Alfa Romeo offered up the new 147 hatchback at the 2004 Paris Motor Show, two 3-door versions taking centre stage on a large stand.

Two years ago at this French motor show the 147GTA received its world premiere, and now a new, bigger, bolder, but still charismatic Alfa 147 appears.

The original 147 was very popular on its launch, a car that embodied Alfa Romeo's traditional values: fun and excitement, along with punchy engines and a dynamic chassis. Following the gorgeous 156, introduced a few years earlier, it signified that the marque was really stepping in the right direction.

Alfa Romeo's engineers had to revise this car without negating any of these characteristics, while at the same time the 147 had to grow up and face stiff, improving competition.

Paris gave us the opportunity to see it in the flesh. At the front it has big new eye-catching headlights, much more prominent bumpers and improved detailing.

The large headlights, which feature distinctive triple lamp units, taper toward the grille and compliment the 147's traditional bonnet swages.

The new front bumper, with its prominent honeycombed spoiler cutouts, help to make the car appear larger than it is, while two tiny but high-powered fog lights nestle in their own sharply cut recesses. All in all it follows the family look seen on the facelifted 156 and 166 while retaining its individual character.

At the rear of the car, very careful attention has been paid to improving the appearance without losing any of its widely acclaimed styling character.

Like the recent Giugiaro-styled 156 facelift, the rear lights have increased in size, and the inner edges, truncated with a vertical edge, give the car a sharper finish than the curvy original lenses. The triangular effect is very much in keeping with marque characteristics.

The swage lines are now more harmonised, while the location of the Alfa Romeo badge in the centre of the tailgate is more pronounced.

Unexpectedly, a new chrome finishing strip now runs across the lower edge of tailgate. This is an all-new cosmetic direction from Alfa Romeo.

A revised roofline, together with a more sweeping edge to the screen, finishing as it chases over the rear wiper, complete the hatch makeover.

A bigger bumper rounds out the rear end changes. The rubbing strips of the earlier model are discarded in favour of an all colour-coded finish, while the lower edge is recessed before curving back out for form a slim black lip. This bulging new bumper is certainly more sporty than the original 147's.

Inside the car, minor revisions complement the existing arrangements; most notably the new two-tone fascia colours that blend carefully with each other, while the revised instruments are without doubt an improvement.

Under the skin, revisions to its suspension (double wishbone at the front, MacPherson struts at the rear) have been made. Alfa Romeo's engineers alluded to improvements being made to the comfort of the ride, which has certainly been on the sporty side of comfort in the past. The suspension however, was taped-up in Paris on the show cars leaving it impossible to get a better idea for ourselves.

Three petrol and three diesel units are now offered, from the famous Twin Spark engines to the groundbreaking common-rail 150bhp 1.9 M-Jet. A new second-generation Selespeed gearbox is also on offer. This transmission, which boasts a more user-friendly interface, is fitted to one of the two cars in Paris.

Overall the effect of the new car is pleasing; this successful car now moving onwards and upwards, all without alienating the buyers who have been so enchanted by its values. Instead it should take them with it. We look forward to driving it for ourselves early in 2005. Watch out for that review in the main Road Tests page.

Edd Ellison (ItaliaSpeed) - 4 Oct 2004