2015 Alfa Romeo 4C Coupe And Alfa Romeo 4C Spider

Alfa Romeo announced in 2008 it would kick off a legitimate American comeback.

- Tom Tjaarda

The first wide-release product here would be the 4C, a rear wheel-drive coupe with a carbon-fiber monocoque and a transverse mid-mounted, turbo inline-four engine. Delightful news that pushed us to the edge of our seats, where we sat and itched for half a decade as Alfa’s release hit numerous delays. Finally, in 2013, we got our first shot at the 4C and immediately fell for it. The 4C then captured one of our 2015 All-Star awards for being “an unapologetic, unfettered, unfiltered sports car.” But were we being too kind, pouring praise over the brash little car because we wanted so badly to believe we weren’t waiting in vain? We had to be sure, and the surest way to do so was to spend a year with one.

A few pessimists predicted this would be a futile test of our own masochism, but most were excited by the prospect of spending intimate time with such an evocative driver’s car. We ordered a bright red 4C coupe with the $2,750 leather package, $1,800 convenience package, $300 black brake calipers, and $700 attention-grabbing exterior paint. It rang in at $64,445, making it the cheapest all-new exotic on the market. One of the least seen, too; Alfa said it would produce only 1,000 units of the 4C annually for the States, so chances were we wouldn’t confuse our 4C with someone else’s. When the 4C showed up at our Detroit office on a chilly spring morning, yours truly made an on-the-spot call that the Alfa couldn’t live more than a week in Michigan, worried that the horribly pockmarked roads would beat it into submission.