It’s all quiet at Alfa, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to look at. The girls are of an even higher standard than those over the road at Fiat, while the 8C Spider – standing proud in pearl white amid a sea of red – and the recently revised 159 look stunning.

Tell me about the 159

We’ve seen the updated saloon and sportwagon a while back, but seeing it in the metal under the spotlights just reinforces how breathtakingly handsome it is. There are two cars on show at Paris: a Ti (Turismo Internazionale) spec saloon with the 260bhp 3.2-litre V6 and the 2.4-litre diesel Sportwagon – the latter being more stunning. Just imagine if Alfa could offer Germanic reliability and offer a more involving drive – it’d give BMW quiet a headache.

What else is new on the Alfa stand?

It’s not so much what’s new as what’s old. You’d be well advised to check out the 40-year-old 33 Daytona, an elegant 2.0-litre V8 based on the Autodelta T33 racer.
CAR’s verdict: Alfa at the Paris motor show

Beautiful cars, beautiful women, but we’ve seen it all before.