Badge Of Honour

Sydney Morning Herald

Friday October 17, 2008

Susan Bredow

Alfa Romeo celebrates Casey Stoner's MotoGP championship with a car that recreates the thrill - and thrum - of the track.

Are women more sensitive to noise than men or is it just me? I get very unsettled if there is a noise that somehow touches a nerve.

I notice it most often at home when someone on the couch with the remote in their hands spends more than a few minutes searching for something on television. There is something especially irritating about the music Foxtel uses to back its channel guide and after a few minutes - even if I am not in the same room and focused on something quite different - I begin to feel irritated.

I've had a couple of weeks on the trot in cars with less-than-ideal sound systems. I mostly listen to news talk on AM, which doesn't require great audio, but occasionally I'll switch to FM and if there's something I like, it's nice to have the option to turn it up LOUD. That is, without producing a noise as if I've just run down the cat.

I tried that in this Alfa Romeo 147 - turning up the radio that is, not running over the cat - and got an appalling sound. It was bad enough to turn Toni Childs's distinctive voice into a distorted echo similar to what you'd expect at a concert held in a public toilet. Many rivers to cross indeed.

But road noise in this Alfa is not good either and the ride on 18-inch wheels, with their low-profile rubber, is horrible on a rough road. The big diesel rattles like a Massey Ferguson tractor, especially at idle.

But big noise is what you might expect from a car wearing motorcycle badges.

There could be many ways to celebrate a motorcyclist winning a world championship but Alfa Romeo has done it with this limited edition 147, which hails Casey Stoner's (pictured above) successful 2007 season aboard a Ducati. The link is that Alfa Romeo sponsors the rider's team but it is doubtful 20 examples of the Ducati Corse would be on sale here if Stoner were not Australian.

But here they are and - despite the noise, and an awful turning circle that calls for either a 20-point turn or the space of a football field to change direction - I really like this car.

It's packed full of excitement to the extent that you don't so much drive it as it takes you for a ride. Put your foot down and the amazing pulling power transferred from the gutsy turbo diesel to the front wheels can be startling, especially as this is a manual, so you are not likely to have both hands on the steering wheel. The car bucks as if charging out of a rodeo stall.

Put it into sports mode and it tends to better manage the power but because of this excitement - or alarming behaviour, depending on which way you view it - our household has never been so at odds over a vehicle. It was black and white, chalk and cheese. I loved it. He hated it. I say it's enormous fun to drive, handles really well and looks great. He thinks it's just plain dangerous with all that power going via the front wheels.

Alfa Romeo has worked to ameliorate this with Q2, a constantly variable differential that helps manage power distribution to the front wheels and control steering depending on road conditions and the driver's competence.

We did agree the 147's styling was very nice, especially such touches as the satin-finish exterior door handles and wing mirrors. The same finish on the gearstick is warm to the touch rather than the cold you'd expect from metal. There are metal sports pedals.

The interior is made for larger people, too. Unlike the usual narrow sports seats, the Alfa's are big and roomy. They are comfortable while holding you firmly under all conditions. They look super in black stamped with a Ducati Corse badge and finished with red stitching that is repeated on the steering wheel and gear lever casing.

There are ashtrays in the rear doors because the Italians who make Alfa Romeo are not as coy as the rest of the world when it comes to smoking in a confined space. Lots of other extras come as standard with this special model, such as red brake calipers, rear spoiler and red-rimmed sports instruments.

Then there are the things that are standard on every 147, such as cruise control, electric windows, dual-control air-conditioning and something labelled an "advanced audio system", with remote control buttons on the steering wheel, presumably so you can turn the sound down quickly should you get too enthusiastic.

ALFA ROMEO 147 DUCATI CORSE

Price $41,098.

Extras None.

Engine 2.0-litre turbo diesel.

Power and torque 125kW, 330Nm.

Transmission Six-speed manual.

Fuel consumption 5.9-litres/100km combined.

Safety Stability control, Q2 differential system.

Brakes Anti-lock with electronic brake force distribution.

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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