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Alfa Romeo to launch lineup of Quadrifoglio Verde-badged hot rods to take on AMG

By Ronan Glon Digital Trends
Published | Updated

The Giulia Quadrifoglio Verde that Alfa Romeo introduced last month is aimed squarely at the BMW M3. Alfa isn't stopping its offensive directed at this single model, and one of Fiat-Chrysler's top executives has revealed the Quadrifoglio Verde nameplate will be the car maker's answer to BMW's M division and the recently-formed Mercedes-AMG sub-brand.

The first member of Alfa's born-again Quadrifoglio Verde lineup is the aforementioned Giulia. Set to go on sale in the United States late next year as a 2017 model, Alfa's first true sports sedan in nearly two decades will take on the M3 and the Mercedes-AMG C63 with a new Ferrari-built V6 engine tuned to make 503 horsepower.

What will come next is anyone's guess at this point. Rumors of a more extreme version of the 4C with up to 270 horsepower have been circulating since the mid-engined coupe was presented in 2013, but have yet to materialize. Admittedly, we wouldn't be surprised to see the company launch a hot-rodded crossover powered by the same V6 as the Giulia.

Alfa has a few high-performance options to choose from but, surprisingly, the company has all but confirmed that it is not planning on taking on the Mercedes-AMG A 45 with a hot-rodded version of the Giulietta hatchback.

"The QV designation will soon be reserved for Giulia and above, meaning it will come off the Giulietta and models at that end of the Alfa family," revealed Pat Dougherty, the CEO of Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles Australia, in an interview with website Car Advice.

We'll find out more about the future of Alfa's Quadrifoglio Verde-badged lineup this September at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

What's in a name?

Quadrifoglio Verde means "green four-leaf clover" in Italian. Although generally synonymous with Ireland, the symbol has been associated with Alfa Romeo ever since driver Ugo Sivocci painted it on the hood of his RL in 1923. Shortly after, Sivocci drove the RL to victory in the 14th edition of the grueling Targa Florio. The rest, as they say, is history.