Content Starts Here
First drive: Alfa Romeo Brera S
First drive: Alfa Romeo Brera S
Search: More on the Alfa Romeo Brera S
It's always had the looks, but is the latest Prodrive-fettled Alfa Romeo Brera S a serious rival to the Audi TT and Nissan 350Z? We find out...
What is it?
Originally a concept at the 2002 Geneva Motor Show, the standard Brera was launched in UK in 2006. Sadly, underneath the dramatic looks, the dynamics have never quite lived up to the drive. So, to keep Brera buyers happy in the UK, Alfa Romeo have created the Brera S, which they claim will deliver a sportier driving experience and exclusivity, with just 500 available for the UK market.
What's changed?
Alfa have enlisted the help of Prodrive - a world leader in motorsport to transform the Brera. The result of a year's work mostly revolves around the suspension and damping. There are bespoke Eibach springs and Bilstein dampers all round, lowering the car by 10mm. The unique 19-inch alloy wheels not only look gorgeous, but reduce the unsprung mass by nearly 10kg. Other Prodrive changes include the stainless steel twin sports exhausts (which are styled in the shape of the rear lights) and neat little mudflaps at the front.
No change under the bonnet
The Brera S is available in 2.2-litre four-cylinder and 3.2-litre V6 versions. Performance remains unchanged from standard but the V6 is only offered without the Q4 four-wheel drive system saving 100kg in the process. In the V6 version, 62mph comes up in seven-seconds, which is not class-leading, but the new Prodrive sports exhaust is shown to its best advantage with its deep howl encouraging spirited driving.
Prodrive might have been able to save weight in the Brera, but this has had little effect on the fuel consumption figures. The 3.2 V6 is the most satisfying to drive, but in these fuel-conscious times, a Combined fuel consumption figure of 25.7mpg and Co2 emissions of 260g/km do little for its green credentials.
What it's like to drive
The engines maybe unchanged, but ride and handling modifications are a Prodrive speciality and you can feel the difference from the moment you move off. The S feels lighter, with far more communicative steering and eager turn in. The standard Brera had a reputation for wallowing round corners, mainly due to the weight. Whilst it's obvious there's still a lot of car being hustled around, the S feels sharper and more responsive. More surprising is the ride quality, which despite the modifications hasn't appeared to have suffered in the transformation to S spec. In our view, the V6 felt far more composed than the unsettled JTS.
On the inside
The Brera's interior looks the part too, with a mix of the modern with classic Alfa Romeo interior styling cues. All Brera S models have seats trimmed in soft black Italian Frau leather with contrasting red stitching. There's a plaque with the British and Italian flags inserted into the seats, just in case you forget you're driving something special. V6 models feel even more luxurious as the dashboard, doors and gearlever are finished in matching leather. Other Brera S standard equipment includes a six-disc CD autochanger, rear park distance sensors and sporty aluminium pedals.
Tiscali verdict: Overall, I like the Brera S. The changes made by Prodrive are in the main very successful. The removal of the excess weight gives a purer, more involving driving experience, without compromising comfort. At just £1,455 more than the standard model, these changes are good value.
Fancy a closer look? Check out our Alfa Romeo Brera S gallery
Advertisement starts
Advertisement ends
TalkTalk Quicklinks. Please visit our Accessibility Page for a list of the Access Keys you can use to find your way around the site, skip directly to the main navigation, to the page content, or to more links within homepage.
Page Footer
Access keys
You will need to use different key combinations in order to use access keys depending on your internet browser, find out which on our accessibility page.
- (0) Navigate to Accessibility page.
- (1) Navigate to Home page.
- (2) Navigate to My email.
- (3) Navigate to My Account.
- (4) Navigate to Site Map page.
- (5) Navigate to Contact us page.
- (6) Navigate to Members channel.
- (7) Navigate to Services channel.
- (8) Navigate to News & Info channel.
- (9) Navigate to Entertainment channel.
- ([) Skip down to the Primary navigation block.
- (]) Skip down to the more links within this section block.
- (=) Bypass all navigation and jump to the content.
- (x) Text only version of this page.
