Italian Government Forces Alfa Romeo To Change Name of Milano SUV to 'Junior'

Alfa Romeo announced today it will change the name of its newly unveiled Milano SUV to "Junior" following pressure from the Italian government.

The decision comes just a few days after Adolfo Urso, Italy's industry minister, criticized Alfa Romeo for marketing a car produced outside of Italy with an Italian name. The Milano is built at Alfa's Tychy assembly plant, located in Poland.

"A car called Milano cannot be produced in Poland," This is forbidden by Italian law," Urso said on Thursday. 

He's referring to a piece of legislation from 2003 that calls out "Italian-sounding" products that falsely claim to be produced in Italy, according to Reuters. 

"This law stipulates that you cannot give indications that mislead consumers," Urso added. "So a car called Milano must be produced in Italy. Otherwise, it gives a misleading indication which is not allowed under Italian law."

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