What is the big deal with Alfas on TG?

[Vector]

This is top gear related because I'm referring to the three's prevailing attitude that an Alpha is almost a heavenly creature, bestowed upon us by some sexy Italian god.

But all I see is a pretty face that is really quite empty and lacking in anything else that makes a car good. The interiors are crap, the handling is crap, the powertrains are crap (most of them are FWD... why?). And in this most recent Alpha challenge, these facts were only reinforced. I understand it was kind of tounge in cheek -- the cars were garbage but they loved them anyway -- but they keep banging it into your head that we all should own an Alpha. It seems to me that that is the last thing I would want to own.

Can someone enlighten me?

[anti-net]

Because they have something that other cars don't, a passion, a soul

There not like a BMW which is just engineering and maths, an Alfa (not an Alpha) is special where as a BMW which may go round a race track quicker is just a big german car

[Corvu]

In addition to sole, Alfa's have some soul as well.

[EdgeRatedR]

Originally Posted by Vector

This is top gear related because I'm referring to the three's prevailing attitude that an Alpha is almost a heavenly creature, bestowed upon us by some sexy Italian god.

But all I see is a pretty face that is really quite empty and lacking in anything else that makes a car good. The interiors are crap, the handling is crap, the powertrains are crap (most of them are FWD... why?). And in this most recent Alpha challenge, these facts were only reinforced. I understand it was kind of tounge in cheek -- the cars were garbage but they loved them anyway -- but they keep banging it into your head that we all should own an Alpha. It seems to me that that is the last thing I would want to own.

Can someone enlighten me?

Oh please.

http://www.zcars.com.au/images/alfa-...-interior1.jpg

Alfas have character, they look great, they are nice to drive.(covers everything I like in a car.)

''Alfas are not for posers'' James May

[Labcoatguy]

Because in their Brave New World, anything Beta and below are just scum. Oh, you mean Alfas....

[PaperBiro]

At times, it also their flaws which give them some of their character. You see, a car like a BMW or Mercedes alienates you from the car itself with perfect build quality and practicality. Alfas, with their little flaws and niggles, feel human. Every human being has their flaws, and so do Alfas. Of course, there is more to than that, there's just something about Alfas which make them feel less clinical than their German counterparts.

[MacGuffin]

I think Alfas are overrated and only suckle from their past, which has somehow been glorified by car enthusiasts. People like to dream of imperfection, because they think it has soul. A common misconception in my eyes, because when it comes to actually putting their money where their mouth is, people start thinking rationally and buy something else

But it seems that the passion with the Alfas is about the only thing Jeremy "Hammer" Clarkson, James "Valium" May and Richard "Crash" Hammond are actually agreeing on.

That's worth something

[the afro guy]

they're just fun to drive. well.... the good ones are. we just bought an alfa over a bmw. there is no doubt that the bmw is the better car, everything in them is perfect (i know, i've had 3!) but they're very serious cars whereas the alfa just feels like a happy car. that sounds really gay but it's just the way it is. they're not perfect but the parts that need to be right to make a car really good fun to own are absolutely perfect.

to quote clarkson from the alfa challenge "alfa build a car to be as good as a car can be - briefly"

[efoolution]

Look at it this way ... there is this car and it´s rather different and special ... but to have it and experience this, you´d have to endure a lot of bad things ... that´s what makes it so cool. It´s like living in an old Castle ... no hot water in the upper floors, freezing cold in the winter, each slight breeze damages your roof - but you just can´t live any cooler and when the moment is right and once everything is fine, it´s just so much better than living in a perfectly functional flat. That´s the Point, you have to endure the bad to experience something special, something wouderful. You have to make an efford, put something into it (tears, agony, AA-membership) ... but you´ll love the reward so much more.

Almost all Alfas are or were special ... and never a "wise buy" ... that´s why this name has such a reputation. In Europe maybe Jaguar is another good example (at least for the past) of what this is and what it means.

[airmenair]

^ Well said, I agree.

[Blythy]

What is the big deal with Alphas on TG?

the three of them are highly radioactive - THERE, I SAID IT, I highly regret not getting the first reply.

Oh and a good example is the 166, really good looking (although the trip headlights from the brera are far nicer), supposedly quite nice to drive....


Dreprication however... I think this needs an image:

[teeb]

Originally Posted by Vector

And in this most recent Alpha challenge, these facts were only reinforced. I understand it was kind of tounge in cheek -- the cars were garbage but they loved them anyway -- but they keep banging it into your head that we all should own an Alpha. It seems to me that that is the last thing I would want to own.

They didn't say "You should own an Alfa and it should be your only car brand, ever". They said that you can't be a true petrolhead until you own an Alfa.

Owning an Alfa involves a rollercoaster of emotions - looking at it every morning, and the joy of driving it, compared to the downs of it breaking down and the steering wheel coming off in your hand.

I guess they're saying that Alfas are just such a rush to have, in the way that not many other brands are.

