Alfa’s new Spider is derived from the Brera coupé, yet in many ways the open-topped design better suits the platform’s short wheelbase. Three engines are available: a 2.2-litre four-cylinder petrol, a 2.4-litre turbodiesel and a 3.2-litre V6 with four-wheel drive.
The Brera was Guigiaro-designed and its styling themes underpin the look of modern Alfas. But although the new Spider shares the Brera’s platform and frontal styling (indeed, all the panels back to and including the doors), the Spider has actually been designed by Pininfarina and Alfa Centro Stile.
One car, two styling houses. And why not? It’s not the first time: in the 1950s, Pininfarina designed the Giulietta Spider, derived from the Bertone-designed Sprint coupé. And the Giulietta’s rear haunches are echoed, says Alfa, by haunches over the rear wheelarch of today’s Spider, which Pininfarina builds in Turin, alongside the Brera.
Alfa also handed development of the hood to Pininfarina. It is a five-layered fabric affair, with five steel and aluminium hoops providing the support. It folds or erects in around 25 seconds at the touch of a button, automatically latching and unlatching to and from the car’s header rail.
The roof mechanism adds only around 60kg to the weight of the Spider over the Brera. But then the Spider is a tad shorter, has only two seats and does without the Brera’s glass roof. Worse news is that removing the roof has cut torsional rigidity by more than half.
Those who are familiar with the Brera or 159 will immediately feel at home inside the Spider. This is a classy interior that feels well-built. The faux-aluminium dashboard is straight out of other Alfas, right down to its three sunken dials on the centre console and cowled rev-counter and speedo, and it’s all focused around the driver’s widely adjustable driving position.
Yes, you read correctly: this is an Alfa with a good driving position. The nicely sized and shaped steering wheel arcs through a wide range of reach and rake adjustment; the seats have an impressively wide range of movement, too. The optional, deeply ribbed leather chairs of our test car also look great, and will surely only get better as they develop a patina. However, they are unflinchingly flat.
Cabin storage is reasonable. There’s a proper glovebox, small door bins and a few cubbies behind the rear seats and in the centre console, two of which house the roof button and boot release. The boot itself, at 200 litres, is big enough to be useful and its size is the same whether the roof is open or closed.
