With the Mi.To, Alfa Romeo wishes to offer a new generation of 'Alfisti' THE SPORTIEST MINI. An up-to-date and innovative car, a name redolent of history. The name MiTo has great evocative resonance for Alfa Romeo for it was chosen to mark the deep-seated link between the past and future of the brand: between Milan, the city of design that brought to the car's style into being, and Turin, which will be responsible for its industrial production A decision that highlights the brand's strong desire to consolidate its Milanese roots.The site deliberately chosen for the car's presentation was the fairytale Castello Sforzesco in Milan where it is said that nearly 100 years ago a young designer found the inspiration for the Alfa Romeo logo when he saw a serpent carved onto the Filarete tower.
Alfa draws on its roots to launch itself into the future
Going back through Alfa Romeo's epic history means turning some of the most important pages of motoring history. It means remembering the cars, races and engines that become milestones of technological progress and the sporting events of the 20th century. Yet the Alfa Romeo story is about so much more than just steel and track, there is also a human component, essentially based on the skill of great technicians and engineers such as Merosi, Jano and Satta Puliga the meticulous creativity of designers such as Prof. Scarnati and the architect Cressoni, and also the experience of all the people on the shop floor.
These people successfully transferred the thrills that Alfa brought to racing to the roads of every day. The best spirit of Alfa Romeo is beautifully encapsulated in this statement by Orazio Satta Puliga (1910-1974), one of the brand's great designers: 'Alfa Romeo is not just a car factory: its cars are something more than automobiles built in a conventional manner. Enthusiasm for a means of transport is a kind of disease. It is a way of life, a very special way of seeing a motor vehicle. Something that defies definition. Its elements are like those irrational traits of the human spirit that cannot be explained by logic'. Today Alfa's cars are determined to carry on 'being Alfa' - and the MiTo's driving qualities, style and engineering make it the perfect vessel to convey these values to a new generation of 'Alfisti'
Alfa MiTo: all the Alfa values in compact form
The Alfa 8C is the technical and stylistic mould for all our cars in the future. The Alfa 8C represents all that is good about the Alfa spirit and has been an essential source of inspiration for the construction of the Alfa Romeo MiTo.
The MiTo is a distillate of pure Alfa Romeo values and came about as a result of a will to give every Alfa Romeo, however compact, a specific attitude of its own made up of sensual style, agility and technical excellence - all with the ultimate goal of driving satisfaction.
The MiTo packs all the Alfa Romeo values into 4 metres. For young people, it represents a chance to gain access their first sports car that is safe with its own distinctive style and technical content. Its dynamic attributes, good fuel economy and low emissions and petite dimensions also make the car an attractive proposition for a more adult audience, within a motoring scenario that now seems to set a premium on downsizing. The Alfa Romeo MiTo is a form of baptism into the Alfa religion for a new generation of Alfisti, opening up horizons of sportiness to the female audience that is essential to the success of any car of this category. The car offers an outstanding weight-to-power ratio, absolute manageability due to cutting-edged suspension systems and direct steering, all features present for the first time on a car of this category.
Lastly, the MiTo, like any Alfa Romeo, is a distillate of state-of-the-art engineering including very special features such as the Alfa D.N.A. system, suspension with coilover springs, Q2 Electronic and DST, all available as standard - coupled with small yet powerful turbo engines.
Alfa Romeo MiTo according to the principles of the Autonomy programme
The Alfa Romeo MiTo can be outfitted with special devices in accordance with the principles of the Autonomy programme. Fiat launched this initiative in 1995 with the aim of constructing individual and collective means of transport and services for those with reduced motor capacity, keeping pace with new product developments, and encouraging the differently able to join the world of motoring.
During the days devoted to the press presentation of the new model, a specially-equipped car will be exhibited as a significant example of the numerous available possibilities. Prepared by Handytech - one of the numerous bodybuilders that works with Fiat Group Automobiles in the sector of special equipment for assisted mobility - this Alfa Romeo MiTo is equipped with a leather-trimmed half-ring accelerator located above the steering wheel that operates totally independently of the original vehicle systems. The car is also equipped with a vertical long-armed brake lever with a brake lock and horn. Customers will also be able to appreciate the electric clutch servo: this device consists of an electric servo motor managed by an electronic control unit that simulates the features of an automatic transmission. In detail, on this example of the MiTo, the gearshift is controlled by a button on the gear lever (the system can be neutralized by a switch that restores the original clutch functions).
