Ive driven a MiTo

[JOHN G]

With women and younger buyers covered I guess they just left out grumpy old men
[/quote]

Wow not a bad effort at humour there k76 

I'm only in my 30's

John

[k76]

It was worth a try!

[Sheldon McIntosh]

Drove one today, and was pleasantly surprised. 

It's got excellent mid-range power; from 100km/h you can quite easily leave it in 5th and get more than enough acceleration to overtake pretty quickly, 4th gear from 100km/h is very quick!  And the handling is really good.  In 'Dynamic' mode it let's you have just enough fun before intruding, but you definitely get a good feel for what's going on down there.  Because of the strong mid-range you can leave it in a gear higher than you might think you would need, and you still get great drive out of corners.  On a twisty uphill road, and a slightly damp surface, it was often trying to spin the wheels in third at around 60-70km/h.  And on a twisty downhill section it was fantastic!  The piece of road I took it down I also drove recently in an Audi S3, and the MiTo was considerably quicker, and a LOT more fun.

'Normal' mode is probably best left for women driving to the shops.

All in all I was very impressed.  Full report in next issue of Cross & Serpent.

[L4OMEO]

'Normal' mode is probably best left for women driving to the shops.

[JOHN G]

Funny stuff boys 

Normal mode (Shopping trollie mode) turns the unacceptable torque steer off 

"MiTos are fitted with a so-called "DNA" switch that allows drivers to alter engine response, steering weighting and stability control sensitivity.

It seems a touch gimmicky, however, because the MiTo is only at its best in all driving situations when the "D" for "Dynamic" mode is chosen for the sharpest throttle response and weightier steering."


Sheldon when you turned the DNA switch off did you find the big yellow light on the dash distracting.

[Sheldon McIntosh]

Normal mode (Shopping trollie mode) turns the unacceptable torque steer off 

No torque steer that I noticed John, maybe the one that you drove was faulty?

I know exactly where you're coming from John, and as I said before I wasn't expecting much, and I wasn't looking forward to a car in which you can't turn off the traction control.  However, I'm not averse to a FWD car, they can me just as much fun as RWD, and on the right road they can be better.  And I was on the right road today.  Twisty, very tight, greasy, and with logging trucks or dozy locals around every corner.  The car was excellent, and where a FWD with the same power and no form of artificial intervention would have been all over the place, going slowly as it locked brakes and spun away the power, and understeered into the path of the aforementioned trucks, the MiTo was able to maintain a very quick pace, but still let you have a lot of fun.  For starters you were able to keep up a much higher speed, but it also let you turn a bit sharper with a lift of the throttle.  It wasn't a huge amount, but on that road, and the speeds I was going, I wouldn't have wanted much more to be honest.  And John, on the downhill section I drove today, a greasy surface and very narrow road, none of your RWD Alfas would have kept up, of that I am absolutely certain. 

I would love for my partner to have one of these cars as a day to day car, never taking it out of 'shopping trolley' mode, and just appreciating the build quality and excellent features.  I would happily take it for a drive in the weekend in 'Dynamic' mode and be a happy man.

But I've already said too much, the good stuff is supposed to be for the Cross & Serpent.

[JOHN G]

Sheldon firstly relax just adding humour to the site.

However You wrote  "And John, on the downhill section I drove today, a greasy surface and very narrow road, none of your RWD Alfas would have kept up, of that I am absolutely certain."

Sheldon You don't know my driving skills and you don't know any of my cars level of development so don't make comments like the one above they are just foolish and antagonistic.

I'd race you for pink slips but what would I do with a Mito Shopping trollie I already have a Alfa 90 for that.
haha.

John

[dehne]

i agree with sheldon 100% and when it come down to you saying you dont know the developement that ur cars have done the mito if at factory specs im sure if it had the "developement" ur car has plus its onlt a 1.4 ltr with 35 more kilowats than a 2.5 v6 im sure it would kick the pants of any of ur cars and also saying that you have a 90 for a shoping cart thats on quick trolley because ive had my "developed" 90 up to 250kph but hey ur just adding a little humor to the site

[JOHN G]

dehne is English your first language?

