Alfa Romeo 164

The Alfa Romeo 164 was an executive car with saloon body, produced by the Italian automaker Alfa Romeo from 1988 to 1997.

The 164 was re-badged as the 168 for the Hong Kong and Malaysian markets, as the number "164" had a very negative connotation (In Chinese it is a homophone to "一路死" — all the way to death), and "168" has quite the opposite ("一路發" — all the way to prosperity).[1]

Overview

First unveiled at the 1987 Frankfurt Motor Show, the 164 could be considered the first of the "new generation" of Alfa Romeos. It was the last model to be developed while the marque was still independent (although it was launched a few months after the purchase of the company by Fiat), and was most notably the first large front-wheel drive Alfa. The 164 was essential to Fiat's plan to relaunch Alfa Romeo as a prestige car brand after the late 1970s and early 1980s.

The 164 was the last Alfa saloon to be sold in the North American market, where only the 3.0L V6 was offered (12-valve from 1991 to 1993, 24-valve from 1994 to 1995).

It was quite successful in Europe, attracting keen drivers who wanted an affordable and reliable sports saloon, but were tired of German offerings such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz.[citation needed]

The 164 was discontinued and replaced by the Alfa Romeo 166 in 1998. 273,857 had been produced.[2]

Design

The Alfa Romeo 164 was styled by Sergio Pininfarina in 1987, shortly after completing his contract to design the Ferrari Testarossa. The 164 can be seen to share several styling design ideas with the Ferrari expressed as a four-door saloon. In concern for heritage, the design is also the logical extension and successor of the Alfetta, particularly the late-model "long nose, square light".

The 164 was the first Alfa to feature extensive use of computer aided design for calculating structural stresses, resulting in a very rigid but still relatively lightweight body. The 164 was the basis of the Type Four chassis, which it shares with Lancia Thema, Fiat Croma and Saab 9000. Being the last to reach the market, the 164's bodyshell was the most aerodynamic of the four, and had a markedly sleeker profile and lower coefficient of drag. In order to permit this design variation, an exclusive front suspension was developed.