budgy

Haha yes, not sure you needed to state the obvious, I am from a relatively non congested part of the world myself

Actually I do deal with a decent amount of traffic and I still love the manual most of the time. I just think the clutch enthusiasts are rare.

Moses what you are saying about the chaotic flow of traffic in these other places probably makes sense

CosmosMpower

Stuff like auto rev match and hill assist do help for sure. As long as the clutch isn't stupid heavy and the engagement point isn't too high it's easy to drive a manual in traffic.

zeroptzero

Jeremy Clarkson stated that it was pretty much his favourite car, given that he has been able to drive every amazing car out there that was a pretty good vote of approval.

Having the right engine mated to the right tranny makes a big difference and I could get used to a dual clutch auto any day of the week if it worked with the rest of the drivetrain, I could dispose of the clutch pedal if needed. My newest Honda came with a turbo 4 cyl and CVT tranny with paddle shifters, I've grown to like it much more than I expected, it just works so well as a package, and in back to back testing it is no slower than the 6 speed manual tranny version.

tonerockyhorror

Figure I'll bump this thread since there are 16 pages and not one first hand review of the 4C.

I had a chance to rent and drive a 4C Spider for a couple days this week. The best way to sum it up is to call it a mini-Ferrari. It's a car that is truly more than the sum of its parts and creates a real "experience" when driving it. It isn't quite as communicative as a Lotus (I've driven a few) but it feels much quicker and is more everyday livable. That said, you will not want to drive this car everyday like an s2k. It's a weekend car just like a Ferrari would be.

Pros

• Looks amazing and garners lots of attention. Very exclusive
• Sounds amazing. No muffler + blow-off valve = awesome
• Handling is exceptionally sharp and communicative
• Overall power. It's a quick car if not outright fast
• Transmission cracked off lighting fast shifts
• Easier ingress/egress than an Elise/Exige
• Interior is surprisingly nice given they tried to keep weight really low

Cons

• Fixed seat. Seriously, it doesn't slide or recline
• Turbolag. Not unexpected given the psi it's running but easy to find yourself out of the powerband
• Still look like an idiot getting in and out. :-)
• When not racing through the hills the exhaust drone can get annoying

Overall I would definitely buy one if I were in the market for a third/weekend car. It felt like the type of special you want in a car like this, from the sound to look to immediacy of every movement, it just felt right. Obviously a Ferrari brings another level of power but I've driven a couple of those as well and the 4C handles similarly, looks equally exotic, is nearly as competent when driving 9/10ths+ and feels just as special. It probably isn't the most reliable car long-term but at an entry point much less than "true" exotics and the cost of upkeep equally lower I can definitely see the value in these cars. Someone mentioned the hope of used prices dropping like a rock similar to Eliges and I'm certainly onboard with that....I would be a buyer in an instant.

vader1

The seat does in fact recline, but only about a notch and less than an airline seat, but it is adjustable. I was in a MY2015.

You are dead right on the second part though. I am 5'6", spry and flexible and there is no getting around goofy entry and exit. The sill is just to wide and high and the roof is low.

Mr.E.G.

No way! I'm a short guy who needs to have the seat pushed pretty far forward. If you open the door on my Corvette, you can damn near see as much daylight behind my seat as in front. :-)

tonerockyhorror

Sorry, mispoke on the sliding. It will come forward an inch or so but that was it. Maybe this one had sport seats or something but they didn't recline even one notch, there wasn't even a lever to attempt it. That said, they were still relatively comfortable compared to some other sports car seats. Like the F-Type which I found to be overly firm.

vader1

I really don't know what the difference on the model I was in to the model you were in, and I was just at the dealer last week. I was sitting in the car and we were just talking about the generalities and I said "I know the big drawback on this car is lack of luggage space, no manual, crappy radio and the seats don't recline." Because the seats not reclining was what I read, and there is not much room for them to do it because of the bulkhead being right behind the seat.

The salesman said "Yes they do recline, the lever is right there." and he pointed to this lever that I did not find initially. I pulled it and sure enough the seat reclined. It has about three to four inches of travel at the very top of the headrest so it is not much but it made a world of difference for me since I like to drive with the seat high up but reclined. If the salesman had not pointed it out, I probably would not have found it. It is kind of hard to see while seated in the car, you pretty much have to reach behind yourself to find it.

Check the bottom of this link:

https://www.manualslib.com/manual/10...6.html?page=23

mosesbotbol

I can't wait to test drive one this spring. I don't think I would get sick of looking at 4C in my garage since I look at our cars more than I drive them (work at home).

tonerockyhorror

Ugh, I stand corrected and it would have been good to know that. The owner didn't think it could recline and I hunted for the lever but found nothing. I would have been perfectly comfortable had I been able to put the seat back just a bit.