Alfa 4C Spider

[Andyk]

Just love this more than the coupe...and they have got rid of those silly front lights...

 

[BennyD]

Looks more like a targa-top than a spider. It's ok I guess but, IMO, not something to lust after.

 

[highlander]

Agree andy, looks far better than the coupe..........don't ever see me driving one though

 

[Andyk]

Would love one as a toy for those early morning Sunday blasts..

 

[hodroyd]

Have to have a look at one in the flesh, it looks small..!!

 

[mjheathcote]

Have to have a look at one in the flesh, it looks small..!!

I've sat in one (the coupe) and it is small, similar to my old Elise.
Infact I would say the Elise was more roomy!

 

[alfatwo]

I've sat in one (the coupe) and it is small, similar to my old Elise.
Infact I would say the Elise was more roomy!

I had to get someone to give me a lift out..definatly not for old bugger's

I rather have a 3.4 Porsche Cayman S!

Dave

 

[Andyk]

Have to have a look at one in the flesh, it looks small..!!

Thats because it is Rob.....

 

[zagatoes30]

The 4C is a real drivers car will chopping the roof change that? It did with the SZ, the original being all about driving but the soft top RZ was compromised and became more of a place to be seen.

 

[Mr.Cambio]

Prefer the coupe.
The open version looks like a combination of the elise and the MR2.It has lost its character.

 

[allandwf]

Prefer the coupe.
The open version looks like a combination of the elise and the MR2.It has lost its character.

I tend to agree, and... those strange lights are actually growing on me now.

 

[highlander]

those strange lights are actually growing on me now.

you need to stop drinking the homebrew off shore allan................

 

[hodroyd]

Hahahaha.....as if..??

 

[allandwf]

I sense a theme here

 

[Maser Sod]

The 4C is a real drivers car will chopping the roof change that? It did with the SZ, the original being all about driving but the soft top RZ was compromised and became more of a place to be seen.

I think it will. I believe AR have added 60 kilos of 'stability' to compensate for the loss of the roof. It's somewhat ironic to employ a carbon tub for its extreme lightness, and then to add about nine stone to it!

I don't really get the comparison of the 4C with a Cayman. They are both 2-seaters but that is where the similarity ends in my book. The Cayman is extremely usable day-to-day, the 4C definitely isn't (don't believe anyone who says that it is!).

 

[Andyk]

Surely it's closer to an ELise or Exige than a Cayman........If it is I have used both of those everyday..

 

[Maser Sod]

Closer to a Lotus for sure. But not the same.

Some important differences:

- The 4C has a single rear boot that is approximately the size of a crushed matchbox.

- It has a highly-strung 4 pot turbo which whistles, spits and pops at you like a demented Sex Pistols fan, and I would conservatively estimate that it is doing this at a distance of approximately 8 inches from my head.

- I can just about make out that there is music playing from the stereo if I turn it up to 28 (the maximum volume setting is 30). This is a reflection both of the cabin noise and also of the crappyness of the Parrot ICE. I don't think I would be any less satisfied if Alfa had installed a real parrot.

- The gearbox paddles are attached to the wheel. This seems an innocuous statement at first sight, I'm sure, but try changing gear on a roundabout with such a configuration. You are just as likely to change down as you are up. It's complete guesswork. I bet every Lotus allows full lock without having to cross hands - the 4C doesn't, not even close.

- Last, but definitely not least, the 4C will not change into 3rd at low revs. It beeps at you instead. This is a feature of the car. Whoever thought it up has never, ever, ever driven in a city. Or a town. Or anywhere in fact where you have to drive at 15-20mph.

Despite all the above, this is one **** of a car to enjoy on country lanes and weaving roads. It takes some time to master the foibles of the turbo mapping, but once you understand how to dial the power in, you can enjoy the car's monstrous point-to-point potential.

 

[alfatwo]

Iv'e heard from a couple of Alfa guys that there terrible for tramlining on uneven roads, even worse than Masers!

Dave

 

[Andyk]

MS, that interesting what you say about the paddles attached to the steering wheel....When paddle shifts first came out I remember reading that they were attached to the steering wheel and the press couldn't understand why...Can not remember what car maker it was but they soon changed it.....So Alfa have gone back to what doesn't work then.....

Still and amazing little car though...

 

[Andyk]

.. those strange lights are actually growing on me now.

So does syphilis ......... that aint pretty either (so Ive been told)