Performance and Handling on Racetrack – Autodromo di Modena
There is a new, small racetrack 12 km west of Modena through the historic Via Emilia. The new track was built in 2011 next to the airfield of the town. It features a modern box building, 12 corners and a 480 m. straight. One “es” is designed to simulate the famous “corkscrew” corner of Laguna Seca. It is a small but technical and very safe circuit, ideal for testing a car like the 4C.
The Modena racetrack (https://www.autodromodimodena) doesn’t host international races, but often plays host to local car and motorcycle events, drift shows, track days, test sessions and a well organized Safe Driving School, the MO-Drive. The day we visited the place, Andrea Bertolini, the works Maserati driver and 2010 GP1 World Champion was testing his cart on the same circuit!
How does this explosive little Alfa drive in a racetrack? The car actually feels at home here but in the end is not as fun as you might expect. On the limit, the 4C is neutral to understeering. The carbon chassis is extremely stiff for a road car but it would be perfectly suitable for a Cup race series.
The car asks for great driving technique from its driver, especially on the entry of the corner. Too much on the wheel or gas will result to understeering that reduces speed and fun.
Brakes are excellent, very powerful with a great feel and are heat resistant. The engine is very torquey from very low rpm so on most corners you have to choose whether entering on lower gear with the engine screaming in the exit or with the next one, so that you can exit with lower rev but more progressively. Bertolini could tell us more about this but we think that 4C is a car better balanced with “plus one” selected gear. This makes an extreme car much easier to drive fast but less rewarding than the same car with a high-rev, VTEC like, aspirated engine.
For those of you that look at the pictures of this article and wondering how it feels drifting the new super-Alfa, we can say one thing first: the 4C is not made for drifting at all. Its setup is oriented to clean, racing like driving. It is pretty difficult to provoke a power drift on the exit of a corner as power is not enough for the given grip.
If you want to drift this Alfa, you need to flick it in a long, 3rd gear corner, like any front wheel car. When the rear wheels lose grip, then you can control a long drift with the gas – if you are good enough – or end up to a spinning – if you are not. This is also valid for a European grippy tarmac. If the road is slippery, like in India, the whole process might be much more straightforward…
So, what is the feeling we got after a day in the much expected Alfa Romeo 4C? First, that the concept of the car is really unique. It is more similar to Elise than to a Porsche Cayman. 4C is not an everyday car, a mid-engine alternative to a hot hatchback as it is not a GT car that you can use in the track. 4C is a genuine sports car, a real toy for the big boy that will drive it when he feels good to drive, after he has parked his everyday car.
We would prefer this Alfa to be a little bit more rewarding on the limit but this is not the case for the 99% of the people who will buy it. Let’s stick to more realistic facts: this Alfa is a collection item, at first. It features Enzo like technology (in miniature) and construction. It is a driving machine with a 90’s Ferrari performance with a medium size Euro6 engine and last but not least is so beautiful from inside out.
Finally, we would like to thank Alfa Romeo and their entire teams for letting us have a spin in this beautiful machine.
Akis Temperidis
ALFA ROMEO 4C TECH SPECS
Engine:4 cylinder turbo, direct injection, 1742 cc
Power: 240 bhp@ 6000 rpm
Torque:350 Nm@2200-4250 rpm
Transmission:Rear wheels
Gearbox: 6 speed, semiautomatic, double clutch TCT
Top speed: 258kmh
0-100 kmh: 4.5sec
Average consumption: 6.8lts/100 km
CO2 emissions: 157gr/km
Weight: 895kg
Length/width/height: 3989/1860/1180mm
Luggage: 110 lts
Next page for the detailed image gallery of the Alfa Romeo 4C>>>