17/10/08

• Price24,950
• We like...Looks, engine note
• We don't...Tricky clutch action

Race-bred S takes the regular Brera and gives it a sharper edge - but ds it make for the most full-on Alfa yet?This Brera is a car bred in Italy – but tamed for the UK’s roads. Unlike its range-mates, the Brera S is a UK-only edition and sales are limited to just 500 cars. Tuning and performance specialist Prodrive has worked on the springs, dampers and steering to produce a harder-edged drive.

Has it worked? Certainly, this Brera feels a brute. The steering is precise and weighted, needing a little more muscle than we’re used to giving – but it leaves no doubts at all about where the car’s heading. The ride, meanwhile, is firmer than firm. You can tell just what the road beneath the car is doing and, while it frees at speed, it isn’t relaxing and it’s never floaty. But then if you want either quality, this car’s not for you.

The engine booms and roars, sounding even more up-for-it than its 2.2 litres and 185bhp is capable of. A sharp clutch and eager throttle make this a car that requires and patience before you’ll see its best. If you’ve not driven one before, take a long test drive before buying. It may not suit.

 It looks terrific. While all Breras look to us like ‘proper’ Alfas should: distinctive, definitely Italian, and beautiful, the ‘S’ gs the extra distance. Bespoke alloy wheels, big twin exhausts and Prodrive-liveried stone deflectors at the front conspire to make it look meaner. And then tuned silencers give it a harder, more urgent bark as it covers ground.

Inside, black leather covers the fatly padded chairs and dash, stitched with red thread. On other cars such a colour combo might look daft, but here it’s just fine. The centre console is a sheet of textured metal, with fuel, water and oil gauges set deep into it and angled toward the driver, while the seats and wheel adjust every which way. Oddly, the seat recline is electrically adjusted, but everything else tunes manually.

It’s comfy and plush sat up front but, although four seats are installed, the rear pair badly lack legroom. It’s better to leave their backs dropped and use the Brera as a car for two with a generous boot. Talking of which, there’s good space back there even when the seats are up and it’s easy to get to thanks to the Brera’s rear hatch.  The boot has a high lip on it, making heaving suitcases over it a chore.

The Brera is as yet a new model, so second-hand ones are scarce. Alfa prices have a habit of falling rapidly as they age, so we’d expect to see some bargains once there are sufficient year-old examples for sale. That’s great news for buyers but disappointing for owners come trade-in time.

The Brera S is a car on its own – you’ll rarely see another so focused. But when you could have an Audi TT or a Mazda RX-8 for similar money, the Alfa struggles. Both are full-on drivers’ cars – but they are also easier to drive to the shops, and both will lose value more slowly over time. Pitched against them, the Brera is expensive, and narrow in its appeal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

View new and used Alfa Breras on motors.co.uk

• Engines2.2
• Power185bhp
• 0-60 mph8.6secs
• Economy30.7
• CO2g/km218
• Insurance groups15
• EuroNCAP
• Airbags7
• Seats4

Motors.co.uk value verdict: