Dial 166

We drive this new automotive number in India. The Alfa Romeo 166

Hi! We meet again. Am I surprised? No, it was kind of obvious to me that I would meet you here in India. You are just in time, because there's lots of exciting things happening here in our country..." Sorry to keep you on hold, I was canoodling with the Alfa Romeo 166, you see. I met her in 1998, in the more exotic environs of sunny Spain.

There was romance in the air when Fiat worldwide introduced me to her, but then there were 5,000 other Romeos (as in Juliet, not Alfa) like me as well, comprising motoring hacks and Fiat group dealers from around the world.

It was a brief fling of passion in true Alfa style, as I took her around some really amazing and scenic roads and highways around Madrid. It's another thing that we got lost, meandering through that superb, twisty tarmac. Now, here she is, in flesh and blood, in Mumbai. It's like meeting your old flame, all right.

Born with a Silva spoon

When designer Walter da Silva (now doing amazing work at Seat) actually sketched the lines of the 166 in front of the audience at Madrid, he got a standing ovation. Maybe it was the sheer dexterity of his hand that elicited such a response, because the 166, after all, was launched only after the world saw his seminal work on the 156.

In fact, the 166 was on the drawing board for quite some time, as the ageing 164 urgently required a replacement. But then, sensing that they had a potential winner in their hands, Fiat gave the development of the 156 priority over the 166.

With the result that the 166 borrows plenty of styling cues from its younger sibling, with the effect that it is not as much as a stunner as the 156, or even the recently introduced smaller 147, but it does have its strong points.

For one, it carries its bulk very well. To put it in perspective for us in India, the 166's dimensions are very close to that of the Honda Accord or Hyundai Sonata, but when you look at it, what goes inside your head is its lithe, seductive shape rather than size.

An effect that's the sum total of the lateral lightcatcher, a wedge-shaped hood, and a sporty low-front, high-rear stance