Originally Posted by Blythy

Dreprication however... I think this needs an image:

Been on that! Class ride.

[the afro guy]

i think it has to be said as well though that the new ones aren't as unreliable as the old ones were at the same age. they still get problems but they're not as tempremental as they used to be.

take one for a good drive and you'll get it. if not, it's dacia sandero's for you

[Dsemaj]

Alfa

They have character. Even by watching reviews, I can't help but feel like they're absolutely alive to drive, fizzing and cracking with passion. And the engines always sound heavenly.

[Viper007Bond]

Originally Posted by Labcoatguy

Because in their Brave New World, anything Beta and below are just scum. Oh, you mean Alfas....

Yeah, down with Betas!


(thread title fixed)

[Ottobon]

Originally Posted by Vector

The interiors are crap

You sit in a GTV and or GTV6 and tell someone that with a straighface, then we can identify you as either a lier or a clown.

Originally Posted by Vector

the handling is crap

What planet do you live on? Sure the Brera is a pig, but for the record handling has nothing to do with grip and road-holding, and everything to do with balance and feel. Let me ask again, have you even even driven one??

Originally Posted by Vector

the powertrains are crap

Well you got me there, Giuseppe Busso is a real idiot. Thats probably why he had to work at such a shit company like Alfa Romeo. The fact Enzo Ferrari turned to him when nobody else could cobble together a worthwhile engine must of been one of histories great flukes.



Enough none-sense. All I'll say is that even if Alfas were reliable they would still be legends, it has nothing to do with how crap their build can be and that emotional rollercoaster that comes with it. Everything about the way a car performs when you drive it that you can't get from spec-sheet is near perfect about them.

IF you are serious about why their great i'd be willing to go into detail, just say so. But until then I could care less about what you think.

[Richmondgal]

Even though i don't have the money and even though there are better cars than what they have to offer in sedans, coupes or hot hatchbacks, I would still want to buy and drive an Alfa in my lifetime or the next. It makes you feel alive again somehow.

[BlaRo]

Originally Posted by Nereid

At times, it also their flaws which give them some of their character. You see, a car like a BMW or Mercedes alienates you from the car itself with perfect build quality and practicality. Alfas, with their little flaws and niggles, feel human. Every human being has their flaws, and so do Alfas. Of course, there is more to than that, there's just something about Alfas which make them feel less clinical than their German counterparts.

That's the same load of crap that keeps MG and Triumph restoration shops in business, and their owners blissfully broke.

As forum regulars will know, I've mentioned before that "soul" and "passion" are marketing terms invented by a dreary-suited man who has neither. I stopped believing in that shiny brochure gloss a while ago when I realized that the broken odometer on my 1996 Nissan Sentra isn't an endearing little detail that gives off the car's quirkiness and character but a fucking annoying nuisance from a 12-year old human transport container that won't let me sell the damn thing for 200 bucks more.

I think the "soul" and "passion", therefore, lie within the people that build the car. And this means that the Teutonic machines have just as much of it as the fiery Italians - BMW and Mercedes are passionate about building the best car in the world, one that will never break down and will cater to the owner's every need. Perfectly. Alfa does so differently with the joy of motoring, to a more noticeable extent than most manufacturers. Not to say that they haven't built some dreary or dull cars: the Alfasud, the 90, the Alfa 6, the rebadged Dauphine, etc. It's just that history and memories have been kinder to the brand than, say, the classic 1972 Chevrolet Brookwood 9-passenger wagon with wood trim.

I'd get a 159 over a 3-Series because it's far more, just as I think the 8C is one of the most beautiful cars ever, not just today but throughout all of automotive history, and a car that I need to own someday by any means necessary.

The way the three went on about Alfas didn't seem satirical or tongue-in-cheek at all; it almost felt like they had been paid to say it. The company's still subject to the niggling faults as any other, its products are just as falliable, and to suggest that little problems such as squeaky glovebox lids and left rear lugnuts shearing off at 86 miles per hour are the cutesy little engineering quirks distilled by Luigi to instill a sense of character and heart and whatever is hilarious.

When Alfa Romeo comes back to America, I should open up a dealership and make a killing off these gullible suckers!

[teeb]

Originally Posted by BlaRo

I think the "soul" and "passion", therefore, lie within the people that build the car. And this means that the Teutonic machines have just as much of it as the fiery Italians - BMW and Mercedes are passionate about building the best car in the world, one that will never break down and will cater to the owner's every need. Perfectly. Alfa does so differently with the joy of motoring, to a more noticeable extent than most manufacturers.

I was going to make a joke about Germans and having passion...but I think you hit the nail on the head there.

Originally Posted by Dsemaj

And the engines always sound heavenly.

A minor miracle in itself, seeing as (if memory serves) they're using a GM four-pot in a lot of the range.

[argatoga]

Originally Posted by teeb

A minor miracle in itself, seeing as (if memory serves) they're using a GM four-pot in a lot of the range.

Hey GM knows how to make a heavenly sounding four banger, don't forget the Iron Duke!