Thursday 20th May 2010

New Alfa Spider Study Keeps The Pot Boiling

Factory collaborates with students for modern take on classic roadster

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Alfa Romeo is maintaining a healthy interest in the iconic Spider concept, and this little machine is the latest product of some virtual pencil-sucking by design students at the Polytechnic of Milan.

The students were tasked to come up with a new Spider by the Fiat Group, and while arguably not as pretty as the impossible-to-pronounce 2uettottanta by Pininfarina shown at Geneva recently, this version by Alberto Gaiani, Massimo Paparella and Michela Zedda does provide some interesting insights into how a more modernistic Spider could look.

The design retains a traditional front-engine, rear-drive format, pleasingly eschewing the trend to 'hybridise' everything. Otherwise, historical references are thin on the ground, apart from the classic Alfa shield, of course.

We're not blown away by the exterior styling, we have to admit, but the interior looks quite appealing. Apparently the brief was to simplify the cockpit to its essential elements.

Still, whether you like this particular design study or not, it is reassuring to note Alfa's continued engagement with the Spider concept. Given the rapturous reception awarded to the 2uettottanta, and recent pledges by Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne to shake-up the Alfa brand, who knows where it's all going to lead...

 

[soad]

Yawn - yet another virtual rendering.

Does look okay actually for what it is.

[JamesJTS]

In comparisson to the beautiful 2uettottanta concept it looks like a faceless GM take on a BMW Z4, with the Alfa shield as an afterthought.

C- must try harder

[Beefmeister]

Looks like the bd lovechild of an old Z4 and an Opel GT...

Lovely interior though...

[[AJ]]

JamesJTS said:

In comparisson to the beautiful 2uettottanta concept it looks like a faceless GM take on a BMW Z4, with the Alfa shield as an afterthought.

C- must try harder

Yawn indeed. It really does look very generic and that interior is about as inspiring as a brown paper bag.

[Gizmo!]

I do hate knee-jerk "it looks like a..." posts, but in this case...

[Beefmeister]

Exactly. See my post a couple up from yours...

[jimmyjam]

I am a die hard Alfa fan but that is not right....its a Z4! Bring back sweeping curves

[Gizmo!]

Beefmeister said:

Exactly. See my post a couple up from yours...

Haha, great minds.

I was looking for a good picture and got distracted by w*rk

[Snoggledog]

Looks like a VX220 was hit by a Z4. Poor effort from the Milan students.

[annodomini2]

take z4 model, check

tweek it and add some alfa esque highlights, check

done, lazy buggers

[jains15]

So after releasing the wet-dream-in-metal pics of the 2uettottanta, they release pics of this? Shocking.

As always, 1 step forward 2 steps back from Alfa. I'm not gonna do a 'Looks like an X crashed into an X' type post but will echo what said above. What's that interior? so dull! And the exterior so uninspired. Come on Alfa, build the 2uettottanta and let these students get back to their Peroni.

[tridave]

annodomini2 said:

take z4 model, check

tweek it and add some alfa esque highlights, check

done, lazy buggers

Think they must be BMW/Audi sponsored students

[Morba]

2 many angles, not enough curves.
Not impressed.

[timrw81]

Doesn't set me on fire but I quite like it. The angles are within the curves, reinforcing the curves. Looks a nicely balanced shape overall and looks like it would be a driver's car, a la MX-5 mk3.

Edited by timrw81 on Thursday 20th May 13:24

[havoc]

Gizmo! said:

I do hate knee-jerk "it looks like a..." posts, but in this case...

My thoughts too. Nothing to do with the Fiat/GM partnership then at all, eh? No, 'course not...

[MitchT]

From the front it looks like a Budgie.

[jamieboy]

havoc said:

Nothing to do with the Fiat/GM partnership then at all, eh? No, 'course not...

The partnership that ended five years ago? Seems unlikely, if I'm honest.

[havoc]

jamieboy said:

havoc said:

Nothing to do with the Fiat/GM partnership then at all, eh? No, 'course not...

The partnership that ended five years ago? Seems unlikely, if I'm honest.

Perhaps...but IF there's enough of a relationship still there (and I recall how it ended), then GM are very cash-strapped and have an under-used 2-seat FR platform fully-designed and with some now-redundant tooling, and Alfa are equally lacking in resources and need a rwd car to try and convince everyone they've got their mojo back...

Not guaranteed, I agree...but at the very least the Alfa designer should be shot for copying an Opel design!

[LuS1fer]

Looks like a robot sucking a lemon and worse than a Saturn Sky.

[jamieboy]

havoc said:

at the very least the Alfa designer should be shot for copying an Opel design!

The "completely-unconnected-to-Alfa-design-students" should be shot, possibly.

Future Alfas are more likely to have rwd developed with Chrylser under the new partnership than bits and pieces of left-overs from the GM venture, I reckon.