The 4C marked the long awaited return of Alfa Romeo to US shores after an eighteen year hiatus. The mid-engine two-seater demonstrates the marvels of Italian engineering at an attainable price. American buyers weren’t as impressed. Turbo lag – lots. Practicality – none. But no matter who you are, this car is an experience like no other.
Alfa originally estimated 1000 units annually capped at 3500 contingent on its carbon fiber tub manufacturer capacity. In reality though, this car never sold particularly well, perhaps due to its price point being comparable to the Porsche Cayman and Boxster. The German pair are undoubtedly the more capable daily drivers because well, they’re a Porsche. But because they are, you won’t have trouble spotting another one. Upwards of 30,000 units are sold in any given year. In total, Alfa sold an estimated 2188 coupes and spiders during its 8 yr run for the US market.
Alfa Romeo 4C Exterior
Italian, very Italian. Curves, swoops, and sexiness abound in the design of this car. What you can’t help but notice is how low this car is to the ground with clearance just a shade under 5 inches.
The car is compact and a touch longer than the Mazda Miata MX-5 with an overall length of 157”. But its width of 74” makes the 4C wider than a brand new Toyota Camry. This gives the car a planted look and not quite as toylike as the smaller Lotus Elise. With its prominent Alfa inverted triangle front and oversized air vents, chiseled side scoops and swooping front and rear arches, the car exudes the typical Italian flair for the dramatic. Add carbon fiber touches to the vent surround, optional carbon fiber on the mirror caps (as well as the front and rear crossbars on the spider), and you have the look of a much more expensive car.
The coupe ended its production in MY2019 with the spider soon thereafter in MY2020. Production numbers aren’t definitive, but the coupe will most likely be the rarer of the two. However, most 4C fans would probably opt for the spider as the open air experience retains the torsional rigidity of the coupe while only gaining a scant 22lbs.
Every painted panel is made from a lightweight composite material keeping the car to a feathery 2500 lbs for US models. The downside is that the paint is more susceptible to road debris and if repainted, a paint meter will not detect this. So it’s important to look for paint blends, overspray on bolts or any other tell-tale sign the car has been repainted.
One quirk amongst its many is the horn noise. The single horn sounds like a Dodge parts bin special – not befitting this Italian sports car. And you’ll need it in a land of oversized SUVs and pickups with the car’s height barely reaching the window line of these gargantuan vehicles.
Alfa Romeo 4C Interior
Given the expense of development and production for the lightweight bits of a limited production car, Alfa Romeo had to cut costs somewhere – and inevitably that was with the interior. Not to say that it’s god awful, but you can definitely tell it’s not where the money was invested.
The first thing you notice when you open the door is the carbon tub. There simply isn’t another car at nearly the cost that has one. And stepping in over the wide threshold, you do feel like you’re sitting in a race car. Many have compared it to sitting in a go-kart, but when was the last time you sat in one where you were surrounded by carbon?
The creature comforts are bare boned. Aside from A/C and electric windows, there are two cup holders which barely fit a can of soda, a flat pouch under the passenger dashboard for a few thin papers, an odd cell phone cubby to the door side of each seat and a small pouch area centered on the rear console.
The seats are thinly padded with composite backs to keep the weight low. There’s basically one seating position – upright. But it’s surprisingly comfortable if you’re a svelte person under 6ft tall. The steering wheel sits high for the low seating position, but lowering the wheel impedes the view of the speedometer and tachometer. The miniscule plastic paddles rotate with the wheel, so manual shifting while turning does get tricky.
The plastic HVAC controls are comically large in scale with the small interior and the head unit is a throwback to cars from the 80s with removable face plate. You’ll have to park at your local radio station in order to get any kind of reception, and if you’re expecting blutooth or Car Play, you’ll have to replace the unit. If you do have any CDs, the sound actually isn’t terrible since the cabin is so small. You can connect your phone for hands-free calling since Alfa did somehow manage to mount a microphone with exposed wire near the rear view mirror.
Alfa Romeo 4C Mechanical
Don’t let the seemingly banal 275hp fool you – the Alfa 4C is a seriously quick car. With the lightweight panels, sport exhaust, and lack of sound insulation, this car feels even faster. There’s no finesse. It’s a raw experience – not for someone who prefers a tighter, smoother, linear experience. The turbo does take a second to spool up, but once it does, it launches the car to 60 in a speedy 4.1 sec. You really do have to hold on with two hands as the front of the car tracks every rut or groove in the road. It can be seriously unnerving at times, especially at higher speeds.
Back country roads are where the 4C excels. The double wishbone fronts with rear MacPherson struts keep the handling crisp and precise. Brembo opposed piston calipers bite hard and slow the car quickly – 150ft from 70mph. Much has been said about the modified Dodge Dart dual clutch transmission. It’s not the quickest DCT, but it’s also not as bad as some reviewers make it out to be. Would a 6sp be better? Some would prefer it, but the DCT nicely suits the car’s race car inspired ethos. The only quibble is the short steering wheel mounted paddles.
Alfa Romeo 4C Maintenance
Alfa Romeo has had a notorious reputation for not making reliable cars. Models from the 80’s like the Spider, GTV6, and Milano spent more time at the mechanic than on the road. And so when Alfa announce the 4C as its first car to mark its return to the US, people were naturally cautious. So far though, the 4C has proven its skeptics wrong. Maserati, part of the Fiat group, actually builds the car which may or may not have something to do with it.
Earlier models are now out of warranty, but late model 4Cs are covered for up to 4 years/50.000 miles from date of purchase. If your 4C does require work, servicing costs should be no more than comparable brands like Porsche.
Alfa Romeo 4C Desirability
Alfa Romeo has a storied history of building some of the most memorable cars like the 1939 8C 2900B Lungo Spider and the 1967 Tipo 33 Stradale. Alfa also produced more attainable cars like the GTV 2000, the Spider Duetto, and the GTV6 to name a few which in turn has created a loyal following.
You can’t help but stare at the exterior of the 4C. The interior, not so much. It unfortunately prevents this car from being a cohesive design throughout. But with all its quirks, it offers features you simply can’t find on other cars. This car certainly isn’t for everyone, but its uniqueness should keep the car desirable, especially amongst the Alfistas.
Assessment
Is the 4C’s future collectability guaranteed? The odds are in its favor. If Alfa GTs are an insight into the future, then the 4C shows promise. As an example, many more thousands of the ‘70s GTV 2000 were produced than the 4C, yet they’re enjoying a resurgence with valuation ranging anywhere to six figures depending on condition. Not bad for a car with an original MSRP of $6450 roughly translating to $35k in 2021 dollars. Prices of the 4Cs have been creeping up since their lows in the mid $30s but even at current prices hovering around $50k for a low mileage example, these still have the potential of creeping higher.
