(December 6, 2011) During the last 101 years, Alfa Romeo has been at the forefront of automotive style, innovation and performance. It was with these key values in mind that the marque created its biggest and most adventurous social media campaign to date — The MiTo Aquabatic Challenge — which saw the latest hot hatch Alfa MiTo become a world record holder.



To celebrate the launch of the new Alfa MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde — a 170 horsepower MultiAir engined, ultra-sporty hatchback — Alfa Romeo constructed its iconic serpent and cross logo using more than 2,500 balloons for a unique social media competition.

In a test of the car’s handling, and the skill of its professional stunt driver, Terry Grant, the range-topping model smashed spectacularly through the iconic badge to set a brand new world record for the most amount of water balloons burst by a car.

The feat, which now stands at 2,738 balloons, is also the 20th record held by seasoned record breaker and Alfa Romeo driver Grant.

Captured using the latest pre-production Red Epic slow-mo camera, the stunt can be viewed in all its glory at YouTube as the final installment in the Aquabatic Challenge digital campaign.

Fans of Alfa Romeo UK Facebook page were invited to take control of one of the grid positions, in the hope that one of the four surviving balloons would end up in their possession and they would win an exclusive track day at Goodwood Motor Circuit.

Damien Dally, head of brand, Alfa Romeo UK says: “Engaging with our diverse fan base and bringing in a new generation of Alfisti through interactive campaigns like this is a key ingredient to our continued growth.

“Above all, we’ve been able to creatively demonstrate the nimbleness and performance ability of the MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde…and, have great fun doing so.”