early next year. It will start at 210,000 euros in Italy, 45,000 euros more than the coupe.
Alfa will build just 500 units of the 8C Spider and the same number for the 8C Competizione.
Alfa's main plant in Pomigliano d'Arco, Italy, resumed production on Monday after a two-month stoppage to refurbish its assembly line and retrain workers. The plant has been hit by quality problems.
De Meo said Alfa lost nearly 25,000 units because of the stoppage.
" We are trying our best to recover most of this lost volume in the coming months, planning to close the year with about 144,000 sales, the same level of 2007," he said.