Alfa romeo museo storico-Arese,milano-visited

[lombardi]

Finally made it back from my lovely trip in italy and visit to Arese.

One thing i notice on my trips to italy is the personalities and the warmness of the italiani and this includes the lovely people at Alfa Romeo in Arese. As per instructions rang the gent involved in the museo 2 days prior to my intended visit and was greeted with niente problema,venite all'entrata ,tutto pronto. I made the trip by public transport,wich included a metro and bus plus a lengthy walk on a muddy footpath on a busy road. First thing i noticed and struck me,how huge the ALFA ROMEO ARESE PLANT was,it spreads for miles,very dipressing to notice the decaying old factories including a huge ALFA EMBLEM rotting away,what came to mind was in its heyday all those beaut Alfettas that came out of there,the mood on the day was set by a typical milan foggy winters day with the temp hovering around 2 degrees.

Having arrived at the gate,my id was ready,and the security guard pointed in the direction of the museo,noticed outside the museo ,parked were some employees cars and a 159 wagon with Alfa servizio emblems on the side,other cars where a 166, a GT, AND A FEW GIULIETTAS-LATE MODEL, and a mito.

The museo is closed to the public,according to the cleaners and the guards whe spoke to,they are anxiously waiting for a decision by mr Marchioni alias FIAT ,THEY DONT SEEM TO OPTIMISTIC and it is sad, the museo has some incredible history,including a very strong presence of Aviation engines-propellor- which was used during the war.

It is conforting to notice that the vehicles where still being cared for by some female cleaners and the condition of the museo is quite good considering it has been closed for quite a while.

During our visit we where given free reign, took lots of photos ( on my sons iphone,once i figured out,will post the results).

What really struck me though was the delapidation and the state of the old ALFA factory,how once it would have been a booming happening place of industry,reduced now to a depressing greying decaying site,the area i am talking about is huge and spreads for miles and miles.

With the sign of the times,outside the new factory of ALFA- i think they make the Giulietta there- a disgruntled ex worker has a van parked outside the gates,with placards asking for his job back.

Some people though are very loyal to the brand,perhaps alfa employees, as this area had the most old alfas being driven, ie- 75s,33s,155,145, in the rest of italy its mainly 147,mito and heaps of giuliettas-may i say that the giulietta is a big hit in italy. the 147 is used as a taxi in milan,cool to see.

On a final note, yes it was awesome to see those great cars under 2 roofs,felt although depressed on the state of ARESE and the lack of compassion for what was once a place of dreams,maybe i am to nostalgic, but after my visit i crave for my old GTV,OR A 75,so i can relieve those times.

Thanks for reading.

CIAO

[Evan Bottcher]

Awesome update, thanks!

[lombardi]

Evan,glad you enjoyed my report, i felt emotional writing it.

[ItalCarGuy]

It is difficult when your beloved brand has a 'parent' company that does not instill the same passion in its own brand. I think our only hope is that a new wave of Alfisti are born through the new models that are coming out and they and they fall in love with the history, culture and passionate sporting ethos that Alfa Romeo stands for.

[pasey25]

It is difficult when your beloved brand has a 'parent' company that does not instill the same passion in its own brand. I think our only hope is that a new wave of Alfisti are born through the new models that are coming out and they and they fall in love with the history, culture and passionate sporting ethos that Alfa Romeo stands for.

you rekon Alfa has got it bad. Imagine you weree a Lancia fan 

[1750GTV]

Glad to hear that you got there - it's worth the effort - and sorry to hear that it may soon be completely closed to the public.

I also have a few photos of the car park area at Arese overgrown with plants coming up through cracks in the vast concrete parking area. Sad.

The day we visited the guard was very nice and directed us up the road to the left and on to the Museum entrance. As I said in a previous post, we were the only people there for quite some time.

In the attached photo, the museum is at the bottom left (#17) and is dwarfed by the sheer size of the industrial plant. The public entry is the covered control point below and to the left of #15 just before the road splits. Cars surplus to museum requirements or under repair or restoration were housed in #16 and I believe that in days gone by it was possible to look through there as well. Just below the photo is the Milano-Laghi A8-9 autostrada. You can see the Museum from the autostrada as you speed by in your Fiat.

The Arese plant is due for redevelopment as a residential area soon. See - http://www.euromilano.net/projectDetails-en-10.html

Chris

[Bear157]

Wow, so jealous. We bypassed Milan on our trip to Italy and Europe in 2011/12 because we couldn't get any response in regards to getting a look at the museum. Knowing there is a way may mean I might have to chat to the boss about a quick day or two over to Italy when we go to Cyprus during the June/July school holidays this year.

Rob

[Campbeli]

I enjoyed your storey, reminds me of my visit in 91 when back packing in Europe. Had to get out there on a local bus, use my limited Italian with the security guard and leave my passport with him. I was the only visitor! What a fantastic collection