Design details of the coupe have yet to be finalised but Giugiaro's styling and engineering company, Italdesign, will be heavily involved in making the car a production reality. An all-new 90-degree V8 engine is currently under development - in the concept it is said to be over 4 litres and capable of producing just under 400bhp.

The unit is mounted well back in the engine bay to ensure a near-perfect 50:50 weight distribution and hooked up to a six-speed semi-manual gearbox. The flagship Alfa will also feature a new four-wheel-drive system.

The adoption of 4wd is significant for the entire Alfa range. Expect the replacement for the 166 to be offered with four-wheel-drive and the option of V8 power, too. (The new big-car platform is being developed in Sweden in a tie-up with GM and will eventually be utilised by Saab, Vauxhall and Lancia as well as Alfa Romeo.)

High performance derivatives of all future Alfas - which will be tagged GTAs - will also offer the security of four driven wheels. Less powerful variants will stick to the economical front-wheel-drive layout.

Italdesign has already carried out production feasibility studies on the coupe concept and is confident that it could reach production with very few changes.

However, the Geneva show car's expensive carbonfibre body will be ditched in favour of steel and aluminium. The good news is that a large V8-powered Alfa will almost certainly reach production in 2004. Enthusiasts will hope that it retains the looks of this concept - and that the US market doesn't hog the entire production run.