Officially formed in 1910, the company then known as A.L.F.A. (Anonima Lombardo Fabrica Autombili) flourished until 1915 when mining industrialist Nicola Romeo, looking for a profitable investment, joined ALFA and the Alfa Romeo marque was born. Alfa's early successes shined brightly in the late 1920s and early '30s. With the brilliant automotive designer Vitorio Jano at the creative helm, and racer Enzo Ferrari running the company's racing unit, Alfa Romeo won almost every major motor competition in Europe. From hill climbs to Grand Prix, Le Mans and Mille Liglia, Alfa's cars set standards by which others were judged. The early Alfas were considered to be among the world's ultimate road cars, even surpassing Mercedes, Maserati and Bugatti. After World War II, Alfa shifted its designs to smaller, four-cylinder cars with an eye on mass production. Twin-cam engine designer Orazio Puliga's work first appeared with the introduction of the Giulietta in 1954.

Available in several variations -- a salon, a convertible and two types of coupe -- the Giulietta made a huge leap in redefining sports-car standards of that era. Following are some highlights from the Alfa Romeo line during its heyday.

• The Guilietta -- The mainstream small salon featured a 1290 cc, 53 bhp engine. The success of this model turned Alfa into a mass production manufacturer.
• The Guilietta Sprint -- The coupe version of the Guiletta appeared in 1954 and generated 80 bhp.
• The Guilietta Sprint Speciale -- Based on a shortened Giuletta floor plan, this coupe was attractively sleek, low and fast -- generating 100 bhp and capable of reaching a top speed of 125 mph.
• The Guilietta Spider -- A Farina-styled convertible with the same engine as the Sprint, the Spider was slightly faster thanks to a lighter weight. Alfa produced a convertible model every year after the introduction of this automobile.
• The Guilietta Ti -- This was a tuned version of the salon and was capable of generating 74 bhp. Introduced in 1961, this became the most popular of the models. Fifty-thousand were built between 1961 and 1964.
• The Giulia -- Another step in Alfa's evolution came with the introduction of the Giulia in 1962. This model also came in coupe and spider designs, which were mostly carryovers from the Guilietta predecessor. The salon, however, was a new design. But all had a new name and, more importantly, a 1570 cc engine with a 5-speed gearbox. The Giulia models would ultimately form the backbone of the Alfa line, with sales surpassing 400,000 in 1972.
• The Veloce -- While the Giuletta and Giullia were crucial to Alfa's history, the model most commonly regarded as the classic Alfa Romeo is the 1750 Veloce 105 series released in 1967.
• The Duetto and The Spider -- Derived from the Battista Farina designed Duetto (introduced a year earlier), the Spider had the same round-tailed body and was essentially indistinguishable from its predecessor. With its alloy engine-block, twin camshafts chain driven from the crankshaft, aluminum/cast-iron cylinder liners and aluminum head, the new 1779-cc engine propelled this rear-wheel drive, five-speed model to a top speed of 115 mph.