Alfa Romeo motors was founded in the year 1907 under the name Darracq Italiana. The word Alfa in the name 'Alfa Romeo' comes from the acronym Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili, which means Lombard Automobile Manufacturing Company. Darracq Italiana is a reference to an aristocratic Frenchman named Alexandre Darracq. Alexandre Darracq and a man named Cavaliere Ugo Stella joined to create Darracq Italiana, which later converted into the Alfa Romeo motor company.

Anybody who lived in Italy during the 1960s is familiar with Alfa Romeo cars, as they manufactured the Italian police cars that were used during that time, small quick vehicles called 'Panthers.' Panthers were fast and small for a reason - it gave the police an edge over the average vehicle when it came to speed and handling and at the time, most people could not afford the sticker price of a brand new Alfa Romeo vehicle. Alfa Romeo cars were built by hand and hand-built cars are never cheap. For this reason, the Alfa Romeo cars were cars that were hard to come by for the average Joe, making them perfect vehicles for the Italian police force.

The Alfa Romeo Spider vehicle was made famous during the hit motion picture, 'The Graduate,' with Dustin Hoffman. The protagonist in the movie whips around in that vehicle, showing off the fact that it is an Alfa Romeo, a much coveted motor vehicle. This makes Dustin Hoffman's character an 'Alfista,' meaning an Alfa Romeo owner. Multiple 'alfista' in one area make for an 'alfisti,' which is a group of Alfa Romeo car owners.

Alfa Romeo cars are rarely seen in the United States, and there is a reason for this. In 1995, Alfa Romeo stopped exporting their vehicles to the United States from overseas. During this time, Alfa Romeo vehicles were hard to come by in the States and those that were obtained were ordered and shipped at the Alfista's own expense. That is how strongly Alfa Romeo owners feel about owning their Alfa Romeo vehicles.

One interesting fact that few but true Alfa Romeo fans would know is that most Alfa Romeo vehicles are rear wheel drive. As a matter of fact, until the mid 1980s, all of the vehicles that Alfa Romeo manufactured were rear wheel drive. Also, Alfa Romeo is a subsidiary of another automobile manufacturer called Fiat. Alfa Romeo is now headquartered in an area that encompasses portions of Arese and Mangalese, but the headquarters was originally located in Milan, Italy. Alfa Romeo headquarters is now listed to be in Torino, Italy-the site of the last 2007 winter Olympic Games.

When Alfa Romeo first started out as a vehicle manufacturing company, they used a Twin Cam engine. These days, Alfa Romeo uses a GM-based, basic V6 engine in their vehicles, both those that are sold abroad and the cars that have recently been sold in the United States since the company's 2006 announcement that the Alfa Romeo would be soon returning to the United States.

The Alfa Romeo is a legend in vehicle manufacturing. They are known mostly by their emblem, an Alfa Romeo badge. The badge was created by a man named Romeo Cattaneo and Giuseppe Merosi. The Alfa Romeo emblem is a combination of the symbol of the City of Milan and the symbol of the original Visconti clan. Later on, Alfa Romeo became a winner in several championships and a winner's laurel wreath was then added to the Alfa Romeo emblem, completing the design of the seal. The words 'Alfa Romeo' are etched across the top of the emblem along the top border of the seal.

As far as concept cars go, Alfa Romeo has but one concept car worth noticing. It is the Alfa Romeo Nuvola and it was introduced in 1996 but never brought to production. The opening of the Alfa Romeo Nuvola was done in Paris to the delight of Alfa Romeo fans from all over the world.

VehicleRide is everything the current and future of cars. Find your car at VehicleRide.com the world's most famous car classifieds.

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When you're choosing upholstered furniture for your home, it's important to make sure you understand how you plan to use the piece of furniture, how much time and effort you're willing to put toward its upkeep, and the length of time you expect the piece of furniture to last.

Here are some helpful tips that will help you choose the best fabrics for your furniture.

• When selecting furniture, first check the fiber content on the manufacturer's tag. If it's not there, have the salesperson provide you with the information.
• Check to see that the actual fabric is firmly woven. Hold it up to the light to see if it's compact and closely woven.
• Examine the fabric's raw edges to see if they fray or easily ravel. If they do, you'll find that the yarns will pull away at the seams in cushions, sofas, and chair frames.
• Stretch the fabric diagonally to see if it will hold its shape without wrinkling.
• A balanced weave (all yarns are about the same size and strength) will wear better than a weave that has heavy yarns in one direction and thin yarns in the other.
• A twill weave will resist wear and show soil less than a plain weave of similar quality.
• Flat-surfaced fabrics such as damask, brocade and satin will show the effects of abrasion because the long yarns on the surface are subject to wear.
• Pile fabrics, such as plush, frieze, and velvet, will withstand abrasion well if they are made of firm yarns with deep and close pile and are firmly held to the ground cloth.
• A pile fabric with cut loops mats more easily than one with uncut loops.
• Loosely woven fabrics should have applied latex backings to ensure stability and longer wear.
• Rub a fabric sample 20 to 30 times with an emery board to see if the color changes or rubs off. Pigment-printed fabrics may show color loss from abrasion.
• Check to see if the fabric has an easy-care or stain-resistant finish such as Scotchgard by the 3-M Company, Teflon and Zepel by DuPont, that will allow water-based stains to be easily blotted.
• Ask the salesperson if the finish that the manufacturer has applied is durable and covered in the warranty.
• Choose fibers that withstand sunlight.
• Check to see if the fabric is flame retardant.

The most important thing to remember when choosing upholstery fabrics is to read all hang tags, labels, and information imprinted on the fabric samples. And when you're comparing prices, note that a less expensive fabric might serve your purpose as well or better than a more expensive one.

James Charles is an award-winning interior designer who can professionally design your homeand save you thousands of dollars at http://www.designerathome.com

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