Burn

The Alfa Brera is a stunningly beautiful car.

Sadly, within it's class, it is very heavy, and handles like a Hummer wearing high heel shoes.

Enter Prodrive (the Subaru rally car people), to create a 'new' UK version of the Brera, called the S (for Speciale). It has reworked suspension using Eibach and Bilstien components, sits lower, and has new lightweight alloys.

Mechanically it also has a new exhaust system, and the 3.2 V6 version has had the 4WD system stripped out to reduce weight, so it is now front wheel drive only.

Unique Prodive leather trim completes the makeover.

All this work costs only £1500 over and above the standard version, and as only 500 will be made, it is undoubtedly a future collectable.

What's my point? Well as desirable as this car is (I want one purely for the way it looks), what in effect you have here is a car so bad that it has been handed over to a third-party to put it right.

End result is a still too heavy car with 50% stiffer suspension.

To whit, you may not end your journey with the same number of teeth you started out with.

In summary: Beautiful, but hard to live with. The Brera S is clearly the trophy wife of cars.