According to automotive news site Autocar said its observations on Alfa Romeo SUV noted that its development had been put on hold. Although no confirmation had been obtained from Fiat SpA about its planned premier vehicle line developments, several spy photos showed otherwise.

The photos were taken in secret and showed the same Alfa Romeo car the news site had seen in a Los Angeles car show 12 months earlier. The 4C SUV, said Autocar, would be Fiat's first car for drivers in years. The vehicle model could go fast with a small, lightweight turbo engine.

The Alfa model was said to most likely be released in two years. Autocar said that this would mean that its proposed sister SUV from Jeep would be delayed as well. The news site had also not heard any developed on a planned Fiat 500X car or its Jeep version.

Citing analysts, Autocar said Fiat chief executive officer Sergio Marchionne would not be able to proceed with the creation of a premium vehicle line with the Jeep, Alfa and Maserati partnership alliance if he would not be able to get his hands on Chrysler's significant cash reserves.

Marchionne had been negotiating with the shareholders of Fiat from United Auto Workers Retiree Medical Benefits Trust. The trust has 41.5% interest in Chrysler and insisted during negotiations that the value ofits holding is about GBP3.1 billion.

Just last week, Chrysler filed for an initial public offering. The filing was to reportedly settle the dispute over the value of the Trust's holding in the automaker. On the other hand, Autocar said Fiat would need to secure a controlling interest in Chrysler should it go public.

Analysts had also postulated that Marchionne might borrow up to GBP2.5 billion in order to complete its buyout of Chrysler and to get the premier car division up and running.