What Were They Thinking? When Alfa Romeo Rebadged a Nissan to Create the Arna

When the Nissan Versa was launched in Australia as the Tiida, many automotive watchers were excited by the prospect of blending Renault’s European flair with Nissan’s Japanese reliability. “Here,” they said, “Is a car that’ll please everyone.”

What they got was a narrow-bodied subcompact with so-so styling, a plasticy dashboard, a shocking lack of equipment and an overinflated price tag. Not to mention Kim Cattrall in the TV spots. If this sounds strangely familiar to our older readers, you’re right on the money. Twenty-three years before the crossbred Tiida hit Australian shores, another mongrel was being birthed in Europe.

It was 1983, and Alfa Romeo had just launched the Arna, an acronym for “Alfa Romeo Nissan Autoveicoli”. The Arna was essentially a N12 series Nissan Pulsar / Cherry with the engine, transmission and front suspension from Alfa’s popular if rust-prone Alfasud. Built in Alfa’s new Pratola Serra factory near Naples, the Arna had the mechanical reliability of the Alfasud and all the style and grace of the Cherry.

In other words, it was a dog.

Although it was available with either of Alfa’s 1.2L or 1.5L flat-four boxer engines, the fact remains that it was a dull Japanese hatchback built by the same uncaring, unionized Italian labour force that had built the Alfasud. In one final irony, the Arna was deported exported to Japan as the Nissan Pulsar Milano, probably giving the Japanese peoples their first (and last) taste of ‘80s Italian engineering.

The Arna died a quiet death in 1987, replaced with the Pininfarina-designed Alfa Romeo 33. The 33 was by no means a great car, though after the Arna, many Alfaistas would have welcomed an yearly rail pass with open arms. Nissan continued to sell the Cherry / Pulsar in Europe, though never met great success in Europe’s highly competitive subcompact car market until the launch of the K11 Micra in 1992. For both manufacturers, the Arna was a miserable failure, remembered only by auto watchers such as yours truly.

By Tristan Hankins

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The Audi A8 Says, "Long Live the T-Shifter!"

When Hyundai launched the i30 small car on the Australian market, it marked the end of not only the Excel/Accent lineage down under but also the end of the automatic T-shifter. The Accent, a subcompact design available in either a four door sedan or five door hatchback body style, was the last car sold here to feature the venerable (if archaic) T-shaped automatic gear stick.

The T-shifter was born in the 1960s, as American automakers moved away from the steering column mounted automatic and towards a system that reduced complexity and design differentiation between its automatic and manual models. As the ‘80s moved into the ‘90s, automakers - for whatever reason - moved away from the T-shift and toward the semi-ubiquitous, upright “drumstick” shifter.

It seems that the T-shifter is back, at least for one car. The new Audi A8’s ergonomically friendly, chunky automatic gear shift has that distinct T-shaped that many of knew and loved from the pre-‘90s. Some bloggers believe that the automotive behemoth’s unique choice of shifter will influence other carmakers to return to the classic T. Personally, I’m not convinced. Feel free to leave your comments below if you disagree, or have some fond T-shifter memories to share.

By Tristan Hankins

Via: WSJ

Gold Trimmed 1987 Ferrari Testarossa Begs One Question: Why?

Found for sale on eBay, is this specially customized 1987 Ferrari Testarossa, which has been...cheesed up with gold platted accents. The precious material covers the five-spoke alloy wheels, logos, side air vents, front grille, rear vents and the rear column surrounds.

Surprisingly, the owner claims that the Italian supercar has clocked a mere 3,000 miles or about 4,800 kilometers on the odo in the past 23 years, all of which he says were made "behind guarded gates in our community". Unless the community has a private race track, we can't really think of a worst fate for a Prancing Horse model... The asking price for the kitschy Testarossa is $90,000. Scroll down for more photos and the seller's entertaining description.

eBay Seller's Description:

This is my father's pride and joy, a real customized treasure from the 1980's. We're attempting to see what kinds of offers people may have for us as we're attempting to simplify our lives in the current economy, please submit your offer. As you can see, this is a one of a kind Testarossa, you won't find another like it, it's unique to itself. It's only been driven behind guarded gates in our community. The car is in excellent condition. It's just recently had a 'facelift' (normal maintenance and parts replacement) at our local Ferrari dealership since it doesn't get driven but maybe on the weekends around the block, and my father likes to keep it looking brand new. We have all records, maintenance and otherwise for the car. The car's accent pieces and wheels have been dipped in real 18 or 24 carat (I cannot remember?) gold plating. See additional details regarding the car below.

DESCRIPTION

1987 FERRARI TESTAROSSA, 1987 Ferrari Testarossa. Gold dipped wheels, gold accents: side fins, hood, grill, engine carriage, rear prancing horse, engine hood, Immaculate vehicle with 3000 miles. Non-smoker, glossy original paint, no accidents, good overall interior condition, headliner ok, trunk and carpets ok, no dash cracks, Custom exhaust. The cars entire life was spent in Southern California. This is a one-owner car. Therefore, all records are available, all Ferrari Owners Manuals and leather case, Ferrari factory service manual, Ferrari factory parts manual, factory tool kit including the spline lug removal tool, ect. Custom security alarm.

Source: eBay via VWVortex

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Sandy Sanderson’s Can Cars Are Automotive Art Par Excellence

The automobile is such an integral part of so many people’s lives that it’s no wonder than artists and sculptors often use them for inspiration. Take Sandy Sanderson of Hamilton, New Zealand, for example. He takes beer and soft drink cans and crafts them into meticulous, highly detailed replicas of hot rods and other classic cars. And Mr. Sanderson really is a meticulous sculptor.

Check out the amount of detail he puts into the suspension, interior, engine and wheels of his cars. Even the gauges, gear shift and hand brake are replicated in detail. It boggles the mind. Each car takes as few as eight and as many as thirty soft drink / beer cans to construct, the whole process taking Sandy up to a month from start to finish.

Most of the cars are purchasable too, with prices ranging from NZ$800 to NZ$2,000 (US$472 to US$1,537). Pricey yes, but these things are gorgeous. My favorite is the “Coruba Climax”, a replica of the Cooper Climax race car of the 1960s made of Coruba Rum cans (don’t worry if you haven’t heard of Coruba Rum - I hadn’t until I read it on Sandy’s website).

You can check out the full gallery of images below. When you’ve had a look, tell us your favorite in the comments section below.

By Tristan Hankins

Source: Cancars via Techblog

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