The Italian government confronts Stellantis at Alfa Romeo Milano

Italian in question

The Alfa Romeo Milano was presented yesterday in Milan and is already getting a lot of attention. Although this new phenomenon provokes heated debates within the Alfist community, between the “moderates” opposed to Stellantis’ industrial and economic orientation and the “ultras” motivated by what they see as betrayal, a conflict broke out with the government.

This refers precisely to the name of the car, “Milano”, chosen not only to emphasize the urban character of this B-SUV but also and above all to connect it to its roots, the brand was founded in the Lombard city in 1910. However, the Minister of Commerce and Made in Italy Adolfo Urso launched the excavation by recalling that the 2003 law stated that one cannot sell a product that evokes Italy, including its name, if it was not produced in the peninsula: “A car called ‘Milano’ will be manufactured in Italy. Otherwise we are giving a misleading indication (to consumers). Which is not authorized by Italian law”, he announced on the sidelines of an event in Turin, reports the daily newspaper La Repubblica.

Carlos Tavares responds and legitimizes the convention in Poland

Due to industrial restructuring, Stellantis decided a long time ago to build this car in its Tychy plant in Poland (a first for Alfa Romeo), on the CMP platform, like the Jeep Avenger and the Fiat 600, thus sharing the platform with ” Engines of French from PSA. If this causes attacks of hysteria among certain Alfiists, especially Italians – just read the comments on the pages of social networks – who do not support the “Peugeotized” Alfa (sometimes very violent words, which are also related to the behavior of Disgusting French), Carlos Tavares. was interested in responding and saying, while the relationship has been difficult for several months between the management board of Stellantis and the Italian government in the face of the crisis in Italian car manufacturing, the difficulties of the industry and the future of the industrial fabric of transalpine vehicles. .

Adolfo Urso’s comments come as the government led by Giorgia Meloni wants to attract another major car manufacturer, including Settlantis, and increase national car production to 1.3 million cars a year, compared to less than 800,000 registered in 2023, which has already been criticized and Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis, especially when it comes to the Chinese manufacturer.

“The creation of the car was done in Italy. The design was done in Italy. The engineering is done in Italy. Assembling a car in another country does not mean that it is not Italian,” first I wanted to highlight Carlos Tavares. “If the Alfa Romeo Milano was built in Italy, (its prices) would start around €40,000 instead of €30,000, which would reduce its market power” he told Motoring News.

But the truth is that if you have to finance your future and your profit, if you have to ensure the sustainability of the brand, if you have to expand your customer base and win the new generation to buy several Alfa Romeos in their life, you. they must be able, at some point, to beat them to begin with and the price they can pay.”

What does this famous law of 2003 say?

The law of December 27, 2003 is aimed primarily at food or beverages in the past, especially protecting PGIs such as Parmesan cheese. It is the law of 2009 that legislates on “Made in Italy”, only products completely made in Italy (that is to say designed, made and manufactured in Italy) can boast the brands “Made in Italy”, “100% Made in Italy “. ”, “100% Italian. In its communication, if Alfa Romeo highlights Milan and therefore the origins of the brand, it is careful not to speak of “made in Italy”, contenting itself with emphasizing the design “designed” by Centro Stile, located in …Turin! So, will Milano have to change its name in its home country? Above all, we think that it is a communication trick by the government, which wants to put pressure on Stellantis.