GTP Cool Wall: 2013+ Alfa Romeo 4C

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2013+ Alfa Romeo 4C

  • Total voters
    99
  • Poll closed .
The "more, by default, is better" is really an unfortunate mindset. Slashfan, you seem to celebrate this particular ideal, and I would encourage you to seek broader horizons. I'm not sure if you are aware, nor care, but you have represented yourself as extremely insular. This is very much a global community and you are selling yourself short by perpetuating your own stereotype. You leave the impression that anything and everything outside of your own experience has no value or is not worth even exploring. Every time you say "people around here think" or something similar, it reinforces not only your insular nature, but your lack of personal/individual subjectivity. I'm saying this because you tend to derail many threads with your 'around here people think this' banter. We're all from somewhere, you're not special in that regard. This might sound rude, but honestly, nobody cares what people in your area think because it is an entirely exclusive reference. I'm not trying to be insulting, but your V8 this, V8 that in every thread has become too awful.
 
MatskiMonk
Which means it's a piece of poo and you'll probably have to sue Alfa Romeo to get them to rebuild your engine when the cam belt fails before it's first service interval, whilst putting up with all the other bits breaking off your hand..
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Woah. For a second there I thought I'd gone back to the 1980s. Then I just realised it was your perception of Alfa that's stuck in the 80s... ;)
 
Roger the Horse
Show me a V8 that can consistently get more than 50 MPG without resorting to hybrid power.

You can't.

V8s are rubbish.
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And then you have the opposite that is just as unattractive, how lovely and intellectual of you. Show me anything above 5 cylinders that can do that all the time, I mean I there are some diesel sixes that get close but if that is your criteria on a good engine fine. However, it's far from being rubbish due to not having 50 mpg ever.
 
homeforsummer
Woah. For a second there I thought I'd gone back to the 1980s. Then I just realised it was your perception of Alfa that's stuck in the 80s... ;)
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Alas not, my fathers 156, purchased from new in 2001, was nothing but trouble - the pinnacle of which was court action to recover engine rebuild costs, the rest of the issues with the car - well he just lived with them - even to the point he hadn't realised the partial collapse of the drivers seat over the first few years of the cars life lead to serious back pain!! I buy wrecked out scrapyard bound BMW's, fit for only a years running at best, and I've never had to put up with the number of issues he did, and I even got the pleasure of a RWD chassis to boot... he didn't.

Fact is, it was badly built, and not great at what it was supposed to do. Thing is with this perception (especially reinforced by Top Gear) that Alfas get some kind of free pass to greatness, means they'll keep knocking out crap product believing their own hype. Alfa Romeo deserve a reputation that the likes of Skoda have to live with.

From a personal point of view, I don't mcuh like the looks of any of their cars, the 8C was... okay, like a girl you find attractive, but you're not sure why. But the rest of their stuff ... ??? and the proliferation of FWD in the line-up... for an italian petrol-heads drivers car..... it's weak.

So that's how I feel about the brand, therefore the 4C gets not auto-A-R cool pass from me, I'm sure it will be a good sports car, but you'll look like a bigger man-sex-organ getting out of this than a Lotus Elise/Exige, because your more likely to have grey chest hair, wear gold jewelery and be orange.
 
As fuel now costs so much, this is my list of priorities for a car's engine:

  1. Good fuel economy
  2. High levels of reliability
  3. Allows a car to accelerate fast enough for it to join a busy road safely.
In this respect, the Prius can't be beaten. Hence, outside my house...

Also, Matski, I don't think Alfa deserve the reputation of one of the best cat manufacturer's in the world for building cars that constantly break down...
 
Roger the Horse
Also, Matski, I don't think Alfa deserve the reputation of one of the best cat manufacturer's in the world for building cars that constantly break down...
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Not sure if agreeing or complimenting Skoda?
 
Skoda are the best car manufacturer in the world. Subarus and Hondas aren't as good as they used to be, and Volvos cost too much. There is no competition for the mighty Czechs.
 
I would rate it cool, but the price brings it to uncool. I'd rather have a Boxster or dare I say after reading the previous two pages... a C7 Corvette . ;)
 
Roger the Horse
Skoda are the best car manufacturer in the world. Subarus and Hondas aren't as good as they used to be, and Volvos cost too much. There is no competition for the mighty Czechs.
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Except Skoda are a subsidiary of VW...
 
But Skodas are better than actual VWs.
 
Well, they're not, hence why they're cheaper...
 
Lol, I didn't mean for this to be a Skoda vs the world debate... and actually I wasn't suggesting they make bad cars... but they now live with a reputation that isn't deserved.... much like Alfa Romeo.
 
Cool.

I like the production headlights. *flips everyone off*
 
Roger the Horse
Show me a V8 that can consistently get more than 50 MPG without resorting to hybrid power.

You can't.

V8s are rubbish.
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Show me any stock engine that gets over 50mpg and also has over 400hp.

Oh wait, that's because you can't yet.

Could it be that a larger engine is designed for performance rather than economy? Nah, that would be silly...


On the Alfa, I just meh'd everywhere.
 
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Roger the Horse
Show me a V8 that can consistently get more than 50 MPG without resorting to hybrid power.

