Blog

April 25th, 2008:       It is amazing that Fiat has had some of the best automotive technology in Europe, but it never made its way to the US.    We've heard the stories about the "green" and super fuel-efficient turbo-diesel engines, and the Fiat 500 has made quite a splash.    How did the US companies miss this?    Isn't it interesting that it took a global recession to get the technology moved into the US.    Fiat has been extremely well-managed since Marchionne took-over, getting rid of non-core divisions, opening new markets, and pushing to be one of seven worldwide auto-makers he envisions to survive in the next ten years.     Bidding on Opel was shrewd.   It is hard to believe that the man is putting these deals together on virtually no financial investment.       Now, we learn that Chrysler's embattled CEO, Bob Nardelli will be taking a powder as well as the entire board of directors.     If this deal gets finalized, this won't be another Renault-AMC fiasco, but Fiat entering the US on their own terms, bringing the cars that have been so popular in Europe to a hungry American market.   It will be interesting to see the faces of a generation that grew-up never seeing an Italian car in a showroom.   The new Fiat family of cars will certainly be an eye-opener that there is a big world out there, and much of it isn't American.     Just possibly Fiat will have a new legacy beyond, "Hey Tony, fix it again!!"

December 27th, 2009:   Yes, it has been a while.     The new 850 has arrived at the club and we have the Phoenix Gita on the near horizon.   It has been an interesting and somewhat challenging year for the club, but we hope to get the road trips and discussions planned for 2010.    

I recognize that many of the Italian car owners are far-flung across this rather large state.     I know that many of the Italian car owners are in the early "project" phase of their investment, and making it to meetings in Albuquerque is difficult.    Please stay in touch with us and feel free to use us as a technical resource for your project.     We know where you can find parts, advice, service and put you in touch with others who have faced the challenge of bringing an old Italian back to life,  and can provide hope that the projects are doable.

We know that there are more Italian cars out there, need some help in locating them and owners who are interested in restoration.   Any information you can provide is much appreciated.                 

John