The original concept was a rear-drive, Maserati V-8-powered machine. As it made the trip from turntable to dealership, it shrunk a bit and morphed into a front-driver, offered with a variety of four- and six-cylinder engines. My guess is had it remained a larger V-8 2+2, it would have been a little too close to the GranTurismo for corporate cousin Maserati's liking. But its fabulous looks remain intact, and this way, more people can afford them.
Wide for its length, the Brera is striking from any angle. It's hard to say what it would directly compete with in the U.S.; perhaps Hyundai's upcoming Genesis coupe, an Audi A3, the swoopy new Accord coupe.
My tester is a V-6 six-speeder, and if there's one thing Alfa has always done well, it's the motor. The Brera sounds terrific, exhaling deep through its quad-tipped exhaust. It's a smooth revver, with more torque than you'd expect of a smallish, high-revving V-6. You won't confuse the shifter with that of an MX-5, but it's as good or better than most front-drive manuals. The steering is also nicely weighted with acceptable feel, and there's little to no torque steer, unless you crank the wheel and punch it in first gear.
In proper Alfa tradition, there are two hooded main gauges in front of you, and the ancillary instruments are on the center stack. Love the seats: nice leather, great support, handsome finish and stitching, and they motor forward to allow access to the back seats.
The interior fit, finish, and materials won't scare Audi or VW, and there's a rattle or two. Otherwise, my biggest challenge is still getting the nav to speak English, as my pig Italian can't quite keep up. I haven't sampled any hard cornering yet; it's been raining and I've been in the flatlands. But I'll be in the hills in a few days and will report back to you on the Brera's twisty-bit capabilities.
You may be asking "why the photo in front of a boring parking-lot building?" Turns out this site in Modena was the original home of Alfa Romeo's Grand Prix racing team in the '20s and '30s. And it was run by a young, recently retired racing driver named Enzo Ferrari.
