We already knew Fiat's Alfa Romeo was bringing the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione to the US and using the Maserati distribution network to do it. We'd also heard one option Fiat was discussing was creation of a new plant in Mexico to supply North America with volume models like the 159 sedan and upcoming Mi.To and 149 hatchbacks. But what we didn't know, if the coy allusions made in an article appearing in today's Financial Times are to be believed, is that Fiat CEO Sergio "March Madness" Marchionne may be looking at snatching up excess capacity at US automakers.
If you think about it, such a deal would be a marriage made in convenience heaven, especially given the current value of the US Dollar against the Euro. We're also fairly certain the US automakers would be eager to part ways with the cash black hole of unused auto plants. So putting the two together would be a profit-making proposal we could easily see happening. We're only hoping the UAW labor won't balk at the idea of having to meet those legendary high Italian quality levels. [FT.com]