26 Jun 06
I start my drive through the lumpy, slithery, sinuous roads of north-west Sicily in a Spider 3.2 Q4. No front-wheel drive worries here; as in the 159 and Brera, the 260bhp V6 engine sends its efforts through a four-wheel drive system that usually diverts around 57% of torque to the rear wheels, unless it's needed elsewhere (the extremes are 72% to the front or 78% to the rear).
The Brera Q4, when provoked, can perform a little powerslide and its front end resists understeer with determination. It really feels a lot like a rear-drive car without the worry of a flailing tail when the grip runs out. The Spider Q4, then, should feel similar, if a little less incisive, with its twistier structure and the softer suspension settings tuned to allow for that twist and keep things calm on bad roads.
And on the whole it meets those expectations, but our route's many hairpins are so slippery that even the Q4 system can't stop the nose from wanting to travel straight on when turned hard. Maybe the Brera would do the same; it's hard to know. Maybe the Spider is actually better here, because softer suspension usually means better traction.
What is clear is that the steering, if less crisp than a Brera Q4's, is still quick and accurate and not spoilt by slack in the structure as can often happen with open cars. What is also clear is that the Spider, even if it is meant to be stiffer than an SLK, certainly doesn't feel it. Bumpy roads make it shudder and shake gently, seen at the windscreen frame and felt in the gap between doors and rear wings. It's not terrible but neither is it right for a sports car. At least the suspension rounds off the sharp edges and there are no rattles or thuds.
But the engine makes the tremors easy to forget. Alfa's latest V6 is smooth, pulls beautifully and emits a delicious deep growl, slightly 'dirty' like a flat-six Porsche 911's. And now it's installed in an open-top car you can hear this finest of current production V6s all the better. It's relaxed and big-hearted, well able to pull the long-legged ratios in the six-speed gearbox. The only minus points here are a gearshift, which isn't the quickest, and a transmission whine on the overrun. Vital stats: 146mph and a 7.0sec 0-62mph time.
