Alfa's new rear wheel drive sports car.
Looking for a car that provides supercar style and performance? Along with a worthy badge and at a knock down price? Then look no further than this - the Alfa Romeo 4C.
Every car enthusiast should own an Alfa Romeo at some point during their lives, and if you haven’t yet then the 4C seems a sensible place to start. Named after its supercar big brother the 8C - so called because of its 8-cylinder engine and carbon fibre body, it is no shock to learn then that the 4C has a 4-cylinder engine and also boasts a carbon fibre construction.
Alfa is remaining tight lipped on exactly where this will feature, but we expect a carbon tub with aluminium subframes, shod in a carbon fibre reinforced plastic body. What we do know is that the 4C will weigh less than 850kgs.
Producing 235bhp, it will be powered by Alfa's 1.75-litre 1750TBi turbocharged petrol engine, giving it a sub 5 second 0-60mph time and a top speed in excess of 155mph.
Almost as exciting is the new car's rear-wheel drive configuration - the enthusiast's choice and a relative rarity in modern Alfas – as well as the decision to fit a 6-speed, twin-clutch gearbox.
Unsurprisingly for an Alfa, it looks great - aesthetics being one area the company’s maintained an element of consistency with over the years. Daintier than current offerings? Most definitely, but still very much in keeping with the Alfa look.
So Alfa has come up with a very compelling package and if you’re wondering what might go wrong now, the answer is quite possibly, ‘everything’. It is an Alfa Romeo after all. But, at £40K and because it is your money not ours, we think the 4C is definitely worth the risk when the car is launched in late 2012.
