By Jason Dawe
I’m no movie buff but I will never forget The Graduate, not because of the plot — in which Dustin Hoffman’s character is seduced by an older woman, Mrs Robinson, then falls in love with her daughter — but because of the car he drove, a 1967 Alfa Romeo Spider.
Forty years on and that very car is standing in front of me in the car park of a San Diego hotel, sunlight reflecting off its blood-red coachwork. It looks hardly a day old.
It is here to act as a foil for a car that is being billed as its spiritual successor: the 2007 Alfa Romeo Spider due to hit showrooms next month. What better way for a company to play up its association with the machines that made its name — cars that encapsulate the romance and passion of motoring.
But before we get to the modern Spider, a quick chance to test its predecessor. “The brakes, handling and steering are all a little bit more delicate,” warns the Alfa Romeo chief engineer.
At the first corner I see what he means: in 1967, when most cars had four-speed boxes and drum brakes, the Alfa’s extra ratio and disc brakes were quite exotic. But today the standard wheels and tyres scream in protest as I take the gentle lefthander at 30mph, while the brakes, too, take a little getting used to. Anticipation is your best defence. These anchors don’t like surprises.
But driving the old Spider was the entrée; the main course is the 2007 version. Sharing its underpinnings with those of the Brera coupé the new Spider hopes to compete with the likes of the BMW Z4 and Audi TT for the hearts and cash of Europe’s lucrative soft-top buyers.
That’s a tough challenge but Alfa is bullish about achieving it, an attitude reflected in the price. The new Spider is no cut-price competitor: if you can afford the Spider you can afford the German rivals, and Alfa Romeo clearly believes this car is good enough to compete on a level playing field.
The entry-level 2.2 litre petrol model starts at £25,995, although once optional extras are added that price can balloon. The one I drove featured leather upholstery (£1,000), sat nav (£1,450), electric seat adjustment (£800), xenon headlamps (£700) and a Bose stereo upgrade (£600). An entry-level car for a tad over £30,000 is an ambitious move.
But soft-top cars sell predominantly on looks, not price, and in the beauty stakes this Alfa is a stunner. Compared with the BMW Z4’s rather ungainly looks and the Audi TT’s conservative recent makeover the Spider is in a different league. Nothing this side of a Lamborghini or Ferrari has such kerb appeal.
The cabin is equally alluring. There’s the distinctive instrument binnacle that keeps information such as revs and speed a private matter between driver and car, together with three additional dials for olio (oil), acqua (water temperature) and benzina (fuel), which are mimicked above by three air vents. The fact that each dial’s function is written in Italian is a nice touch and reminds you that you are sitting in something a little bit special.
But what impresses most is just how well screwed together this new Alfa Romeo feels; there is nothing flimsy or flaky about this interior. German car makers should be afraid.
It’s so good that when you slot in the “key”, press the start button and the 185bhp engine fires up you can’t help but be slightly disappointed. The engine has none of the rasp you expect and no exhaust note to quicken the pulse.
A light dab of the brakes sheds speed at a rapid rate of knots, and having mentally adjusted to the old Spider it takes some getting used to. The steering, which is also speed sensitive, is well weighted and the standard six-speed manual gearbox feels close to perfect.
But when the Californian highway opens up and I drop a cog and floor the throttle, little happens. Yes, the car gains pace but no more quickly than a reasonably powerful Ford Mondeo diesel. This Spider contains no venom.
Alfa Romeo quotes a 0-62mph time of 8.8sec and a top speed of 129mph for the 2.2 litre version. For the money and looks you’d expect better.
And better there is. The flagship V6 model boasts an extra 75bhp and four-wheel drive. Visually, save a set of larger alloys, the V6 looks identical, and with no badges to distinguish it from its smaller brother some owners may feel a bit peeved that they have spent a full £5,255 more and have little to show for it.
But start the engine and the differences begin to reveal themselves. The V6 motor sounds lovely, still on the quiet side but distinctly Alfa-esque. Build the revs, dump the clutch and with all four wheels putting the power down the acceleration is more vivid.
A 0-62mph time of 7sec is hardly super-league stuff nowadays — a 3 litre BMW Z4 takes less than 6sec for the same sprint — but it puts you in the top 5% of road users.
With more power to play with you also get to appreciate how good the chassis is. I’m sure the team at Alfa Romeo would admit that this car could easily handle another 50bhp.
The latest Spider, then, lives up to the reputation of its illustrious forebears. It oozes charisma in an age when motoring can often seem expensive and monotonous. And compared with its prudish German competitors the larger-engined Spider also has something of a devilish streak lurking beneath its immaculate and classy exterior. Mrs Robinson would love it.
