Now that the calendar reads ‘2009′ and summer is upon us, we can already begin shutting the book on the first decade of the new millenia. All the cars that will be produced have either made it to dealerships or have half a dozen reviews already printed in some magazine collecting dust on your shelf.

This decade closes much like the 1960s, in an atmosphere of uproar and protest, with rumors of war and peace and revolution at hand. The auto industry has experienced a second Golden Age, bigger and grander than the first, and has again sunk into crisis, darker and dimmer than the one Baby Boomers remember. And enthusiasts young and old fear that a similar fate awaits them in the coming years with news of outrageously stringent CAFE standards, and fear-mongering legislators fuel anxieties that we’ve already seen the best cars of the next thirty some odd years.

So it is that we turn back to this decade already a bit nostalgic. Here lie the future legends, the autos of myth and lore. With the future unclear, we ask ourselves which cars made the glorious 2000’s the decade we will all miss more than we know?

Fiat 500 Abarth Edition

Documents obtained by Edmunds that detail testimony by Thomas W. LaSorda, president of Chrysler, confirm some of RideLust’s own speculation as to which of Fiat’s models are coming stateside.

Fiat Group SpA, the corporate parent of the Fiat, Ferrari, and Maserati brands (among others), released a statement on Sunday detailing that the group is in talks with GM’s European operations about purchasing the whole shebang. In addition, the Fiat Group may spin-off Fiat Automotive, combine them with the GM Europe units, and also with the newly acquired stake in Chrysler to create a new corporate entity, which at least one source reports would have a potential revenue stream topping $100 billion.

This April, Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este will hold its traditional automotive beauty contest for the 80th year in a row and will be sharing the octogenarian spotlight with co-sponsor BMW. Celebrating 80 years since the production of their very first automobile, BMW will bring a few very special guests to this year’s Concorso, including the BMW 303, the first Bavarian car to sport the kidney-shaped radiator grille, and the all-new BMW Z4. Also among the beauty pageant contestants will be the 1969 BMW 2800 Spicup Coupé, a concept vehicle first unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show 40 years ago. Designed using textbook Bertone front-end styling and drawing heavily from Albrecht Goertz’ BMW 507, the BMW 2800 Spicup Coupé eventually became lost in the shuffle until it was “discovered” last year in Holland. In April, the BMW 2800 Spicup Coupé’s grand debut at the Concorso will mark its first public appearance since undergoing total restoration.

While a finalized version of the Chrysler-Fiat alliance has yet to be officially approved, sources familiar with the terms of the agreement have confirmed that an alliance between the two automotive titans would pave the way for Fiat’s North American debut. Tentatively, the plan calls for a total of 7 Fiat vehicles to make their way to the U.S. market, intended to represent each segment equally. Although it is still unclear which vehicles will serve simply as underpinnings and which vehicles will maintain their Fiat badging, the good news is that Alfa Romeo MiTo will be making the jump across the pond.

In addition, Fiat also plans to introduce 2 A-segment vehicles, most likely the Fiat 500 and a Chrysler-badged Fiat Panda variant; 2 B-Segment vehicles: the Alfa Romeo MiTo and an as-yet-undisclosed additional vehicle for the Chrysler lineup; 2 C-Segment vehicles: the Alfa Romeo 147 as well as similar vehicle sharing the same Fiat C-Evo platform; and 1 D-Segment vehicle: a Chrysler Sebring replacement built on an elongated version of the aforementioned C-Evo platform.

In celebration of its 46th birthday, Alfa Romeo will be releasing the limited edition Alfa Romeo MiTo RIAR (Registro Italiano Alfa Romeo), a limited-production variant of the Alfa Romeo MiTo. Paying homage to the Italian luxury automaker’s powerful history, the Alfa MiTo RIAR will boost the MiTo’s performance output from 155 horsepower to 170 horsepower and will come equipped with several awe-inspiring upgrades. In addition to 8C Competizione-inspired 17″ forged dark rims, the MiTo RIAR will also be outfitted with red brake calipers, color-coordinated front and rear light trims (with optional fog lights), rear diffuser, rear window spoilier, and a fearsome matte-black finishing coat. Extending the “darkhorse” theme to the interior, the Alfa MiTo RIAR’s textile options include an imitation carbon fiber dashboard, a choice of black or burgundy leather, and Alfa Romeo-exclusive sport style racing seats.

I know just about every major auto news outlet is reporting that Alfa Romeo has postponed it’s US launch until 2011 because of the depressed financial markets. Well, that’s not entirely true. While the official launch won’t happen until 2011, at the earliest, a few lucky bastards (Jim Glickenhaus is one of them) got their Alfa 8C Competizione ahead of time.

Miller Motorcars in Greenwich, Connecticut was ground zero for last week’s Alfa Romeo’s US mini-launch. Three 8Cs were lined up in their showroom under racing red covers with the glorious Alfa shield emblazoned on it. Mini-launch or no, it drew a crowd, and some bigshots from the home country. Alfa’s Project Manager, Renzo Barbirato and the development test driver, Domenico Martino were there, as was a small crowd of onlookers.

Check out the pictures:

Alfa Romeo Brera TI

Poised to be released for sale in Europe before the end of the year is Alfa Romeo’s new TI edition of the stylish Brera coupe. TI stands for Turismo Internazionale, an acronym that Alfa Romeo uses for its highest-performing cars. The original TI cars were derived from standard production models but were customized with mechanical and styling changes based on the carmaker’s racing experience.  The latest Brera TI continues that tradition. 

I like the Alfa Romeo badge, it has that coat of arms look you expect to see on a the top pocket of a wealthy man’s blazer. It’s nice. But if you look closer you’ll notice there’s actually a serpent eating a person on there, which is a bit bizarre. I’m down with symbolism and imagery, but I had to know what that was all about.

Apparently, that symbol is called a biscione, and the little guy getting eaten is actually a Saracen or Moor (aka: a Muslim). So the whole serpent motif going on there symbolizes the Crusaders’ defeat of the infidels. Neat.

Alpha Romeo is usually good for some pretty interesting vehicle designs, pretty good build quality and pretty good performance.  But for some reason when adding up all the pieces modern Alpha’s just seem mediocre in comparison to their competitors.  With a little aftermarket help, Alpha Romeo hopes the supercharged J4 ends that trend.