You can't.

V8s are rubbish.
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With just this post, you have demonstrated you're even blinder than Slashfan and W&N combined. Way to go dude.
 
MatskiMonk
*Snip*
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Which would all be okay, if it wasn't apparently your sole experience with the brand. Every company makes friday afternoon crap - let's not forget that BMWs are horrifically susceptible to rust (far more so than any 90s-onward Alfa) and they made a decade of diesels that had a nasty habit of ingesting their swirl flaps and lunching engines. I've several instances of varied other issues from friends and colleagues of other wide and varied issues (constant electronic issues, repeated suspension failures, treated-like-scum dealer service) - which hold equal weight to your one bad 156 experience.

The fact is, few cars these days are completely issue-free unless you're very lucky (VW is another brand whose reputation for quality and reliability is vastly overplayed, and don't think that they don't trade their 80s reputation far more than Alfa's small band of fans let issues slide for the "Alfa factor") and Alfa's reputation for issues hasn't really applied for well over a decade.

Also, your projection of a possible 4C buyer is absolutely laughable. I think you're thinking of Lamborghinis there. Or maybe that's just another outdated stereotype.

As an aside, I wonder how long BMW have been getting a pass from enthusiasts for the "pleasure of a RWD chassis" factor, even though most people buy 318 diesels these days and wouldn't know rear-drive if it ran them over?
 
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Cool, bordering on sub-zero.
900kg, mid engine, carbon tub, double clutch, massively turbocharged, better power to weight than a Cayman S.



Also, lol @ V8 everything discussion in a thread about a 900kg, affordable MR sports car.
 
Akmuq
Well, they're not, hence why they're cheaper...
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The fact that their cheaper but otherwise indistinguishable is what makes them better...
 
Test them back to back first before jumping to that conclusion. The Polo GTi vs Fabia RS is a perfect case in point. The Fabia is based on an older version of the Polo GTi's chassis. It exhibits a small amount of torque steer where the Polo doesn't, it's a little less sharp through the corners, and it's also heavier which means it's also slightly slower with the same drivetrain combo.

Also, the fit-and-finish in the Polo is considerably more upmarket than the Fabia. All well and dandy if the Fabia was significantly less expensive but, here anyway, there's a price difference of only AU$1000.

Still don't understand what any of this has to do with Alfa Romeo and the 4C but still.

MatskiMonk
Thing is with this perception (especially reinforced by Top Gear) that Alfas get some kind of free pass to greatness, means they'll keep knocking out crap product believing their own hype.
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There's plenty of vehicles with a sour reputation for reliability that are seen in the eyes of many as being "great."

Also, Alfa Romeo doesn't produce your definition of "crap" these days; their cars are actually swaying the other direction from previous decades: more boring to drive (4C excluded), and less pretty in the pursuit of reliability.
 
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Vegard
Also, lol @ V8 everything discussion in a thread about a 900kg, affordable MR sports car.
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Affordable? Estimated base price will be $55,000.
 
Adamgp
Affordable? Estimated base price will be $55,000.
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That's $9000 cheaper than a Cayman S and only $2000 more than a "Vanilla" Cayman.
But maybe I should have used another word than affordable sports car, how about budget pocket supercar.
 
I'd take the Cayman personally, but I'd take a Skoda Superb Estate over both.
 
@MatskiMonk @homeforsummer

I dare to bet that Alfa's current engines are far more reliable than the ones VW is producing for the last 7-8 years.
 
Hmm... My dad got over 160,000 kilometres out of an Alfa engine with only a minor fanbelt issue which was quickly fixed and constant expensive servicing on most of the major mechanical parts... Hmm...
 
@Roger the Horse Do feel free to stop mentioning Skodas any time you like. They aren't at all relevant to the thread.

@Dennisch I'll admit that I've looked at different VWs (and VAG products in general) when researching daily drivers over the last few years, and a worrying number seem to have some regular and expensive mechanical maladies. It's really put me off them. With the average Alfa TS engine you're essentially safe as long as you change the timing belt fairly regularly. I'd certainly be far more confident with a 147 than I would a Golf of the same age.

I've no idea what the new MultiAir engines are like but the company's reputation for unreliability is vastly overplayed these days. The FWD thing is a bit tiresome too. It's odd how quickly some people forget - including (perhaps mostly) journalists - that quite a few Alfas were very highly praised at launch. I've got a few decades of magazines that suggest the cars were far better in their day than people like to make out now.
 
They messed up the front end. Uncool.


Roger the Horse
Hmm... My dad got over 160,000 kilometres out of an Alfa engine with only a minor fanbelt issue which was quickly fixed and constant expensive servicing on most of the major mechanical parts... Hmm...
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Wow. As a joke, this actually had the typical structure and an actual punchline. Bravo.
 
Bopop4
Show me any stock engine that gets over 50mpg and also has over 400hp.
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I just got through with a 350 hp sports sedan that gets 45-50 mpg.

Of course, it has two motors, a V6 and an electric.
 
niky
I just got through with a 350 hp sports sedan that gets 45-50 mpg.

Of course, it has two motors, a V6 and an electric.
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Weeeh it is a hybrid so you can't call it a sports sedan.
 
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