by Matt Nelson
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While we see Alfa Romeos being sold new in the US these days, many folks may not remember that Alfas were also sold here in the States for decades. From 1951 to 1995, Alfa Romeo operated within the United States as a whole, and even operated its own, albeit small, dealership network until 1988. Of course, the fact that we very rarely see older Alfa Romeo models on the roads these days is a rather unfortunate testament to their reliability.
Nevertheless, few people have turned to buying an Alfa Romeo because its models are reliable. In reality, people love Alfa Romeos because of their sheer Italian-ness, along with their pretty lines and sensational engines, such as the Busso V6. Back in the mid 1980s, Alfa released a compact executive car that could be had with the famous Busso V6. It was called the Alfa Romeo 75. It's a well-loved model for many reasons, and you can pick one up these days for relatively cheap.
Alfa's Loveable Sedan
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Quick Facts About The Alfa Romeo 75
- Carries an average sale price of $11,876
- Introduced in 1986
- Known as the Alfa Romeo Milano in the US
- Marked the final rear-wheel drive sedan to be built by Alfa Romeo until 2015
- Axed following the 1989 model year
Before we dive into our Alfa Romeo Milano/75, it's important to flesh out just how the Alfa brand ended up in the States in the first place.
Alfa's Obscure American History
Of course, Alfa Romeo itself needs no introduction when it comes to gearheads. Those of us who reside in the US have mainly only heard of Alfa Romeo from overseas markets, or perhaps car shows. That changed in 2015, when Alfa returned to the US and began selling cars alongside other Stellantis marques, namely Fiat. However, over on the Old Continent, Alfa's significance in the automotive world is extremely prevalent, and the brand has millions of fans, especially in its home country of Italy.
Alfa Romeo
Alfa was near the forefront of the two-door sports car craze that began to grip the world just after the close of World War II. It can be argued that the English were the first to the party with the introduction of the Jaguar XK120 in 1949, followed closely by the likes of models such as the Crosley Hot Shot, an obscure American post-War two-door sports car. In 1955, Alfa fired back, and released a model called the Giulietta Spider. When it comes to Alfa's popularity, the Giulietta Spider played a key role in laying the groundwork for the brand's European love.
However, things weren't quite so good in the States for the early Alfa Romeo. Beginning in the mid-1950s, Alfas started to be imported into the States in small quantities by private companies. A man called Max Hoffman was the first to mass-import Alfas during its American infancy, along with an Italian named Alfredo Gulla. By 1961, Alfa Romeo established a permanent market in the US complete with dealerships, which Gulla was integral in securing.
Poor Sales
Alfa-Romeo
Unfortunately, Alfa Romeo was never able to establish any sort of dominance in the US market. Right off the bat, when automakers could expect the most sales, Alfa North America was already struggling. A brief period of success was enjoyed following the release of The Graduate, wherein the main character, Benjamin Braddock, owns and drives a 1966 Alfa Romeo Spider 1600. However, this brief increase in popularity was short-lived.
Alfa was heavily beaten out in sales by both domestic and Japanese brands, the latter of which surged in popularity during the 1970s following the first Gas Crisis. In order to right the quickly-sinking ship, Alfa decided to begin importing a well-liked compact executive car called the 75 into the US in the mid-1980s. The company hoped that its generous popularity in Europe would translate, at least in part, into the US market. It was somewhat of a "Hail Mary" move, and the future of Alfa Romeo's North American business relied on its success.
Read the full article on CarBuzz
This article originally appeared on CarBuzz and is republished here with permission.
