Alfa etiquette

[Meng]

lets face it, with current emission laws etc youre very unlikely to get a full-blooded v6 large-capacity powerplant anymore.  sure you might prefer v6 to a 4-pot turbo spinner, but going down the forced induction route is not only necessary, it's alfa-esque.  alfa romeo as a brand prided itself in being a technological pioneer (in addition to beautiful styling and driving dynamics), only looking at the alfa 75 design as an example shows you a car way ahead of its time in every respect.  anyone still harking back for designs and engines from the "good old days" are bound to be disappointed.  the best alfas coming out combine a sense of technological innovation, style and handling.  they might not be your cup of tea (i still prefer the gta v6 myself), but id rather new products seeking to remain true to those values rather than rehashed versions of old concepts.  plus, if youve had a chance to drive the twinair, you might find yourself pleasantly surprised.  if you mourn for the alfas of old, mourn because its taken a long time for alfa to get back to those core values (a la 4c) rather than looking for revisions of the actual cars that embodied them (105 gta, and yes this is heresy).

[poohbah]

No disrespect intended to your daughters Stu. And I don't have a problem with anyone driving a stock MiTo. I just don' think a twin air 2 cylinder with less than 1 litre displacement is a very Alfa type of power plant.

I love small Alfas too, but I would have preferred that Fiat kept the twin air for the 500, where it makes sense. Its not like it has made that much difference to the starting price - the review I read put the entry level twin air at about $300 cheaper than the four pot.

Regardless, I shall continue to offer the Alfa salute to all vehicles bearing the serpent and cross motif. And if you are a young lady, fear not - I am no Wolf Creek type, just a fellow Alfaholic being polite!

[poohbah]

Oops, my error. I misread the article I referred to. Twin Air is $2k cheaper than 4 pot! But I still think it belongs with the 500 only.

[extraball]

the small alfa buzz boxes are fun, and standout from the crowd. It's great to see properly styled cars on the road, rather than silly looking kias or hyundias etc, that are styling fails.

[Meng]

Against the trend of opinion here, I'd say that kia and hyundai have been making great leaps in innovation and design and have really impressed me with products they've produced of late.  The cerrato and velostar might not be great handling, but imho they're certainly tidy designs. Just look at the last excels produced not long ago and you can see how far they've come in just a short time.  You can be sure that driving dynamics will follow shortly. If alfa's comeback ends with the 4c, then I dare say that soon kia and hyundai will be making products that alfisti would be envious of. I'm just as biased as any alfisti here wrt cars produced by alfa, but I can't not tip my hat to the progression made by the Koreans.

[extraball]

of course the koreans have come a long way, but c'mon the styling is pretty much a botched copy of  european efforts

[Meng]

I think if you look at the design teams of both hyundai and kia, you'll find some pretty powerful names behind some of the most iconic modern euro marques. They are bound to have shared elements of existing cars, but car design is much more than "it has similar tail lights to car x". Having a radically unique look doesn't make it a great design if the whole package, lines on the car, proportions etc don't work together. Classic example is the velostar, and seeing the attention to detail of many elements of the car. It has shortcomings no doubt, but I prefer the way it fits together from a design point of view than the mito (having said that, I'd buy neither and get an abarth 500 or an up! instead)

[GoldfieldsGTV]

...  gear change at above 4000RPM
... either on the accelerator or brake
... no coasting to a red light
... working the suspension in curves
... in other words driving with a mission

I'm ticking all the boxes on your list kartone - and adding to point No.4 - includes not slowing down when going through roundabouts (thanks to beefed up shocks and sway bar) - just love to see those in my rear view mirror disappear as I come out the other side. 

[extraball]

(having said that, I'd buy neither and get an abarth 500 or an up! instead)

the abarth is a honey, often pass one locally, and it always catches my attention

[Meng]

I'd love one. In traditional black and red, though I'm over having to clean black cars

[kartone]

goldfieldsGTV, also enjoy doing that: slightly clipping the surmountable curbd while powering through  .
extraball, tried both the abarth and the ferrari edition, there is quite a difference favouring the later, the gear change / turbo seem to be better synchronized. 

[colcol]

Point no 5, No 'My Family' stickers allowed, Colin.

[extraball]

Point no 5, No 'My Family' stickers allowed, Colin.

cant bring myself to put any stickers on the alfa

[mad dog 75]

that's just mean

[colcol]

'Alfa Romeo Owners Club of Australia', 'Alfa Romeo 1910- 2010, 100 years of love', 'Become a better driver, join a car club', 'Martini Oil', 'Do it for 6 hours at Winton', all stickers ok, Colin.