Alfa Romeo History

Part of the Fiat Group since the mid eighties, thethe car parts still in the company's possession,
Italian Alfa Romeo Car Company was created in 1910enough to produce well over one hundred cars.
in Milan. Originally the Societa Anonima Italiana DarracqRomeo changed the company name to Alfa Romeo
(SAID) company, the group was first founded inin 1920, with new cars displaying the new badges.
1906 and was located in Naples. Behind the groupProducing many successful road and racing cars, Alfa
was the French Alexandre Darracq firm, and ItalianRomeo retained Giuseppe Merosi as the head
investors, with Alexandre Darracq later deciding todesigner.
move the company to Milan, where a new eightGiuseppe Merosi was replace as the chief designer at
thousand square yard factory was created to houseAlfa Romeo by Vittorio Jano, a previous Fiat
the new automobile company. One of the Italiandesigner, who was persuaded to move over to the
investors, the aristocrat Ugo Stella, decided to formAlfa Romeo by Enzo Ferrari, the Alfa Romeo racing
the new A.L.A.F Company due to lagging sales of thedriver. Penning the designs for the winning grand prix
Italian Darracq cars.world championship cars in 1925, and designing a run
Hiring the designer Giuseppe Merosi to design theof successful medium sized production cars, saw
new A.L.F.A cars proved a success, with the first carVittorio Jano designs as quick, powerful and well
being a 1910 24 HP. The car was raced in the Targaengineered cars.
Florio in 1911, driven by Franchini and Ronzoni. TheFalling to financial free fall after the war contracts
production of cars by the A.L.F.A and Darracqhad ended, Nicola Romeo parted with the company,
partnership ceased for three years shortly after, withleaving the government to intervene in the market
the start of World War One present. Nicola Romeo,place to save the manufacture. The company
the Neapolitan entrepreneur, began to direct thecontinued to make high end exotic cars for wealthy
company in 1915, producing various components forclientele. World War Two saw the factory bombed,
the Italian military. Profiting from the production ofshattering the company's finances, which resulted in
war hardware, Romeo ploughed his money back intoAlfa Romeo in desperate times, unable to produce a
his company portfolio after the war had finished,company profit. The time for mass production of
adding various railroad carriage plants. Althoughsmaller and less luxurious cars was on the cards,
Romeo has less interest in producing cars, theseeing the introduction of the Giuliette series of cars.
company began to produce automobiles again due to