Ferrari off topic?

[C M Smith <cmsmith@domain.elided>]

Hold on thar. FIAT is in deep financial doodoo. FIAT owners also own 
Ferrari. FIAT Group also own Alfa Romeo. If anyone thinks FIAT Group is 
spending all this money putting a Ferrari on the front row of every GP they 
can because they think it will make Ferrari more profitable, please get 
head examined at once for traces of grey matter.

Ferrari spends money on F1 to raise the brand profile, just as Mercedes, 
BMW, Ford (though heaven it knows it ain't working there) Renault, and 
Toyota are doing, not to mention Bridgestone and Michelin. The brand they 
are raising the profile of is the FIAT Group, Ferrari already HAS a top 
quality, high margin brand name.

Ferrari's reputation in F1 has a DIRECT bearing on all of the marketing 
FIAT does for their cars in Europe, including Alfa Romeo. It's  just too 
bad that the US sports consumer is not noted for sophisticated taste in 
sporting events...yet. The new Indianapolis GP is whetting the American 
consumer's taste for a real technology sport, and it might just pay off for 
those Euro brands trying to get US buyers to appreciate the psychological 
benefits of driving high tech automobiles. So far, most US buyers like 
things like electrically adjustable running boards on their Lincoln 
Navigator ( I kid you not, they ADVERTIZE this as a feature...the mind 
simply boggles) which explains why the idea of a 3.2  dohc aluminum V6 
putting out 240 or more hp leaves them cold.

So, Ferrari's reputation in general is highly important to the prospects of 
Alfa's return to NA... which is of primary importance to those of us for 
whom even the best classic car is, like the neighbour's purebred dog, 
something best enjoyed occasionally, and definitely not owned.

Cheers

Michael

(obsequiously unctuous Nomex type underwear firmly in place...)




Michael Smith
Calgary, Alberta,Canada
91 Alfa 164L
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