Right from the launch stage, Alfa MiTo customers will therefore be able to obtain a car that best meets their requirements and needs. All these devices are easy to install and fit perfectly into the passenger compartment without impairing car user-friendliness, passenger room, comfort and safety. They can also be fitted alongside standard controls to enable the car to be driven by people without motor difficulties as well. They can also be easily removed with the advantage that the car can be sold as a specially-equipped car or a normal car. Lastly, many financial allowances are available for differently able customers.Since 1995, a specific commitment with specially outfitted cars and Mobility Centres
Since 1995 - the year when the autonomy programme was set up - Fiat's belief has been that guaranteeing mobility to all is not simply a great moral and civil aim, a goal the entire community must strive for, but also a fundamental premise for economic and cultural development in present-day society.
We are no strangers to pouring commitment and energy into achieving what we feel to be the specific duty of any automotive manufacturer. In other words, to design and produce technical solutions that allow everyone the possibility of using a means of transport - whether individual and collective - without limitations of any kind.
This activity is in any case perfectly consistent with the true vocation of an enterprise that by its nature operates on the market in accordance with strictly financial considerations to meet human needs. In other words, to meet the needs of customers. And that means all customers. A specific example? In 2007, more than 11,000 Fiat Group Automobiles cars were sold in Italy in accordance with the principles of the Autonomy Programme and more than 900 people made use of the services offered by the 18 mobility centres present throughout Italy.
In our Mobility Centres, disabled people are taken through the bureaucratic, legal and technical procedures and also undergo an initial appraisal of their fitness for a special driving licence (only Medical Boards can conduct a proper assessment and issue a certificate). This is achieved through the highly sophisticated processes and instruments made available (such as the driving simulator) but above all thanks to the many physiotherapists, driving instructors and technicians who man these centres completely free of charge.
The Autonomy Programme together with the champions of today and tomorrow
We should acknowledge the commitment of the Fiat Group Autonomy Programme that aims to do away with prejudice and common misconceptions through numerous, prestigious sporting events: There is no such thing as "different" competitions but only "different" abilities because all athletes have the same will to win and overcome any obstacle. The best demonstration of this undertaking is the participation of the Fiat Group - Autonomy Programme, as Main Sponsor, in the recent "2008 Italian Disabled Ski Championships 2008", and also the fact that it was an official Partner of the 9th Winter Paralympic Games held in Turin 2006. Not to mention its sponsorship of both "Invacare World Team Cup 2008", the Wheelchair Tennis world championship to be held in Cremona, and the World Handbike Championships and European Ice Sledge Hockey Championships in 2007.
Amongst other things, the Autonomy Programme and the Alfa Romeo brand sponsored the driver Alfredo Di Cosmo who took part in the Italian Touring Championship, first division, Group N 3 reserved for 2.0 cc cars, in 2006 and 2007. The Milanese driver was the only disabled driver to register in these two difficult races and took to the track in a powerful Alfa 147 TS 16v 2.0 GR that develops a power of approximately 180 bhp with a torque curve starting at 4200 and rising to 7200 rpm, for a minimum weight of 1014 kg.The car is also equipped with some special devices: Mechanical ring accelerator control located above the steering wheel, power-assisted ring brake located behind the steering wheel, Sadev six-speed sequential gear box with clutch activation button. The racing Alfa 147 also offers a lever-operated brakeforce distributor with 4 positions to increase or decrease the brake force on the front or rear, self-locking differential and adjustable gas shock absorber system.
Last but not least, the Fiat Group has confirmed its support for the world of sport by putting together a new team of young athletes - "Fabbrica Italiana Atleti" - who will represent Italy in the most important international sporting competitions. The ten top-level sports people who have already acted as testimonials for the Fiat Group and its business sectors include the Paralympic athletes Fabrizio Macchi for cycling and Roberto La Barbera for light athletics (the latter was selected by Coni, representing Italian athletics as one of the six testimonials of the new official uniform for Italian sport throughout the world).
Lastly, for the next two years the Autonomy Programme will back the "Freewhite Sport Disabled non-profit organization", a campaign that aims to teach differently able people how to ski and attain full independence on the snow. Introductory courses to the different types of skiing will take place on ski-runs in the Via Lattea (Milky Way) area of Italy, preferably in Sestriere, which hosted the Turin Paralympic games in 2006.