Alfa 4C Spider
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 5,113
Likes: 18
From: Hell on toast
Alfa 4C Spider
Popped in to an Alfa dealership (or rather a Alfa, fiat & Jeep dealership) on saturday to enquire about a 4C spider, and to hopefuly get a look/sit in the coupe version to see if it would be a possible buy.
Alas no 4C to look at let alone get a test drive, no dealer has one was the salesmans spiel and that they are bought BLIND.
Speced one up at 68K and change, it would be £3k deposit and the balance to be paid in 18-24 months when it would be ready, if the car turns up with damage to the carbon it gets rejected and you would have to wait again, but unsure on how long.
REALLY? are they flippin mental?
They are nice looking though.
Alas no 4C to look at let alone get a test drive, no dealer has one was the salesmans spiel and that they are bought BLIND.
Speced one up at 68K and change, it would be £3k deposit and the balance to be paid in 18-24 months when it would be ready, if the car turns up with damage to the carbon it gets rejected and you would have to wait again, but unsure on how long.
REALLY? are they flippin mental?
They are nice looking though.
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 31,181
Likes: 58
From: Hertford
I bought the S2000 without test-driving it. But that's rare for me, and I liked the US reviews, if not the UK ones.
The 4C does appear to have some typically-Alfa drawbacks; they spent all the money on the lump & CF chassis and forgot to tune the suspension set-up adequately. At least for UK roads.
I've not driven one, but get the impression that a 20 year old Lotus chassis pisses all over it. From a great height.
The NSX seems to be being sold similarly to order only, but I have slightly greater faith in Hondura's engineering ability.
The 4C does appear to have some typically-Alfa drawbacks; they spent all the money on the lump & CF chassis and forgot to tune the suspension set-up adequately. At least for UK roads.
I've not driven one, but get the impression that a 20 year old Lotus chassis pisses all over it. From a great height.
The NSX seems to be being sold similarly to order only, but I have slightly greater faith in Hondura's engineering ability.
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 9,022
Likes: 1
From: There's no i in toast!
For that kind of money I'd want to sit in it, drive it, and take a crap in it before I thought about opening my cheque book.
If however your first name is sheikh, then I suspect you won't mind buying blind.
If however your first name is sheikh, then I suspect you won't mind buying blind.
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 6,326
Likes: 1
From: Ulaanbaatar
My guess is that the 4Cs are all sat in garages; either as very speculative investments, or because they won't start!
The 4C Spider weighs-in at c. 950 kg, but the humble new Mazda MX5 base model is only a smidgen over a tonne. This really demonstrates what can be achieved with engineering attention to detail and the use of common-a-garden materials.
With a hotter engine in the new MX5, it ought to come very close to the 4C in terms of performance, if not cachet.
Mazda can churn them out by the bucket-load, whilst Alfa sits and wrings it hands over the manufacturing limitations imposed by CF. And with the new Alfa Spider sharing so much with the new MX5, methinks the 4C, whilst undeniably pretty in the coupé version, may well be an albatross for Alfa.
Are UK Alfa dealers up-to handling exotica like the 4C...
The 4C Spider weighs-in at c. 950 kg, but the humble new Mazda MX5 base model is only a smidgen over a tonne. This really demonstrates what can be achieved with engineering attention to detail and the use of common-a-garden materials.
With a hotter engine in the new MX5, it ought to come very close to the 4C in terms of performance, if not cachet.
Mazda can churn them out by the bucket-load, whilst Alfa sits and wrings it hands over the manufacturing limitations imposed by CF. And with the new Alfa Spider sharing so much with the new MX5, methinks the 4C, whilst undeniably pretty in the coupé version, may well be an albatross for Alfa.
Are UK Alfa dealers up-to handling exotica like the 4C...
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Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 5,113
Likes: 18
From: Hell on toast
My guess is that the 4Cs are all sat in garages; either as very speculative investments, or because they won't start!
The 4C Spider weighs-in at c. 950 kg, but the humble new Mazda MX5 base model is only a smidgen over a tonne. This really demonstrates what can be achieved with engineering attention to detail and the use of common-a-garden materials.
With a hotter engine in the new MX5, it ought to come very close to the 4C in terms of performance, if not cachet.
Mazda can churn them out by the bucket-load, whilst Alfa sits and wrings it hands over the manufacturing limitations imposed by CF. And with the new Alfa Spider sharing so much with the new MX5, methinks the 4C, whilst undeniably pretty in the coupé version, may well be an albatross for Alfa.
Are UK Alfa dealers up-to handling exotica like the 4C...
The 4C Spider weighs-in at c. 950 kg, but the humble new Mazda MX5 base model is only a smidgen over a tonne. This really demonstrates what can be achieved with engineering attention to detail and the use of common-a-garden materials.
With a hotter engine in the new MX5, it ought to come very close to the 4C in terms of performance, if not cachet.
Mazda can churn them out by the bucket-load, whilst Alfa sits and wrings it hands over the manufacturing limitations imposed by CF. And with the new Alfa Spider sharing so much with the new MX5, methinks the 4C, whilst undeniably pretty in the coupé version, may well be an albatross for Alfa.
Are UK Alfa dealers up-to handling exotica like the 4C...
Apart from the Carbon, and aluminium sub frames its no more an exotica than Lotus are kit cars.
The Alfa spider is no more Pole, its going to be a fiat instead because of the 4C.
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 31,181
Likes: 58
From: Hertford
My guess is that the 4Cs are all sat in garages; either as very speculative investments, or because they won't start!
The 4C Spider weighs-in at c. 950 kg, but the humble new Mazda MX5 base model is only a smidgen over a tonne. This really demonstrates what can be achieved with engineering attention to detail and the use of common-a-garden materials.
With a hotter engine in the new MX5, it ought to come very close to the 4C in terms of performance, if not cachet.
Mazda can churn them out by the bucket-load, whilst Alfa sits and wrings it hands over the manufacturing limitations imposed by CF. And with the new Alfa Spider sharing so much with the new MX5, methinks the 4C, whilst undeniably pretty in the coupé version, may well be an albatross for Alfa.
Are UK Alfa dealers up-to handling exotica like the 4C...
The 4C Spider weighs-in at c. 950 kg, but the humble new Mazda MX5 base model is only a smidgen over a tonne. This really demonstrates what can be achieved with engineering attention to detail and the use of common-a-garden materials.
With a hotter engine in the new MX5, it ought to come very close to the 4C in terms of performance, if not cachet.
Mazda can churn them out by the bucket-load, whilst Alfa sits and wrings it hands over the manufacturing limitations imposed by CF. And with the new Alfa Spider sharing so much with the new MX5, methinks the 4C, whilst undeniably pretty in the coupé version, may well be an albatross for Alfa.
Are UK Alfa dealers up-to handling exotica like the 4C...
But your point still stands.