Video of the Week: Alfa vs. Lotus at Cadwell Park

Cadwell Park, for those who haven't heard of it, is one of the finest club circuits in England. I for one would love to drive there some day. Enjoy this awesome video, taken from the Alfa driver's point of view as he chases a Lotus Europa all over the track. The audio is worth cranking to the max. A pure mechanical symphony!  This is why you don't use a go-pro, friends. You'll NEVER get audio like this!

Niki Lauda and Junior Z

After the Run out East, I was lucky enough to find these two Alfas together at sunset by the harbor in Montauk. Both cars belong to members of the NY Alfa Owners Club. The Spider is a Niki Lauda edition, and the Junior Z is freshly restored in a lovely Le Mans Blue! Click HERE for the full gallery!

Montauk Motoring

We attended the "Run out East" this weekend, which is a small, but growing Italian car show held in Montauk.  Here is my GTV6 visiting the famous montauk Lighthouse, which stands at the very Eastern tip of Long Island. More photos to follow.

Object of Desire: Alfa Romeo 2000 Spider

Between the more glamorous and powerful Ferrari and Maserati Grand Touring roadsters of the early 60s, and the tiny but affordable Giulietta and Duetto Spiders, the Alfa 2000 Spider seems to have gotten a bit lost in the shadows over the years. It offers the impressive scale and elegance of the more expensive cars at a fraction of the price. And while it's no match for the Ferrari V12, the DOHC Inline 4 of the 2000 Spider still gives a great sound and decent grunt.  Compared to the Duetto or the Giulietta Spider, the Carozzeria Touring-designed 2000 is far more aristocratic and impressive, not to mention roomy. In short I think it's an underrated classic, and one that is pleasing in its relative obscurity.  It's a car I'm not sick of seeing everywhere. This particular example is available at Exotic Classics of Syosset, NY.  The car is mostly original but has been cleaned up here and there over the years giving it a tidy yet lived-in feel. I don't like the chrome Borrani wheels, but those could be easily changed out for the factory wheels.  Exotic Classics does a great job photographing the cars they sell. Click over to see there whole set HERE.

The Toyota GT 86/Subaru BRZ: The RWD coupe Alfa should be building

By now the hype regarding the new RWD bargain exotic co-developed between Toyota and Subaru is all over the internet. In particular, the most recent Chris Harris video (below) makes it clear that this car will really be something special for all those who love RWD sports cars with soul.

Watching Harris powerslide the GT 86 through the corners of Jarama grinning ear to ear, I couldn't help but ask myself why the hell Alfa isn't making a car like this anymore. Sure there is the 8C, but it's a limited edition toy for the few, not a volume fun machine for the many, as the GTV6 and Giulia Sprint/GTV were.  Instead, Alfa is planning the inexplicable mid-engined 4C to be their entry-level sports car. And I just have to ask why they can't just go back to a winning formula of making great-sounding, great handling RWD cars that look sensational, at prices that compete with Infiniti rather than Aston Martin.  As an Alfista, I feel this new Japanese offering is the closest thing to what an Alfa is supposed to be like, but it lacks two crucial components: The sound and the looks.  My quick 15 minute photoshop job up top is not meant as a suggestion of what the car should look like, (it's still pretty ugly) but rather how much I long to see the Alfa Grille on anything approaching an affordable front-engine, RWD sports coupe again. I do hope the production 4C will exceed my expectations, but until then, I will keep dreaming of the day when Alfa finally gets back to the cuore sportivo.