Alfa Brera
 

One of the least loved Alfa's, the concept car was described as pornographic by Jeremy Clarkson and the Top Gear crew, the car in the flesh was a little watered down, but still, in my eyes (because this was my old car!) it was seriously cool.

It also lived up to every aspect of Alfa's reputation, electrical gremlins, seats that would rock slightly etc, etc...

The standard exhaust on the v6 was itself fantastic sounding with a nice growl on full chat, and with 4 wheel drive it was outstanding when the white stuff came.

The dash curved round nicely to suit the driver, while still being a quality affair (not like the cheap plastic of the newer Alfa's). The door handles themselves were beautiful, so even getting into the car was special.

Then there was it's lovely arse, with those over the top 4 tailpipes and that dirty back window.

Now this was cool

Always thought the Brera was a good looking car. I double take when I see one.

The SZ is stunning :love: always loved those!

Nah...
 

Promised much, delivered very little at all. Waaaay down on my list of favourite Alfas (of which there are many...)

Think that sums up my view as well, it looks stunning, however its a big GM carthorse underneath (Vauxhall Signum), it was too heavy, too slow even with the V6, and drives like a barge apparently, such a shame as it looks stunning. I have often tried to persuade SWMBO to have one purely from an aesthetics point of view as it looks stunning, but she's not keen..

Oh and did I mention it looks stunning+++

75 was the last cool Alfa in my opinion, although the Guilia looks like a step in the right direction, especially the top end model

Some cars are like supermodels; they might look good but you wouldn't want to have to live with them and maintain them.

The Countach, for example: Gorgeous, stunning car IMO. Appearance-wise, my favourite car of all time. The pin-ups of it on my bedroom wall as a teenager even overshadowed those of Linda Lusardi. Then one day I had the chance to get in one (the Countach, not LL) and it was major a disappointment. The Alfas are less extreme but I think the same applies: Great to look at but not necessarily so great to drive/own. I really like Alfas but I wouldn't buy one.

One of my favourite Alfas is the GT Junior, looks amazing. I keep seeing one in Hyde Park when I'm parked up waiting some times and just love its looks outside and in. . . :love:

It didn't hide it's weight very well driving it but it was very planted. From what I remember it was GM platform but in the end it shared it with nothing but the 159?

Anyway back to business. It wasn't the best driving Alfa but that has nothing to do with coolness :-)

I don't agree there, the Alfas i've had were drivers cars. Buy one.

Ok, you convinced me. I'll add one to my wish-list +++

I've always been on the fence about the Brera and I could never exactly pin-point why.

To put thing into perspective, I'm 30 - just - and have owned, thus far

156, 1.8TS Sport Pack 3
166, 3.0 V6 Super
156, GTA 3.2 V6
156, 1.9 JTD-M Sport
147, 1.6TS Lusso
GTV, 2.0TS
159, 1.9 JTDM Lusso

Even now I also own a Fiat Stilo Abarth, so it's fair to say I like my Alfas and my Italian cars.

Brera is the same platform as the 159 too but the 159 never felt quite as nice to drive as the 147/156 platform. It was less engaging. For a bigger heavier car - built for american market to an extent - it actually had more overall grip but it never inspired the confidence to use it like the previous generations did. The engines also became more GM derived and the range lost the famous Busso V6s that powered the previous generations, which disappointed the purists. Something to do with emissions regs I believe.

The looks on the Brera did disappoint a little, particularly on the lesser spec they didn't look right on tiny wheels. If you could find something like a pro-drive with panaramic roof they sat lower on bigger wheels and looked far more pleasing. Interior combs were similarly hit and miss.

Only reason I dont have an Alfa now is that none of the current range floated my boat at all. The 147/156/GT platform is getting a bit long in the tooth now and the 159/Brera/Spider platform just isn't the fun product you'd hope for. The Giulietta and MiTo are just plain cheap and nasty glum places to be.

I do however anticipate a deposit on a Giulia at some point soon, maybe early next year unless they have some good pre-reg deals in Sept or something.

Whilst I've always liked the looks of most Alfas, the performance and handling tends to disappoint generally on most normal models, and I'd rather buy a Fiat in practice - so went for a Coupe 20V turbo, rather than a GTV, for example, and never regretted that.

I also had a Giulia Veloce in front of me yesterday on a twisty A road, and it seemed slow (i.e. couldn't shake me ;)...)

I agree that the chassis on the car was more comfort than sport but I was at the time regularly driving from Edinburgh to the south coast of Ireland and it suited that purpose very well. Very comfortable and a good bit of grunt. The replacement v6 also had a good growl when poked. As a B-road bomber it wasn't the most nimble. I chased a friend on a motorbike once up north and he couldn't get away on corners (thanks to the 4 wheel drive), but you were very aware that this was a big ******* getting chucked around. A gaze at the gauges and how high the oil temp went confirmed this!

Had loan of a black 159 (while my Friday afternoon Brera was getting fixed). It was black with a red leather interior. Man that was a ****ing sexy motor. 'Twas a 4 pot diesel but those seats and colour combo were stunning.