I like Alfas but then again, as a petrol-head I’m supposed to. These cars embody is Italian passion and enthusiasm and Alfa Romeo is one motorcar company that has kept sight of its goals over the years.
The new car market is a very competitive and harsh place to be at the moment and it’s so easy for existing manufacturers to follow the pound and diversify their products accordingly. Alfa has diversified but not to the extent that their cars have become diluted by demand – there is a broad range of diesels, practical estates and generally modern yet timelessly classy cars.
Every Alfa Romeo that I’ve driven recently has been responsive, intuitive and attractive. The Brera is one of the prettiest cars you’ll see on the roads and the Spider has more than filled the shoes left by its ancestors.
The GT is just as gorgeous. Styled by the famous Italian coachbuilders Bertone, the sweeping lines of the 2+2 coupe lead the eye from an aggressively styled nose; unmistakeable with the Alfa-badged grille to a neat but shapely bottom.
The tested car was very kindly lent to me by Richard Sinton of Mervyn Stewart Alfa Romeo in Belfast. It was the range-leading ‘Cloverleaf’ edition with ‘Atlantico Blue’ paintwork (this looks great in strong sunlight – the reflective flakes in the lacquer really set it off). The 18” double spoke wheels complete a great look – it’s a head-turner.
The Cloverleaf emblem has its roots deep within the heritage of the heavily established car-maker. Legend has it that in 1923, one of the racing team’s drivers, Udo Sivocci found a four-leafed clover by the roadside and persuaded Alfa to paint the cloverleaf symbol onto his racing RL. He won the 1923 Targa Florio (Alfa’s first major victory) and since then, all racing Alfas have been adorned with the Cloverleaf.
Inside the surprisingly spacious cabin there are more subtle Cloverleaf emblems embossed on the sill-plates and centre console. The leather sports-seats are supportive and comfortable and there’s a load of nice little touches like the embossed Alfa emblem on the headrests, the leather steering wheel and the aluminium pedals.
There’s also a great Bose sound system with post-amp and a thumpy sub-woofer and dual-zone climate control.
The supplied car was the diesel 1.9JTDm. This is a highly evolved high-output 16-valve motor that produces 150BHP and is married to a nice snappy 6-speed ’box. This car will complete the 0-60 sprint in 9.6 seconds and carry on to a top speed of 130 MPH – that‘s really not bad for a car that can return 45 MPG (combined). The more powerful ’Q2‘diesel version of the GT Cloverleaf will return around the same consumption figures but produces 20 more BHP and will achieve 0-60 in 8.2.
It seems easy enough to buy yourself a high-output, torquey diesel these days but actually getting one that can transfer its power to the road in a manner that you can live with can be pretty tricky. However I was more than happy with the way the GT performed – most of the things I don‘t like about sporty diesels just weren‘t present; you know the sort of thing - nasty ticketty noises, clunky gear-changes due to an over-sized flywheel, annoying short gear-shifting, weird power-bands, endless lag and the nose-diving like a hungry guillemot under braking.
On corners, the GT was excellent. Well-balanced, great feed-back and a nicely planted feel when you push it. There‘s no discernible lag so it‘s responsive and punchy on the exit, just when you need control. There‘s even a wee bit of controlled torque-steer, which is refreshing – most of today‘s cars have traction control that‘s too invasive to allow it.
The multi-link rear and double-wishbone front suspension have been beefed up a bit by heavier springs to allow for the extra weight of the diesel engine but apparently at no cost to the handling.
This car has amazing performance dynamics – it‘s one of the best sports-diesels I‘ve driven.
Post your comment
Paul Green
Captain_Grumpy
Post your comment