[Sheldon McIntosh]

Sheldon firstly relax just adding humour to the site.

I realise that John, and I appreciate it.  I don't think I need to relax.

I wasn't trying to comment on your driving skills John, sorry you took my comments the wrong way.  Relax !!  Let me rephrase it........

Because of the nature of the road, I'm confident that I couldn't have gone any quicker in any RWD Alfa, regardless of it's development.  It was a difficult surface to get power down on, and most corners were blind (and I didn't know the road very well), so often very quick steering corrections were having to be made.  It was all about conserving the momemtum, and the car needed to be small since the road was so narrow.  Did I mention the logging trucks coming the other way as well?

Maybe we should just agree to disagree John, I was just trying to make the point that it's a fun car.  It's a different kind of fun than I would have in my 90, but it 's still fun, and as far as I'm concerned, that makes it enough of an Alfa for me.

Oh, and I'm not sure where you got your power figures from dehne.  The MiTo makes 2 less kws than the V6, and 25 more Nm.  And is slightly lighter.

Alfa could make the MiTo GTA a very special car if they felt like it.

[L4OMEO]

John, I don't think Sheldon was having a go at your manhood behind the wheel (is there a reason you're so defensive about that?). I think the point is that, all other things being equal, there are situations where the inherent characteristics of a front/four/all-wheel drive chassis will have an advantage over other configurations, be that in outright pace or simply the thrill of the drive.

Open your mind, Grasshopper ....

[JOHN G]

Sheldon thanks for the mature reply and Yes I agree to disagree.

I am very passionate about Alfa's as you can see. I misread your comments thanks for clearing that up.

If you are ever in W.A. and would like to drive any of my cars don't hesitate to contact me.

John

[Sheldon McIntosh]

If you are ever in W.A. and would like to drive any of my cars don't hesitate to contact me.

Will do, I promised Ed I'd get over there at some stage (one day Ed, one day...).  You've got a tasty looking collection there.  You should bring (at least) one over here for the Centenary celebrations and our weekend at Phillip Island.

I'm also very passionate about Alfa Romeo, but I also realise that there are many different flavours of Alfa Romeo, each offering something quite different than the others.  Although I joke with my 'Sud driving friends that they drive girlie cars, the fact of the matter is that they are great fun, and can be made to go bloody quick.  Not as quick as a hairy-chested V6 obviously, but bloody quick...

[L4OMEO]

thanks for the mature reply and Yes I agree to disagree.

Hmm, after tongue-in-cheek comments from all quarters the conversation suddenly jumped to the higher ground. My misjudgement, my apologies for any offense.

John I concede that my invitation might be a while coming (!!!!) so I'll leave you to enjoy your cars. Respect for your SA GTV6 - a drive of a 282rwhp GTV6 through a mountain route in NZ some years back leaves an indelible memory for me (and anyone else within earshot).

Keep the faith

Rory

[JOHN G]

 

If you are ever in W.A. and would like to drive any of my cars don't hesitate to contact me.

Will do, I promised Ed I'd get over there at some stage (one day Ed, one day...).  You've got a tasty looking collection there.  You should bring (at least) one over here for the Centenary celebrations and our weekend at Phillip Island.

Yes Ed's a good man he took care of some shipping for me a new 3.0 12 valve RJR Racing engine from Florida.
Centenary celebrations at The Island would be a blast,If I can arrange time off from work I certainly will.

thanks for the mature reply and Yes I agree to disagree.

John I concede that my invitation might be a while coming (!!!!) so I'll leave you to enjoy your cars. Respect for your SA GTV6 - a drive of a 282rwhp GTV6 through a mountain route in NZ some years back leaves an indelible memory for me (and anyone else within earshot).

Rory If you like Alfa's females and motor sports you have an invitation .
282 rwhp GTV6 more if on that car please.

John