THE motoring flair that Italy is renowned for has returned to Saudi Arabia in real style with Gulf Motor Company’s (GMC) Alfa Romeo, Fiat and Fiat Professional showrooms in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, which effectively cover all of the main cities in the Central, Western and Eastern regions.

Designed to reflect the European culture of the brands and staffed by experienced, highly trained teams, the showrooms offer highly advanced world-class sales and service facilities to both private and commercial customers.

The importance of the Saudi market was underlined by the recent visit paid to GMC by Alfredo Altavilla, COO, Fiat Chrysler EMEA, who said: “In 2012, sales-wise, we were the fastest growing manufacturer in the region with our Chrysler brands, and we aim to achieve similar levels of growth with the Alfa Romeo and Fiat brands in 2013. Our commitment to the Kingdom is demonstrated by the rapid deployment of our Alfa and Fiat network, particularly with such superb showrooms.”

Alfa Romeo is synonymous with innovation and Italian style combined with great engineering and technological capabilities. Now available in Saudi Arabia, the Alfa Romeo MiTo was the first car produced by the legendary Italian brand after the stunning 8C Competizione — Alfa Romeo's icon of style and technology —from which it borrows a number of characteristic design cues.

“Alfa Romeo cars have always been known for their drive comfort and dynamic behavior, and in the case of the MiTo, self-avowedly an Alfa to the core, they are taken to new levels,” said Abdullah Al-Ateeg, GM, GMC, the sole distributor of Alfa Romeo, Fiat and Fiat Professional in the Kingdom. “The MiTo has also been joined by the new Giulietta, which celebrates the brand’s past and heralds a future of sporting excellence and elegance that are the hallmarks of Alfa Romeo.”

Since its launch, the new Alfa Romeo Giulietta, in addition to receiving rave reviews from customers, has also received numerous awards from the international press. The reasons behind this astonishing success are simple — Giulietta has delivered against the promises made during its development, namely that it would deliver handling and driving pleasure, high quality, low operating costs, comfort and ergonomics plus active and passive safety.

Now available across the Kingdom, the Giulietta carries on the tradition of the best Alfa Romeos, further enhancing the brand’s heritage in terms of dynamic performance, without compromising efficiency and everyday comfort.

The secret behind this performance is the result of constant technological research that has resulted in new technologies that feature in the Giulietta - a compact architecture, created with highly resistant materials, allowed Alfa’s engineers to restrict the weight of the car - dual pinion steering and highly sophisticated suspension systems - Alfa’s DNA dynamic drive selector and award-winning 170hp 1.4 TB Multi-Air engine.

Fiat is redefining performance and luxury benchmarks in the small- to medium-size segments with the latest model of the iconic Fiat 500 and Linea models that are now available in Saudi Arabia.

Beautiful Italian styling combined with timeless functionality, efficient design and innovative technology are the attributes that made the original Fiat 500 (Cinquecento) a timeless icon. More than 50 years later, the same qualities make the latest generation of the Fiat 500 relevant for an entirely new generation of drivers.

“The Fiat 500 is a classless car, a vehicle that’s not just about being a well-known badge. I believe we have a 500 model that will be within the reach of a wide range of customers across the Kingdom, be they individuals or fleet buyers,” said Al-Ateeg.

Fiat Professional’s range of competitively priced, highly versatile, strong and reliable commercial vehicles - Fiorino (winner of the Best Light Van Award in the 2012 Van Fleet World Honors), Doblo and Ducato – is also available exclusively through GMC.

With a wide range of products capable of meeting the most diverse mobility and transport needs, and over 100 years of experience, Fiat Professional has become a leader in its own sector.