But the label says it's a concept car ...
That's what Alfa Romeo has been saying at the car's unveiling in Geneva this week ... only to finish off its presentation by saying that it will go on sale next year.
The 4C has been conceived as the junior brother to the 8C, explaining the similarities the two Alfas bear in appearance.
The mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive Alfa would rival the likes of the Lotus Exige and, if the Italians are very likely to consider, the Mazda MX-5 in open-top Spyder form.
Super! What's the power like?
The 4C is currently being shown with a 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder (as 4C indicates; it's eight-pot in the 8C) petrol engine producing over 200hp. And twinned to Alfa's new TCT dual-clutch automatic, the Italians say the 4C can do 0-100kph in under five seconds.
It's a light car, too. Alfa is talking about an 850kg dry weight, although that could increase when it reaches production next year to house necessary features and safety requirements.
The 4C measures some 4m in overall length with 2.4m of it going in between the front and rear axles. Alfa says the 4C has a 40:60 front:rear weight distribution.
Will the 4C be priced to kill?
There's definitely no word on this yet, but don't expect the 4C to undercut the MX-5 (2.5 million baht in Thailand) in price.
True, the 4C is a car of the Mazda's size, but it should be in the breadth of the Lotus higher up at 4-5 million baht to additionally snare potential customers of the BMW Z4, Mercedes-Benz SLK, and Audi's much-rumoured R4.
Or who knows, the 4C could even scale higher up where the Porsche Cayman competes at 7-8 million baht. Remember the limited production 8C (at some 20 million baht) that has double the number of cylinders and ponies of the 4C's?
Looks like an Alfa dream car to die for.
Credit: Bangkok Post (www.bangkokpost.com)
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