The war of words between VW and Fiat is heating up, with Volkswagen boss Ferdinand Piech making no secret of his desire to buy the iconic, but underperforming, Italian marque from Fiat.
Piech first made public his desire to buy Alfa at the 2010 Paris Motor Show, though Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne has always made it clear that Fiat has no intention of selling.
But according to Autocar, Volkswagen is already planning how it will develop Alfa Romeo should the sale take place - a plan that involves Porsche engineering and power plants.
The first fruit of a takeover could be the stunning 4C coupé - unveiled in Geneva this month (March 2011) - with chassis tuning and a new four-cylinder engine by Porsche.
The engine is already in the works for an entry-level Porsche roadster; its appearance in the 4C and other Alfas will help justify its development cost.
But it's seemingly all fantasy on Volkswagen's part at present, with Fiat unflinching in its desire to hold onto Alfa. The brand is about to have a big re-launch in America, which should see its sales improve dramatically.
And with a Fiat spokesman saying that “we shut the door in their faces and now they're trying to get in the window,” it appears VW has its work cut out to get its second Italian sports car brand on the books.
