FNM and Alfa

[<JHertzman@xxxxxxx>]

In AD7-026 Andrew Watry asks about Brazilian cast-iron 2000s:?

"In a recent article in european car, I believe, Dave Mericle mentioned 
that the cast-iron Alfa 2000 from the 1950s was built for years (and 
may still be) under license as an FMN (?) in Brazil.  Is that still 
going on?  Are there tons of those engines around?  Would it be a 
bolt-in replacement for a 1900 or 102 series 2000 Spider, Berlina, or 
Coupe?  Anybody ever seen one?  Seems like it would be a neato engine 
to have around.  What kind of car are they installed in?"

Fabrica Nacional des Motores was, I believe, more of an affiliate than a
licensee in the seventies, but was engaged primarily in building large
commercial vehicles- 
eighteen-wheelers, heavy-duty earth-moving dump trucks for open-pit mines, and
similar ponderous stuff. Alfa itself had at one time been more of a truck
manufacturer than car builder, but by the seventies was producing only Alfa-
based fwd light-to-medium commercial vehicles with either Giulia twin-cams or
diesels, and a line of heavier trucks and busses based largely if not entirely
on the French Saviems, designed by a Renault affiliate. The FNM trucks
undoubtedly included Alfa-Saviems, possibly the smaller Alfa trucks, and
probably somebody else's designs for the really large stuff. At some point
they did indeed produce a car with a body made with obsolete Alfa 1900 dies,
the shape of the 1900 frontal clearly visible underneath a non-Alfa-look
grill. At least one of these cars was floating around Southern California some
years ago. The engine had no connection to Alfa; I have heard but cannot
confirm that it was a Willys. Probably nothing but the body shape was Alfa-
related. 

This is reasonably logical; body dies are expensive, but adequate engines and
axles can be outsourced anywhere; most of the small car manufacturers in the
US in the twenties and thirties, Kissel, Rockefeller, Ruxton and a thousand
others outsourced practically everything, including frames, as did many
manufacturers in other countries. Economical, but not conducive to the
relatively distinguished mechanical specifications of the Alfas of the period.

I would not be surprised if the 102 Berlina dies also made their way to
Brasil, but I would be very surprised if the 102 engine was cloned, and even
more surprised if it is still going on. Fiat has a large plant at Bertim,
Brasil and a newer one at Cordoba, Argentina which, along with similar plants
in Turkey, Poland, South Africa, Russia, India and China, together are
projected to be building over a million cars a year in the near future. VW
similarly produces cars in Latin America which are technically more advanced,
at least from the standpoint of economic production, than the Alfas of the
sixties. There is, of course, no reason why Fiat could not build present-day
Fiat-based Alfas at Bertim and Cordoba.

As for Andrew's basic question, "Are there tons of those engines around?
Would it be a bolt-in replacement for a 1900 or 102 series 2000 Spider,
Berlina, or 
Coupe?", I think it is basically backwards. In my case, at least, the engine
and running gear of my 102 series 2000 Spider could certainly use a bolt-on
replacement platform and body shell. The engines themselves are rather
durable.

John

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