Interior – Cockpit and Comfort
The new Alfa is not made for overweight, oversized people. Entering and getting out of the car needs some basic fitness. The seats are thin and lightweight thanks to a carbon-kevlar structure and they are pretty comfortable.
The cockpit is small as in a Smart and the quality is at the same standards. Hard plastics are used for weight saving and some familiar components (wheel switches and air ducts) from previous Alfa are used for cost saving and suit perfectly the essential look of the cabin. There is no moquette inside but the luxury of well finished carbon fibre and aluminium racing style pedals coming out of the floor.
Practicality is close to zero. There is no space for your iPhone between the seats or any door pockets. There is only a cup holder on the back of the console, 12V outlet, a small stylish bag for documents and a soft pocket in front of the co-driver. The old say that in a real performance car “there is only space for a toothbrush”. And that is literally valid for the Alfa 4C. Infact there is no space for even a toothbrush in this one.
The Experience – Sound, Vibes and Feel
The sound from the exhaust is loud and wild. The Italian 4cylinder has a bass and metal throat that may inspire or annoy – depending on the time of the day and the mood of the driver. Pressing and leaving slightly the gas pedal results to a snorting sound that resembles modified turbo cars. Personally we would prefer a more discreet inlet noise. Everything else is noisy in the cabin. Sound proofing does not exist, you get to hear the heavy metal rock without any barriers in its way.
The steering wheel is not assisted. You heard it right, its manual – a choice made on purpose by Alfa engineers for better road feeling and weight saving. It is very heavy on parking maneuvers and your girlfriend might hate it. Maybe that’s a good thing, for she’ll never want to drive your precious machine. Steering gets lighter in town but still not comfortable. But who needs comfort in a car like this? The wheel is flat bottomed and ergonomically not perfect where hands wrap it – it could have been a tad thinner we reckon. Rear visibility is non-existent, there is a tiny window only above the cylinder head but then again, such things don’t matter much in a car that very few will try to pass!
The feeling inside this Alfa resembles a racing car. Suspension is stiff – more than in a Ferrari 458 for example – so you feel everything from the road, even the smallest of the imperfection!
The gearbox paddles are mounted on the wheel and turn with it. They are short and plasticky – like in a Playstation wheel. We would prefer them to be mounted firmly, in longer size and possibly made of aluminium – if not carbon…
The TFT display that includes all information is fancy yet practical. We still prefer analog clocks but we admit this is a well designed unit. The background color and speed digits change according to the selected DNA mode and the graphic rev-meter is well visible though not as well as in an analog clock. On race mode there is even a G force graphic cycle!
Centre console ergonomics are similar to the ones in modern Ferraris. There is no drive selector stick but buttons like R, 1 and N. The there are buttons for transmission control and launch control. The DNA switch needs to be tilted for more than 5 seconds to choose the Race mode.
Handling and Dynamics
First I tested the car on the Emilian Apenin mountains, around Pavullo town. Black ice was present on shadowy corners and the environment was pretty alpine after the first snow.
The Alfa 4C accelerates like a sport motorcycle and gets to three digit speeds easily in the shortest straight line stretch one gets. TCT gearbox provides fast and almost seamless changes and downshifts superbly with an instant dose of gas that adds drama to the whole driving experience.
Turbo boost tops early at 1800 rpm and from there to 5000-5500 power delivery is impressive. Post that level, all the way up to 6500 rpm (where the limiter cuts in) the power and exhaust is as not exciting. You can upshift whenever you want with the torquey turbo engine working hard, and still have all the power available at your right foot.
Steering wheel is fast (2.7 turns lock-to-lock) and reactive without any delay. It feels everything from the road – you can actually see your hands moving as the car undertakes a camber change or moves over the tiniest of road irregularities.
The brakes have a racing feeling as well. The pedal is heavy and firm but precise and progressive. On the road, the grip is so high that you will never notice the existence of ABS. The grip provided by the 18” front – 19” rear PZero tyres (included in the extra sports pack) is superlative.
You might think that a 900 kg, mid engine car like this with 240 bhp, loads of torque and a Mini like wheelbase (2.38 m.) would be very nervous on the limit. It actually isn’t! The 4C is firm like a rock and as a result you will hardly notice any electronic intervention or wheel slipping (on race mode) on a normal road.
To be honest, it is practically impossible for any driver to reach the car’s limit on an unfamiliar mountain road. Only on slow, 1st gear hairpins you can think you can brake the rear wheels grip. Anywhere else you will only feel a slight, instant and easily controllable understeer at the very limit! Suspension is very stiff in town but absorbs well the road irregularities and demonstrates great depth.
Next Page for handling on the racetrack>>>