The Alfa Romeo 4C Spider Is a Tiny and Unpractical Little Monster

By Jerry Perez - August 17, 2016

Yes, I said unpractical. But honestly, who cares! I recently had the chance to spend five glorious days with an Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, and my outlook on what’s necessary, good, or bad in a car has forever changed.

I’m a big guy, so getting in and out of a carbon fiber tub that basically sits on the ground isn’t necessarily easy, or glamorous. In fact, it can get somewhat comical depending on how tired you are, or how many people are looking at you while doing it. But, none of that matters, the magic of this Italian little monster lays in everything else that has nothing to do with comfort, or common sense.

For starters, there’s no power steering on this bad boy, so parallel parking will take a while, and you will in fact look a little silly to the many bystanders that are already gathering around the car while you’re trying to avoid hitting other cars, because the parking sensors don’t work (that well). The seats offer minimum padding, aren’t height adjustable, don’t have lumbar support, and have kevlar backing, so contouring to your back isn’t really a priority.

Then there’s the soft top. It weighs just enough to be impossible to throw on top with one hand (unless you’re Hulk Hogan). And if it’s raining (which happened to me), you’ll have to open your door to access the trunk release latch, hop out of the car in a hurry, lift the trunk with both hands, position the trunk rod to hold it open, grab the roof with both hands, and then strap it on. By then, the interior will be soaked.

That being said, all of those quirky Italian character traits couldn’t matter one single bit, because this 237-horsepower, 2,465-pound car is driving pleasure on wheels. The Alfa Romeo 4C Spider made me forget about most of my troubled and underpaid automotive journalist life, and it gifted me the most enjoyable, telepathic, and happy driving experience I’ve enjoyed in a very, very long time. And for that, I love this car.

Goodbye, little monster, you will be missed.